Why is it that internet speed from a provider has little effect on computer browser speed?
I have noticed, I believe, that the internet speed my cable provider provides for my internet connection, seems to have very little effect on the actual speed at which computer runs when browsing on Firefox. Is this actually the case, or am I just imagining this? I primarily use my computer for browsing the internet and viewing various things on web sites using Firefox as my browser. Can someone please explain? Thank you.
All Replies (9)
Hi, there could be all sorts of reasons for slowness. If you think it's specific to Firefox, have a look at: Quick fixes if your Firefox slows down.
You could also test with another browser, such as Internet Explorer.
If you think your PC itself has gradually got slower, try defragmenting the hard drive - http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/11733-disk-defragmenter-open-use.html
If your PC is fairly old, it might just be that the processor is a little slow.
If your question is resolved by this or another answer, please take a minute to let us know. Thank you!
Hi Scribe, while my Firefox browsing is rather slow, it is also slow with other browsers. But, my question was regarding my internet speed, that is supplied by my cable provider, and how that internet speed may have an effect on my browsing speed. In other words, it seems 100 MPS speed is no different than 50 MPS speed that my internet provider is providing. If in fact that is true, can someone explain why there is no difference? Also, if that is true, why pay more for the higher speed that my internet provider supplies, when there really isn't much difference? Thank you.
This is not the best place to discuss Internet speed and performance.
Note however that you may not get the advertised speed or if you do you may not always get it Some browsing activities may not actually need a high speed, playing games or Hi Definition videos will likely require higher speeds or if you have multiple users or download a lot of content a faster speed would be useful.
There are speed testers available online. Check your actual speed.
You may find these articles useful
- http://www.which.co.uk/reviews/broadband-deals/article/what-broadband-speed-do-i-need#sub-heading-1
- http://www.moneysupermarket.com/broadband/speed/
50 or 100Mbps is fast by most standards and probably faster than needed for most browsing activities. That may suggest you have problems with your connection your browsers, or your computer, but if it is not Firefox alone it may not be a Firefox issue.
john99, thanks for your reply. I now have 55 Mbps from 100 Mbps and I notice no difference in my computer speed. So, evidently my browsing activities don't require the extra speed?
I have tried several things to improve my computer speed within Firefox, to no avail. I don't recall though if I tried resetting Firefox. I did try running Firefox in the safe mode, and that made no difference. Do you by any chance, recommend I try resetting it? Will I lose any data doing so? Thank you john99.
Modified by John99
The refresh may help, & should not lose data, but as a belts and braces policy back up your profile first. Also note that it will remove any Extensions so if you have extension add-ons then bookmark their home or download pages before doing the refresh so you may reinstall them if desired. If you do reinstall them maybe do it one at a time and test after each reinstall.
As scribe said there are many possible reasons for a computer being slow. Another possibility is malware so you could consider scanning with all the tools listed in
Thanks for your reply, john99.
you can configure your dns settings to dns servers which should pick up your net speed. Try anti virus scan too.
Snoddingcreative, thanks for your reply. But, I don't know what dns settings and servers are. But I would like to pick up my net speed. Yes, I have done many anti virus scans, and I keep the maintenance up to date with my computer. But, explain dns settings and servers please. Thank you.
Edit|Update see also /questions/1142608#answer-935019
Did you actually check the speed you appear to be getting in use of browsers by using some online speedtest. Check that with Firefox and with alternative browsers. If all results are similar than it is not a Firefox issue. If Firefox is repeatedly considerably slower it probably is a Firefox issue.
- What download speed are tester showing ?
- For Firefox
- For other browsers
Can you give examples of Firefox being slow and how that compares with other browsers ? For instance do you have problems with keyboard typing input being slowed down, or webpages taking a long time to load. For example this forum page for takes about 10 seconds to load from scratch for me but only a 1/4 second on some updates.
Note for those technically minded readers of this thread the built in network tool (use Keyboard Shortcut Ctrl Shift Q) will give actual times.
Modified by John99