I take it there's not much point using this if you're using a wifi network?

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stuartea wrote:
I take it there's not much point using this if you're using a wifi network?

Well, I'm downloading at almost 1 megabyte/sec (equivalent to 8Mbps connection) on my college wifi network, so I think this can be useful.

It would be helpful if Apple would indicate what kinds of interent connections this would be useful for. Example: DSL and cable ISP are likely to experience significant benefit (or not).

I gave it a try and yes indeed it does feel faster.

I'm curious whether there downsides moving between LAN, broadband and WiFi networks. I don't have dial-up, but I've got multiple networks that I connect up to regularly with my PowerBook.

This is likely the same type of mod that the other mentioned mods were. In other words, it increases the size of the data packets your computer uses to communicate. There is a lot of overhead associated with each packet, so if you can send more data in less packets, then you reduce overhead and can transmit more data in less time. It will significantly improve the download speed of any connection that is considered 'broadband' (WiFi, DSL, Cable) and shouldn't be used with dialup. The packet sizes have been the same for years ever since modems were all everyone used, and were never (until now) adjusted to the age of broadband. In other words without the patch your broadband internet connection is using the vocabulary of a 4 year old (mostly 2, 3, and 4 letter words) and with the patch it will use much larger words like you might see in research papers.

Sending larger chucks of data has a major and detectable effect on the efficiency (or 'speediness') of a connection.

Tried it and it slowed my cable connection down. De-installed it and it went back up.

Of course, my cable connection (out in the boonies), only runs at 382Kbps (about 11 times better than I can achieve via dial-up) and this is for people with a 5Mbps or better connection.

Scott

I ran speed tests before and after with no difference in numbers. I was hoping that I would get more than 4900 up and 650 down. Suppose to get 6MB by 786.

Both my internet and local wifi networks are showing speed increases. It looks like about 10-20% - I'm particularly impressed with throwing files between my PB and my Cube. It's become much more useable.