i'm a new cable modem user and my best speeds dl'ing a large file at (dl.com or tucows) is around 104 -108 KB/s. my cable service rep says that under the best of conditions i can't expect to do better than 128KB/s. yet i see references to other cable modem users who say they get much higher speeds (300-700 KB/s). i've applied the standard patches and reg tweaks. can someone tell me what the 128KB max is based on and whether i should be content with my speeds or complain to the cable service? Thanks, fastfade

If you are consistently getting 104-108 KB/s (i.e. 832-864 Kbps) to Web sites such as Tucows, you're doing pretty well. Some users do make it north of 128KB/s (1.024 Mbps), but many see far less. So, the performance levels you are seeing do not jutsify screaming bloody murder to your service provider. However, you should keep prodding them for improved performance.

What download speeds do you experience "on-net", that is, receiving files stored within your cable provider's network, compared to the internet at large? If the on-net speed is higher, you are suffering from congestion in their Internet backbone connection. If they are the same, either there is congestion on your local cable network, or the service provider is implementing a rate cap on your service.

In terms of the 128K Max gripe you hear about, this refers to upload speeds. @Home sets an upstream cap at 128 Kbps (not KB/s), which is pretty miserable.

thanks for your response. my on-net speeds are about the same as on the internet at large. could you exlain further the term "rate cap"? thanks, rookie

It all depends on your ISP. I lived in an area where I got 500KB/s steady. Then I moved and the area I am in gets only 60KB/S max. IT all depends on the ISP. @home recently dropped the Upload speed to 128kbps which is equal to 16KB/s.
If you have anymore questions email me.