speed

Google points to Iowa for sowing satellite antenna farm

Google announced earlier this month that it was gearing up to start laying fiber-optic lines in Kansas City, Kan., and Kansas City, Mo., to deliver very high-speed Internet access to residents. Now, the Web giant is setting it sights on Iowa, according to Data Center Knowledge.

"We are building a very small earth station project that is right next to our data center in Council Bluffs, Iowa," says Google spokesperson Jenna Wandres.

If all goes according to Google's plans, the antennas would receive feeds from broadcast networks and even be bundled with the high-speed fiber service, according … Read more

Brazil sues Twitter users over speed trap and traffic tweets

Twitter might have to decide quickly whether to start its new policy of removing tweets on a country-by-country basis.

Today, the attorney general of Brazil filed a preliminary injunction to block tweets and suspend the accounts of Twitter users who use the social-networking site to warn people about radar locations, speed traps, and DUI checkpoints in the Brazilian state of Goias, according to the news group O Globo.

The Brazilian government claims that these Twitter users are putting people in danger since police can't properly do their jobs and that the users are also breaking the country's penal, … Read more

Acrobat and Reader load faster with PDF SpeedUp

It's not surprising that Adobe's Acrobat and Reader are the top PDF tools, since Adobe invented PDFs, but if there's a factor driving the market for third-party PDF tools (other than cost, since Reader is free) it's the time it takes Adobe's big programs to load. What if Acrobat or Reader could load as fast as the lightweights? That's where PDF SpeedUp enters the race. It makes Acrobat and Reader load faster by disabling plug-ins, updates, splash screens, and other startup slowdowns. You can allow the plug-ins and features you want or enable them … Read more

Does Kindle Touch 5.0.3 software update solve speed issues?

While Amazon's 5.0.3 software update for the Kindle Touch may seem relatively minor on the surface, it may help put to rest some complaints about the generally zippiness of the device compared with its non-touch sibling, which Amazon simply calls the Kindle.

Amazon has quietly released the update without making any reference to what it exactly it fixes. "This update features general software improvements for Kindle Touch," the update page reads.

Some users also were upset that Kindle Touch couldn't switch into landscape mode (yes, the non-touch Kindle can do that). That doesn't … Read more

Exede: The satellite broadband service you've been waiting for?

Buried among the gadgets, superthin screen OLED TVs, and all the other products we saw at CES this year was something not terribly sexy-looking, but something that will potentially affect millions of people living in rural America.

It's Exede, a new satellite broadband service from ViaSat that just launched this week. Yes, you heard right, satellite, those contraptions that orbit the earth, and until now a very sluggish way to receive Internet service (satellite has frequently been referred to as the Internet service of "last resort").

However, thanks to the launch of ViaSat-1, a next-generation satellite system … Read more

Test multiple sites with Download Speed Test

We've seen plenty of Internet bandwidth speed tests, both the online and standalone kind. Download Speed Test from AB-Tools.com is a standalone freeware speed test, which means it tests your bandwidth from your PC instead of from a Web site. This approach has advantages, such as letting you choose any download for your speed test. Download Speed Test also lets you run continuous tests, yielding a better average score over time.

Download Speed Test's twin automotive-style gauges display the current and average download speed. A line graph beneath the dials displays download times graphically, and the lower … Read more

China tests 311-mph train after deadly crash

China has apparently tested a train with a top speed of 500 kilometers per hour (311 mph) despite lingering worries over the crash earlier this year of two high-speed trains that left about 40 dead.

Qingdao-based CSR Sifang, a subsidiary of train maker CSR, produced the six-car train partly out of carbon fiber-reinforced plastics, according to state media. The design was inspired by ancient Chinese swords.

The train, some 200 kph quicker than China's fastest trains, is experimental. It was based on CSR's CRH380A, which set a world train speed record at 486.1 kph (302 mph) last … Read more

Benchmark your PC with NovaBench

How fast is your computer? Where are the performance bottlenecks? And how does it compare to other users' systems? NovaBench can answer those questions and more. This free benchmarking utility tests your CPU, RAM, graphics, disk speed, and other system parameters, creating a detailed report of its findings that you can upload to the NovaBench site with an optional free account. NovaBench is so easy to use that anyone can benchmark their system with it, but the information it gathers is useful even to pros.

NovaBench has an extremely simple interface with a field displaying system info and one button, … Read more

USB 3.0 that much closer to standard on Intel PCs

USB 3.0 has gotten the green light for becoming a standard offering on Intel-based Windows PCs next year.

The USB Implementers Forum announced this week that the upcoming "Ivy Bridge" 7 Series Chipset and other Intel chipsets have achieved USB 3.0 certification. Chipsets are support silicon that work in tandem with the main processor.

USB 3.0, aka SuperSpeed USB, delivers up to 10 times the data transfer rate of USB 2.0, as well as improved power efficiency.

Intel's Ivy Bridge silicon, due to ship in Windows PCs in the April-June time frame, will … Read more