Thanks for the reply.
Yes, I have tried different dial-up numbers. Actualy, there are about 9 different numbers. Some are better than others. I have had this ISP for a LOT of years and they have actually been pretty good. The dial-up number I use most often I have been using for the past couple years. LIke I said, I used to be able to go to ShoutCast Radio and steam low bitrate stations to WinAmp with no problem. Now, all it does is want to buffer every ten seconds. My modem has the latest/greatest drivers. I haven't changed anything. I have even dialed-up to another ISP (cousin's) and experienced the same thing. For web surfing, I have tried about every browser under the sun. I have always used Firefox with no problems. But now, even when pages start to load, the modem just stops receiving any data for a time (like a timeout) and then starts again for a bit, over and over again, until the page has loaded. This all just started about 5 or 6 months ago. The modem connects fine and at a good rate. I've upgraded the Java as required when new versions are released. Just not sure what's going on here, but something has certainly changed.
For the record, I don't ever recall seeing the "CPU Usage History" under "Task Manager" shaped like a "Saw Tooth" when I am connected. It's a night and day difference between when I am not connected and when I am connected. When I'm not connected, the "CPU Usage History" is a straight line and about 3% usage. As soon as I dial-up and connect, the usage starts jumping to 10% to 30%, up and down, like a saw tooth. That's just connected, not doing anything. When I start surfing or downloading something, the usage spikes up to 80% or 90% and then down to 10% and then back up to 80%. As soon as a page loads or a download finishes, the usage drops back to the smaller saw tooth pattern from 10% to 30%. When I disconnect, the usage goes back to a straight line around 3%. Device Manager shows no conflicts and everything running with no problems.
Yes, I have tried different dial-up numbers. Actualy, there are about 9 different numbers. Some are better than others. I have had this ISP for a LOT of years and they have actually been pretty good. The dial-up number I use most often I have been using for the past couple years. LIke I said, I used to be able to go to ShoutCast Radio and steam low bitrate stations to WinAmp with no problem. Now, all it does is want to buffer every ten seconds. My modem has the latest/greatest drivers. I haven't changed anything. I have even dialed-up to another ISP (cousin's) and experienced the same thing. For web surfing, I have tried about every browser under the sun. I have always used Firefox with no problems. But now, even when pages start to load, the modem just stops receiving any data for a time (like a timeout) and then starts again for a bit, over and over again, until the page has loaded. This all just started about 5 or 6 months ago. The modem connects fine and at a good rate. I've upgraded the Java as required when new versions are released. Just not sure what's going on here, but something has certainly changed.
For the record, I don't ever recall seeing the "CPU Usage History" under "Task Manager" shaped like a "Saw Tooth" when I am connected. It's a night and day difference between when I am not connected and when I am connected. When I'm not connected, the "CPU Usage History" is a straight line and about 3% usage. As soon as I dial-up and connect, the usage starts jumping to 10% to 30%, up and down, like a saw tooth. That's just connected, not doing anything. When I start surfing or downloading something, the usage spikes up to 80% or 90% and then down to 10% and then back up to 80%. As soon as a page loads or a download finishes, the usage drops back to the smaller saw tooth pattern from 10% to 30%. When I disconnect, the usage goes back to a straight line around 3%. Device Manager shows no conflicts and everything running with no problems.
