Hi YooperLady and welcome to testmy.net!  (and I graciously thank you for the kudos)!

Umm....don't hold your breathe on them calling you back.  They will call you back only to tell you a "story or two" ..then leave you hanging ....so let's try a few of the tricks to get you running a bit better.

First, due to congestion, you can expect your speeds to fall off the earth about the same time each day.  DirecWay has sold more accounts to users than they have the bandwidth to handle ...so everyone suffers while they rake in the money ...and since they are an India-based company operating on US soil, the US of A can't touch them for their 'questionable' business practices.  So, that's problem #1.

Fortunately, there are a few ways around them, but you are still going to realise a speed drop (except on weekends).

Fix #1 is to go to the top of your browser, click on Tools, then Internet Options, then Connections, then LAN Settings.  Please place a check mark in both of those proxy boxes (if you installed the LCCU ...it 'unchecked' those boxes and robbed you of about 200Fbps of speed)!  Now, click on the Advanced button and make sure it says 192.168.0.1 and is using Port 87.  Below that, in the "Exceptions" box, add this info inside that box (cut n paste it if you wish):

DirecWaysupport.com;192.168.0.*  <----if you know the # of your Router (like mine is 192.168.2.1 ...just add a semicolon plus that number (NO SPACES) to that list and you'll be able to access your Router via your browser ...especially if you are using a D-Link Router)!

Since you are on Sat-Mex5 it is an affirmative you are running into the problem that I first described ....and unfortunately there are no magic tricks for that satellite ....BUT, you could call DirecWay @ 1-866-347-3292 and tell them that "The Reverend" has suggested that they move you to a different transponder on that satellite ...and you just might see an increase in speed, and less degradation during "business hours."  (You see, folks like me with the Commercial Systems are given "first dibs" at the available bandwidth during the "crunch hours" ...thus everyone else is stuck with whatever is left over.  Since you are presently on 1090MHz, I would request a transfer to 1300MHz ....or if you happen to be using a .98m dish, I would most definitely insist on being moved into 1202.0MHz.

Okay now, you didn't list your signal strength (which I'm sure you know you can find by just typing 192.168.0.1 into your browser's address field then hitting enter, click on the "green light" ...viola ...shows you the Signal Strength.

Within this same subforum of www.testmy.net ...meaning here in the DirecWay forum,  I have posted a nice little blurb about how to 'point up' your own dish for the sake of getting the highest possible Signal Strength.   Now, Signal Strength has NOTHING to do with speed, but since you are tweaking it surely would not hurt to repoint that dish seeing that it has been out there for TWO YEARS!  wow!  I 'retouch' mine once-a-month to maintain an SS of 97.  (Dishes love to move around plus the earth has a bit of a wobble to it, so staying 'dead center' on the satellite is a never-ending battle!  The higher your signal strength, the longer you'll last before rain 'fades' you out, and the less errors you'll have with packets!  It's well worth the effort (and your husband will love you for the extra chore)!  lol...

While we are at it ...since you are running XP, I would strongly consider moving up to a full 1 gigabyte of DDR (memory).  Even though XP will run just fine with 512, it will "take off" with 1 gig in there.  Of course, keeping your hard drive defragged will make an amazing difference in speed for obvious reasons (yet many overlook this), and you just may wish to consider moving up to a larger HDD too, and move your present 40gig 'into the back' to use as Drive D: ....which is a wonderful convenience!  The larger your HDD, and the more free space that you have, the more efficiently everything will run.

Please visit www.blackviper.com and search his site for "XP Services."  There is a small wealth of info there about your System Services and which ones you need and don't need.  (For example ...there are about 80 services, and many of them are turned on by default, which eats up your system resources (memory and such).  Most folks don't need more than between three to five of these services (with a LAN you'll need around eight of them) ...and the rest can either be suspended, or placed in a 'on call' mode.  That's another way to get a bit more speed out of your COMPUTER ....which will have a beneficial effect on your Internet performance speeds as well!  Weird huh?

Ah ....I just noticed that you DO use a D-Link "switch."  If you set that D-Link up to act as a router instead of letting the DW6000 act as your DHCP server, you'll be much better off.  (You don't want DirecWay in charge of your DHCP when you have a router with a free hardware firewall that will outperform the DW6000's "barebones" DHCP Server!  So, in that "Exceptions" box I mentioned earlier, you'll want to add something like  :192.168.2.1 (semicolon+# with no spaces) to the end of the "string" that is already there.  This will allow you to access your Dlink from your browser  (of course, please use the number for YOUR D-Link ...not mine)! lol...

That's enough for a good start.  I'm pretty much on here 24/7, so please feel free to "ask away" if you hit any snags and I'll be happy to help ...or anyone here will be happy to help you for that matter.  This is an excellent community of people!

Cheers!  (and good luck)!

**Late Entry:  Miss Yooperlady.  Please check with www.dlink.com to ensure that you are running the latest firmware release for your particular model of D-Link.  It DOES make quite a difference ...and every little bit helps! 

Hello again Miss YooperLady!

Thank you for the info on how you got my name.  I was rather curious about that one!  (blush).  Umm....you don't happen to have a Dlink 614+ do you?  I've got one (with wireless abilities), yet if all you need is a "smart switch" that is perfectly AOK.  If it isn't broke let's not mess with it!  It DOES make sense that it has to plug into YOUR computer because my foolish thing behaves the same way.  If I don't keep my wife plugged into Port #1 it has a hiss fit then starts acting out on me.   So I let it win and don't play with the wires anymore!  (geesh ..darned things are smarter than we think)!

An SS of 84 is excellent and so I wouldn't touch it!  I "hear ya" on being a neat freak, thus since you aren't using but 7.5gigs ...you are in no danger of overworking your HDD!  (I need 40gigs just to get my foolish beast booted up these days)! 

Thank you for submitting to checking out blackviper.com as you will surely not only benefit from it by saving resources, but you'll also pick up some splendid information that he has spent years learning "the hard way."  My hat goes off to him and what he's provided XP users!  I am presuming that you are running SP2?  (Not that it matters in the least).

Umm...the reason that you are suddenly getting better scores with IE instead of FireFox is that the DW6000 'appliance' was built with IE6 "in mind."  Though it will perform well with most any browser, if you are running a well-tweaked IE then the two will "mate" for a perfect balance and superior speeds.  (It all in the proxys that I suggested you turn on ...but you were ahead of me on that one.  Bravo)!

You will need to contact DirecWay yet again, directly ask for Level II Support (if you have a Case ID # that's great, if not just MAKE ONE UP and let them fumble for it ...then you'll be on your way to Level II so that you can get them to reboot your modem for you.  Believe it or not, they are only using a little MDM Server there and don't have much more control over the modem than YOU do (such as if you accessed the 'heart' by typing in 192.168.0.1/fs/advanced/advanced.htm then hit your Enter key.  This can get you into a mess if you don't have the manual that goes with all the toys in there ...but it's exactly the stuff THEY are playing with when they access your modem, so don't be impressed by their "magic" ....it doesn't exist! 

No worries with "the tease" ...it's rather refreshing I should think since 99.9% of the folks in need of an assist are male!  Thus it is a welcome change!  TY!  I have www.DirecWaysux.com up on my other monitor.  LOL!!  Tooooooo funny.  (And alot of P-O'ed people in there huh)?  Wow!  I don't blame them though ...especially after looking at the pics they have of the folks who "own and operate" DWay!  lol.... (just kidding of course).

Say, if your speeds do not settle down in a day or two (or if you get nowhere with their Level II Personnel, please look me up or shoot me an e-mail and we'll dig into your problem in a little more detail.  But I strongly feel that after you "fudge" your way into Level II support and get them to "kick" the modem, you should see an improvement ...but you are always going to see a speed drop in the afternoon of any given weekday when using a DW6000 ...which is irritating at best seeing that you pay more but get less!  However ...by 7PM it should be back to normal, and by all rights you SHOULD be able to knock out between 800-1000Kbps.  You don't want to go TOO much faster because of the silly FAP ...and what is the sense in surfing at blazing speeds if you are just going to hit your FAP limit that much faster right?   

Cheers Miss VooperLady!  (neat name there ...I don't dare ask)!    

   You simply must considering donating your DLink to The Smithsonian!  I can fully understand why you can't find support or firmware for it.  Even DLink gave up on that model a few weeks after releasing it!  heheh...  (You have shopping luck similar to mine)!     Nothing at black viper's place for me either, so he's either having an issue with his Provider, or he reworking his site again.  (He's a perfectionist and never leaves the thing alone)!  But, that's to our advantage ...sorta.

Umm....The young man at DirecWay is indeed correct in that it isn't your system, however it was not a truthful thing you were told when he said he "boosted the power" ...he doesn't have that capacity at his fingertips and ...DirecWay only does that 'globally' (like when it is raining or snowing over NOC they will boost their signals in an effort to punch through the weather ....otherwise, it cannot be done for any one machine, but it's an impressive 'one-liner'!  lol...  geesh....

We are getting into the time of day where your system speed should start picking up ...since most of California businesses are shutting down for the day thus opening up the resources substantially.  Still, it takes NOC about an hour to pass the extra 'on down the line'.

Say, there is a utility called Dr. TCP that I have attached to this document so that you can download and run it.  Please do not touch any part of it except for one thing, and that is where it says "Time Stamping" (Set it so that it says YES).  This is a nice addition to your TCP/IP Stack since you are using Satellite Communications.  The other settings SHOULD say the following when you launch it.  If they don't, please change them so that they do! 

TCP Receive Window  0
Window Scaling   No
Time Stamping  Yes
Selective Acks  Yes
Dial UP (RAS) MTU (blank)

Adapter Settings  (choose the one that applies to you)  like for myself, it's set to "Realtek TRL8139 Family pCI Fast Ethernet NIC
Path MTU Discovery   Yes
Black Hole Detection  No
Max. Duplicate ACKs  2
TTL  64
MTU (lower right) 1500

Click Save and then it will prolly want you to reboot.  This may not incur a miraculous revelation for your machine, but it surely will not hurt it!  If you ever need to change it back, just rerun it, turn the Time Stamping to NO, save and reboot and everything returns to as it was prior to using it!  Perhaps it will give you a slight advantage ....it gave me an additional 60Fbps!  Let's hope you get the same treatment!  lol....

Word of Caution:  When dealing with the DirecWay Level 1 techs, bear in mind that they don't have as much computing skills as most Internet users.   They are reading things for you to do out of a generic manual and the LAST thing you want to do is allow them to screw up all your settings (especially in your IE) by conceding to them and returning everything you have back to a default setting.  It never works but they are paid to run you through "the routine."  Don't do it!     You won't benefit from it.  Just say, okay ...I did it, and they'll be happy and you'll still have a computer that runs.  heheh...

I'm sure they've already had you unplug your modem for one minute.  (Actually, for that to truly work it has to be unplugged for about five minutes ...THEN it might "boot up" with a better configuration.  One minute or 10 seconds is worthless, but alot of techs will tell you exactly that because that's why their little bookie says to do see?  (egads).

I'll brainstorm some more with this extra info you've given me and double-check to see if I may have missed something vital, yet if your speeds are starting to come back up the ladder then it's pretty certain the problem is being caused from their end ....and now it's a matter of getting the right Level II tech to get you fixed up.  (Don't be afraid to 'drop' my name if you wish ....many of them know me or know of me, and so they'll know you aren't some idiot with system problems, or even worse, you won't get the "dumb broad" treatment.  (God forbid)!  If all else fails I'll fix you up with a Level III Engineer (but that can take as long as two weeks)!  Those boys are busy.  One of them is my buddy, but I don't ask him to give me any special favors (talking about the NOC in Germantown Maryland USA).  FOR SURE he can fix you up if we exhaust all other possibilities.  Right now I don't want to get into your DW6000 "heart" because it doesn't sound like it's a modem problem in the least.  I got a sinking feeling that the last man inside your modem forgot what he was doing and has left you hanging...

Try this attached utility trick ...can't hurt and will definitely 'smooth out' your connectvity.  I try to make sure I give it to everyone but my memory is as long as a piece of string!  TY once again for telling me the source of whence you found my name ....that's wild!

Fair enough?  Hang in there, feel free to post or email as often as you need, and be safe!

Cheers!

Not really resopalrabotnick,

You see, out of all the birds up there, each one has a unique footprint and thus some birds are much better than others in certain areas.  In most areas it doesn't matter which bird you are on because of the overlapping of footprints.  On the flip side, there are "dead spots" that only ONE bird at a certain transponder frequency can "see" or communicate with.  As the number of users grow, the more DirecWay is finding these "dead zones" ...and even freakier is that a perfectly good site using a DW4000 will disappear sometimes when you upgrade to a DW6000 ...and that's when it becomes a guessing game as to which bird will give you the greatest performance configuration.  I'm way down here in Costa Rica yet I get my best SS and speed using Galaxy 4R (G4R)!!  That bird was designed for use in the Central Section of North America.  Strange but true!

Cheers!

*Granted, it IS possible for NOC Engineers to electronically create "hot spots" by plotting footprints and splitting frequencies, yet that is a time consuming undertaking that they will rarely do unless they have no other choices left. 

Ah yes, may God Bless You and Yours too Miss YooperLady. 

Wow resopalrabotnic!

That's REALLY "on the horizon!"  I am at 38 and thought I was shooting a "flatline", but I wasn't aware anyplace in Germany had to aim so low! (Then again, there isn't much said about Astra on this side of the planet either).

I knew you were pulling my leg with your post, I just wanted to point out to you and other readers that it IS possible for groundstations to work small wonders, such as what you had hinted at.  (But not quite THAT high-tech).  But who knows ...give it a few months and it just might be vogue!

"The Rev"

Uh huh!

Same situation here in Costa Rica except we are too low instead of too high, such as your Long/Lat.  lol....Toooo funny about having to slay the Elk blocking your "feed."  HAHA!!!

I had to put up a tower (80 feet) and set my dish up there because of the dense growth here in Costa Rica.  Would have had to chop down the whole country just to see ANY birds!  heheh...

Denke for the laughs!