We're interested too, and you can help us. PMLD wants to understand connection speed issues in order to optimize our network and deliver the speed expected for your service plan.

Please bear in mind that the speed of your internet connection depends upon the capability of the PMLDnet.com network as well as the performance of the internet beyond the PMLD office. Within our network, distance from a cell-extender pole, foliage, weather and the positioning of your antenna will effect your connection speed. The global internet traffic and system factors also influence measured bandwidth.

The most convenient way to measure your connection speed is to use one of the several bandwidth meter tools available on the internet. These download a file to your computer from their server and measure how much time it takes for you to receive it. They can also reverse this process to measure your upload speed.

Remember, there are two components in the measurement — the speed of the PMLDnet.com network and the speed of the internet between the PMLDnet.com server and the originating server. Thus, the connection speed measurement is useful for comparison purposes but may not be absolutely precise.

You can monitor the performance of the PMLDnet.com network by performing a "ping" test.

This test sends a small packet of data from your PC to the PMLDnet.com server. Follow these steps:

1. Go to the Start Menu on your PC and find the Command Prompt. This application can usually be found under Programs/Accessories.
2. When you open the Command Prompt you'll see a black screen with white letters. To the right of the > you'll see a blinking cursor where you will begin typing.
3. Type ping 69.26.124.1 (exactly) and then press the Enter key. (These 8 numbers are the address of the PMLDnet server.)
4. Your computer will send 32 bytes of data to the PMLD office, four times, and display an average round trip time..
5. You should expect the average to be between 30 and 60 ms.

If you'd like to do a more sophisticated measurement, follow the instructions below.

• Click here and download the free MySpeed PC Lite software.
• After the download is completed, install this application on your PC.
• Run the MySpeed PC program (a shortcut will be found in your Programs list). For consistency, please use the (default) Illinois server.
• After the test is complete, we would appreciate it if you'd occasionally report your results. Use the Tools pull-down to Email Results to service@pmldnet.com.

We will analyze your data and provide you with appropriate feedback.