Why has my internet connection speed gone all to hell?

Factual Questions
1

Sometime within the last week, my internet connection speed has regressed to circa 1992 levels.

It is my desktop that is pulling this stunt; my laptop - accessing the same modem - works great.

Laptop speeds: around 5000 kbps. Desktop? Currently, it’s at around 700; there were periods of time - this morning and yesterday - when it was more like 200.

Here is what I have done:
[ul]
[li]Reboot the PC[/li][li]Unplug the modem and router for 10 minutes[/li][li]Run Microsoft Security Essentials anti-virus and spyware scans[/li][li]Installed Avast & did a full scan[/li][/ul]

None of these had any effect (all scans showed no suspicious junk).

My next move is to install and run Ad-Aware.

I am most baffled as to why the two computers differ so much.

Any thoughts?
mmm

2

Can you say more about your network layout? Is your desktop going though a router? Your laptop? Are they using wired or wireless connections?

3

Pasta, you’re my favorite carbohydrate!

I went to check how, exactly, I was wired, and I found the ethernet cable disconnected from the back of the desktop. Doh! I unplugged it the other day when I was messing around with my DVD drive, and Did Not Plug It Back In.

So I guess I was running wirelessly (it’s an older machine so I’m not shocked at the poor wireless performance).

I plugged the cable in, took it for a spin, and I’m getting around 5700 kbps consistently.

I’ll keep an eye on it, though.

Thanks!
mmm

4

I’m surprised an older machine would even have Wifi built in. I still don’t see that as a usual option on desktops.

5

Agreed. I had one desktop that was self-built that offered a wireless option on the motherboard, but you still had to connect an external antenna if you wanted reception beyond a couple of feet.

6

I know that you’ve already found the problem, but running two virus checkers simultaneously - Avast and MSSE in your case - is not recommended.

7

I didn’t mean to imply that I ran them simultaneously. I didn’t.

And it’s not that old of a machine, maybe 4-5 years. Pretty crappy wireless performance, though.
mmm

8

I swear that my ISP subjects me to random slowdowns to try to goad me into buying the faster premium service. :mad:

9

If I may add, as a suggestion, check the phone jack or whatever the modem is connected. My modem was randomly dropping and go at half-speed. I checked everything and couldn’t find the problem. It turned out to the the jack splitter I was using for the phone and the modem. Someone had tripped and pulled it apart. Hence, I wasn’t getting a full connection. I simply removed the splitter and connected the phone line to the surge protector it was plugged into and haven’t have any problems since then.