connectivity issues

[jslater25]

I am experiencing problems with internet service and reliability at home. Sorry, but this will be a long post with all the details:

I am using SuddenLink as an ISP after they bought out the local area's Cox Communicaitons business.

From the wall, I connect to my Toshiba PCX1100u modem. Lights and activity on this are normal, mostly. The Data light blinks 3 or 4 times, then has no activity for a few seconds, then repeats.

From the modem, I connect to a Belkin F5D6231-4 4port 802.11b router. The router will lose its connection once a month, but a simple restart of the router cures this. No big deal.

I then have a total of three computers connect through the wired ports on the router: 2 Windows XP Pro and 1 Windows Server 2003 (learning this still, so not connected to a domain or anything).

The internet connection is most noticeably a problem when playing games (AA, BF1942, etc) online. I can play uninterrupted for 15 to 20 minutes, then I lag out enough to be disconnected. Internet browsing can be problematic as well, but this isn't as noticeable, just some pages start loading slower.

I have already had support come out and check my signal strength. For the 10 minutes the tech was at the house, all was fine. But the guy didn't stay long enough to experience the loss in signal that has been fairly regular.

To make matters worse, this weekend my service went down mostly. I say mostly because I could open Internet Explorer (or FireFox) and open my homepage (Google, not cached). Browsing anywhere else resulted in a timeout error.

Calling support isn't much of an option because they said they would charge $100 for the next call.

Any suggestions?

[Train]

Does thaqt happen when you bypass the router?

[jslater25]

Just found out after a long wait on the phone that all of my small town using this ISP is experiencing problems currently. At least that explains why this weekend was so bad. Too bad we won't be receiving credits on our monthly bills....

I downloaded a firmware upgrade for my router. I will install that tonight. I also downloaded drivers to connect the modem directly to one computer (I have owned this modem for several years and can't find the original CD). So I will test <b>Train</b>'s suggestion tonight.

After reading a number of support sites, I am willing to bet my modem is the cause of my problems.