Cable Modem
thetaxman
Washington
I just had a quick question.
My modem was taken from me by my step-dad, and I got another from a friend. It is an RCA modem, but it didnt work on his computer, only the first light blinked, but on mine, it seemed to work fine. All the lights turned on. The problem is, the internet doesnt work. It wont let me connect. I asked my friend and he said somethinga bout registering the new modems to your computer. If anyone has any ideas, please tell me.
Thanks
My modem was taken from me by my step-dad, and I got another from a friend. It is an RCA modem, but it didnt work on his computer, only the first light blinked, but on mine, it seemed to work fine. All the lights turned on. The problem is, the internet doesnt work. It wont let me connect. I asked my friend and he said somethinga bout registering the new modems to your computer. If anyone has any ideas, please tell me.
Thanks
0
Comments
Did you install any drivers when you attached the modem to your machine? What opperating system are you running?
You need to call the Internet provider or unplug and reset the modem WHILE THE COMPUTER IS OFF and then see if it will initialize (If it does then you have a chance of getting the computer to go online if the netowkring in the computer is right) and if not then you get to call your cable company for the one and only computer you want the modem to work with and have them repush a program to the modem. To test and see if your grandparent's computer will work on cable with a modem temporarily just resettign will gt you possibly an hour of srufing to a couple days-- but if modem will not initialize the cable provider has to know what modem exactly is now hooked to this account so they can tell their servers exactly how to talk to the modem.
The RCA's do not need drivers with: Windows 95,98, XP, or Linux. On Comcast, installing the drivers trashes networking on 98 and 98 SE and XP. Comcast uses a different firmware revision customized for them and intended to simplify modem setup-- install drivers, modem will no longer talk to PC. If you used an RCA CD, uninstall what it installed especially if you have Comcast. That is what I had to do 3 times-- lower thier techs kept saying it should work, higher level techs finally said not to bother and not bothering and uninstalling the already loaded drivers got me back online.
John-- who has gone through four brands of modems getting things working and ended up buying his own modem (Zoom Telphonics 5041) and every modem changeout except one or machine or NIC change to test required a call to Comcast and a new program pushed to modem firmware or a notification to Comcast so they could clear their records of old MAC from another PC out of modem and\or their servers.
What's the limiting factor to speed? The modem or the server? If the modem, then does anyone know if there are any cable modems that can spoof the MAC of another modem?
If the server, then oh well.
Unlike phone modems, cable modems themselves log on to the network. Not your computer. Once logged on, you can plug any computer into them and get on line.
If there is noise on cable due to bad insulation than that takes time for vmodem to filter. And the first modem models given out are slower than my provider can handle in my area-- got a faster modem, surfs some faster (about 15-30% depending on use in our area-- lots of neightbors gert on and it slows down).
If it is real slow, see what model you ahve and I can find out how old the model is and if it has been replaced. If you want to look yourself, look up the model number in google, find the mfr site and look at the specs. If it is a DOCSIS 1.0 it probably has been superceded. The Zoom 5011 was a DOCSIS 1.0. The Zoom 5041 is a multimodal 1.1\2.0 DOCSIS depending on firmware pushed to it.
DOCSIS 1.0 tops at about 1 Mbit, 2.0 at over three Mbits for same time frame (one second). Most cable networks are topping in some places at 3 Mbits (New Jersey, New York especially), while I am out in the semi-boonies for Internetworking.
I had a .8-.9 Mbit\Second rate average on a 3COM Home Connect given me when the RCA provided by Comcast got surged (by comcast's line). The RCA was getting about .9-1.2. The modem I finally ended up with gives about 1.2-1.5 Mbits per second-- same house, same computer, same cable line, but network was upgraded also.
That means the modem I have now is only able to get data flowing down 1.5 times faster than my slowest modem most often did. Upward feed to the internet with cable is about 1\10th downward feed from a server to a cable customer.
Thus, if you got cable to run a gaming server on, that is not a good idea as the cable network will slow the outward feed to a crawl by its way of doing things. For surfing it is super, for gaming DSL is as good or better.
DSL is slower down unless you are paying for an extreme premium for very high rates, but up can be 2-3 times the rate of cable. DSL is more balanced as to upward and downward rates,so your response doesn't take 10X longer to get completely there as opposed to the server's feed.
So, the answer is all the above plus some, to your Cable question.
John Danielson.
As several said.. You have to register the mac address of the new modem. Thats all really. Thats what the cable and dsl guys use to identify you when you connect. Its like a serial number thats unique for all cable/dsl modems. When you switch modems you need to call the cable company and have them update the mac address on file for you.
If my cable company cuts me off for non payment they do not come to my house and yank the cord. They do not let my mac address connect. I can borrow a neighbers modem in the day while he is at work and connect fine with my line and his modem. Because his mac address is OK on his modem. Is this clearer?
Tex