What's 3GB?

Fand

Sorry to be so untechie, but exactly how much is 3GB in terms of downloads?

I use the web for research, but have not an idea on earth how much I use in terms of gigabytes, only in terms of time online, plus occasional downloads of helper programs, drivers and the like.

Can someone explain what 3GB means in human-understandable terms, please?

Whoeverthehell

If you don't have a firewall download zonealarm at http://www.zonealarm.com . That will tell you how much data you have downloaded while using the internet.

3GB = 3072MB = 3146000KB

Bard

As an example, just browsing Boards.ie today on a 56Kbps modem, I seem to be pulling down about 1.3 Megabytes of data every 10 minutes.

3 Gigabytes is 3,072 Megabytes.

Working this out it means you'd have to be browsing the web for approximately 23,630 minutes or just under 394 hours - the equivalent of 16.4 days (and nights) straight.

--

This is a bad indicator however, as it does not include, for example, downloading large programs or gaming online. Web browsing isn't really very bandwidth or download-heavy.

Also there's the fact that this is based on 56Kbps access, and when you've got faster access you're bound to be more inclined to use the Internet more, use sites which require more bandwidth (because you CAN, basically) and download more.

To give a proper indicator of how quickly or easily you could download 3Gb over ADSL... or what, essentially, the cap means - someone would have to be currently using ADSL and watching their transfer rates.

To be perfectly honest, I can't imagine that it would be very difficult to have an incoming data amount of over 3Gb in a month over ADSL.

Paulw

I think the cap is going to effect web browsing and also EMAIL.

People seem to focus on downloads ... but don't forget that browsing and emails can use a fair bit of data too.

3gb will run out quite quickly if you do a lot of browsing and a lot of emails ... especially if you download files/applications or do online gaming.

Whoeverthehell

I played TFC for under 30 minutes and downloaded 3.10MB of data. With an average of 3 hours per day for one month thats over 558MB, which is over half a gig. Throw in browsing, email and files and your 3GB can be gone quite quickly. Also with broadband your data rate is higher, so in games you'd be downloading even more data than that.

Gavin

Just some stats about our current company.

13 people. a leased 128k line.

Average Bytes/s per month is 1090.0 B/s or 1.09kB/s

This works out at (1.09)*(60)*(60)*(24)*(354)/(12)

Which equates to 2,778,192 kB/s - 2.7 MB a month.
These people use the internet for browsing, email and every now and then.. maybe once a month, an iso get's downloaded.
We run an email server, of which an average of 182 emails a day are recieved.

Works out quite interesting really...

Gav

Mountjoy Mugger

I take it that should read 2.7 GB? Not very much for 13 users, especially with ISO downloads.

The Cigarette Smoking Man

Originally posted by Mountjoy Mugger
I take it that should read 2.7 GB? Not very much for 13 users, especially with ISO downloads.

I was thinking 2.7MB was a bit low

I've got about 100 people on a 2Mb line and we get through about 50GB a month. We get about 3000 emails a day, except for the time some ****er in the US used an exchange box I was testing for spam, he got through over 500,000 in three days (over a weekend). I had approximately 75,000 emails in my inbox from the postmaster about emails that had bounced.

Gavin

Originally posted by Mountjoy Mugger
I take it that should read 2.7 GB? Not very much for 13 users, especially with ISO downloads.

Aye indeed GB, sorry. That's my point. 13 people just doing standard browsing and emailing. Occasionaly downloading drivers/demos/programs etc...

and it only reaches less than 3GB. I don't believe the price should be so expensive on the ADSL offered, but at around 50 pounds a month with a 3GB cap I wouldn't have a problem.

I know that i would probably not go over the 3GB cap... unless i found some good sites with films..

Gav

Mountjoy Mugger

I hope none of our buddies in Eircom see your post, Verb. You might start giving them ideas!

Whoeverthehell

Personally I wouldn't pay more than £30/month for 3GB, I would go over it so I'd need one of the higher packages.

sutty

I have to say that in downloads, I would hit that cap in about a week......I mean its like 4 DivX that are in and around the 650 meg mark.

R. Daneel Olivaw

Originally posted by sutty
I have to say that in downloads, I would hit that cap in about a week......I mean its like 4 DivX that are in and around the 650 meg mark.

Great . It works out more expensive to download the DivX's than buy the DVDs. FInally the media industry has it's weapon to combat piracy.

Coyote

lol
i use about 2gb a day on a 256K lease line
about 50gb a month easy.

Coyote

Pimp Ninja

Originally posted by Whoeverthehell
If you don't have a firewall download zonealarm at http://www.zonealarm.com . That will tell you how much data you have downloaded while using the internet.

Ok as an experiment. I have downloaded this and installed on a computer with a 2.5GB connection and one user, me!. In one week fron today, I will check to see how much I have downloaded/uploaded and refer it back here.

sceptre

Originally posted by Pimp Ninja


Ok as an experiment. I have downloaded this and installed on a computer with a 2.5GB connection and one user, me!. In one week fron today, I will check to see how much I have downloaded/uploaded and refer it back here.

Good idea - I'd be really interested to see your figures after a week.

Whoeverthehell

Zonealarm resets to zero when your computer is restarted, you'll have to save the amounts somewhere.

Urban Weigl

Originally posted by Pimp Ninja


Ok as an experiment. I have downloaded this and installed on a computer with a 2.5GB connection and one user, me!. In one week fron today, I will check to see how much I have downloaded/uploaded and refer it back here.

There's no such thing as a 2.5GB connection coming into Ireland at the moment, and even less so coming into a private company as far as I know.