Solved Fluctuating Internet - WTF

[WebMattR]

No offense to the above poster, but I'd suggest you simply ignore that: I can't imagine your parents being appreciative of your reprogramming their router.

This is so annoying... since i last came here I have had no problems whatsoever.. And I haven't done anything to fix it >.> I don't understand... I don't even know if the problem is solved or if it's just a relapse

I would try simply using one of the Belkin adapters someone else in the house was using (if my memory serves), and see if the problem goes away.

 

[AmbrosialPariah]

No offense to the above poster, but I'd suggest you simply ignore that: I can't imagine your parents being appreciative of your reprogramming their router.

This is so annoying... since i last came here I have had no problems whatsoever.. And I haven't done anything to fix it >.> I don't understand... I don't even know if the problem is solved or if it's just a relapse

I would try simply using one of the Belkin adapters someone else in the house was using (if my memory serves), and see if the problem goes away.

Considering DD-WRT is just a firmware flash, there are step-by-step instructions it is not nearly as bad as you think it is, LoL. The basics are grab a Linksys [most supported but they have images for Buffalo Thompson and many others, grab the firmware image, open up your routers setup page, make sure you use a wired connection, and open the firmware flash page, choose the file you downloaded and press install and viola it switches over. I am not suggesting something that only techs can do or something that requires you to open your router physically or any of that bull. Trust me I had burned through several good wireless adapters with my network usage and kept having to either buy another or deal with a connection that kept dropping and reconnecting [and at times was stable [not long]] but sounds a lot like what this guy is dealing with. Not to mention you can buy a Linksys WRT54G I used a version 6 model and it has run super stably with no interactions from me for over 5 years now [aside from when I rotate my wireless password, but it gives you a web GUI that looks and feels just like the setup pages linksys already uses [they tried to match the setup closely for ease of use] online for beandnew for ~$40 US and on Ebay in packaging for ~$26 US so even if you want to buy one specifically for this you can still get 2 for the price of a nice PCI wireless adapter so to me it is WELL worth it and with all the instructions and forums online you can find information on what all the settings are [you can just log-in click 3 buttons and connect it to a network] or it gives you access to things like setting the trqansmit power, antenna bias, DHCP repeater, Web Proxying [you want to offer a hotspot that runs ads and forces folks to pay you, you can with DD-WRT] not to mention just the shear signal strength and stability from a dual antenna router with it's own power source, you can't beat the speed. Or if this does interest someone and they would like my help, instructions, etc. drop me a PM and I am more than glad to help you find a router, get it running DD-WRT or explain how to tweak some of the settings you may not understand to get the best performance, Please let me know.

 

[WebMattR]

Considering DD-WRT is just a firmware flash, there are step-by-step instructions it is not nearly as bad as you think it is, LoL.

I'm going to keep this light, so this thread doesn't derail horribly, but my point was more the fact that her parents probably wouldn't approve of her reprogramming their router. Also, as with the other thread, I don't think the router is the issue here, and, therefore, DD-WRT isn't a valid solution by my measure, and not something that should be quickly or lightly suggested, since it has the potential to make the situation more complicated.

 

[inaniloquent]

My belief would be that nobody else in your household is using half the traffic you are. That's a lot of bandwidth to be trying to consume between those two applications. Do you happen to know what speed your connection is?

If not, I suggest you go to SpeedTest.net/ and run their speed test, and report the results.

But Skype often fails even when I'm not using Minecraft... so I'm not sure if that's the problem.
Even so, my internet is crap. http://www.speedtest.net/result/1207050693.png
Yesterday, the download speed was just over 2MB...
Besides, it used to work fine, so I don't understand.

You are having a series of issues all coming together it sounds like ehre
A woreless connections are known to constantly drop/reconnect expecially when under heavy use. If you can not wire it directly check out DD-WRT and once installed you can use a Linksys [or other router they support] in the room where the comp is to wirelessly connect to the router you use for the internet and then use a cable from the router with DD-WRT to the computer. I switched from wireless to this setup a couple years ago and have noticed HUGE gains in stability and speed [I now have two wireless antennas instead of one not to mention routers are setup to transmit and receive with much higher power]. Then after you do that you will also want to port forward Skype's ports to your machine specifically as Skypes seems to always have issues with NAT.
You could also make sure the person hosting the call is the one with the fastest upload and download speeds as some skype calls will have issues if the machine being used to host the call can not keep up with the other computer [and your gaming as well]
ALSO I would recommend you try another program built-in for gaming and talking while gaming specifically [I know there is Raptr [part of Steam and Free] I think there is RaidTalk that is popular. You may also want to check Skype and or MineCraft Settings [does it allow you to specify lower audio quality for your skypwe call [view advanced audio settings and if it mentions bit-rate, try choosing a lower bit-rate [128KBps is CD Quality you could prolly do something like even 56KBps [roughly good FM Station quality] and still have fine audio.
Also, you could get in to QOS [Quality of Service] settings if your router has them. This would allow you to say if there is data coming in on this port or from this address or has this type of data I want you to try to give it priority and drop other connections, but keep a certain amount of bandwidth open for this type deals.
Also go in to your network center, click to change adapter settings, click advanced tab and check for things like is it set to a low power setting? CHANGE THAT, is it set to turn off if comp goes to sleep CHANGE THAT, is it set to something less than 54G CHANGE THAT, etc [you get the point].
Finally Finally check out speedguide.net under broadband or tools for their TCP Optimizer. Once downloaded you can tweak all the registry settings to help Windows get the best speed out of your network [it is pretty good at helping non-tech users as well it has a slider you can set to your ISP speeds and it will set suggested settings.

OMG, Please try to use some commas the enter key every once in a while, that was so hard to read >______<;;
I don't really fancy reprogramming my router... also, the router is not the issue here, it's my PC.
It doesn't matter who is hosting the call, it always drops. If that were the problem I'm sure other people would have issues too. Besides this doesn't just affect skype, it also affects web pages too. Often I can't load pages because of this issue.
When changing my adapter settings, there is no 'advanced' tab, so I don't understand..
Also, I didn't understand anything on the speedguide.net website.

 

[inaniloquent]

No offense to the above poster...

I might try that, but I'm very worried that uninstalling the adapter will stop it from working altogether... I don't know if I'd be able to get it back. This PC has always been so unstable for its internet.

 

[WebMattR]

What about simply adding a different wireless adapter, and disconnecting the current one from the wireless?

 

[n0th1n9]

If all the other hardware components don't have poblems you want to consider replacing the coaxial cable if you are using one). I was having problems with my internet and long story short, it is much better after replacing the coaxial cable.

 

[inaniloquent]

If all the other hardware components don't have poblems you want to consider replacing the coaxial cable if you are using one). I was having problems with my internet and long story short, it is much better after replacing the coaxial cable.

What is a coaxial cable and how do I know if I'm using one?

 

[inaniloquent]

What about simply adding a different wireless adapter, and disconnecting the current one from the wireless?

So, just unplugging it and installing a different one without removing the old drivers should work? Will the drivers not compete/clash and cause issues?

 

[WebMattR]

If all the other hardware components don't have poblems you want to consider replacing the coaxial cable if you are using one). I was having problems with my internet and long story short, it is much better after replacing the coaxial cable.

What is a coaxial cable and how do I know if I'm using one?

Given that I'm not aware of a time when coxial cable was used for data transfer (unless he's referring to a 10Base2 network). Anyway, point is. $50 says you aren't using coxial.*

And in response to your second post: If you're worried about reconnecting that wireless adapter, then I'd say disconnect it from the wireless network, and set it to not try and connect to it, and then plug in the second one. In theory, you should be able to plug in a second one and have it then function. I still say that removing it, and then plugging the other one in is a better way to go, but if you don't want to remove it for whatever reason, that's fine.


*I'm broke, so I won't actually pay you if you win. Sorry.

 

[inaniloquent]

If all the other hardware components don't have poblems you want to consider replacing the coaxial cable if you are using one). I was having problems with my internet and long story short, it is much better after replacing the coaxial cable.

What is a coaxial cable and how do I know if I'm using one?

Given that I'm not aware of a time when coxial cable was used for data transfer (unless he's referring to a 10Base2 network). Anyway, point is. $50 says you aren't using coxial.*

And in response to your second post: If you're worried about reconnecting that wireless adapter, then I'd say disconnect it from the wireless network, and set it to not try and connect to it, and then plug in the second one. In theory, you should be able to plug in a second one and have it then function. I still say that removing it, and then plugging the other one in is a better way to go, but if you don't want to remove it for whatever reason, that's fine.


*I'm broke, so I won't actually pay you if you win. Sorry.

Sorry to be so late to get back to you; it was working fine for a long while but since a few days ago it has so dramatically fallen, I decided to do what you said.

And, stupidly and horribly and irritatingly, the belkin adapter that for months and months on end would not install on my computer last year worked first time yesterday and never, ever drops. I am so so so so annoyed that this is the problem! Especially since linksys are so much more expensive and supposed to be better..
My signal strength with belkin is actually lower, since the linksys one is a rangeplus adapter, but the belkin one does not lag or drop signal. Here is a ping comparison:

 

[WebMattR]

Well, pass the Linksys one back to your brother, and see if it works fine for him?

 

[inaniloquent]

Well, pass the Linksys one back to your brother, and see if it works fine for him?

Yeah, it's all crappy and buggy. I can't believe I wasted all the time troubleshooting when it was just my adapter.. thanks for all your help.