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Technology Stocks : COMS & the Ghost of USRX w/ other STUFF -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: David Lawrence who wrote (14019)	3/19/1998 3:22:00 PM
From: Moonray	Respond to of 22053

3Com Dropping Sportster Brand For V.90 Modems Newsbytes - March 19, 1998 13:58 SKOKIE, ILLINOIS, U.S.A., 1998 MAR 19 (NB) -- By Craig Menefee, Newsbytes. As part of converting to the new, still pending V.90 modem specification, 3Com [NASDAQ:COMS] has decided not to use its venerable US Robotics Sportster modem brand name on future modem products. New models in the old Sportster line will simply be marketed as 3Com US Robotics 56K modems, a company official told Newsbytes. "We've dropped the name now," said Dean Brady, senior product manager for 56K modems. "All that used to be called Sportsters now will be called the 3Com US Robotics 56K, and then after that you'll see Winmodem, Faxmodem, Voice Faxmodem, and so forth, depending on the model." About the decision to drop Sportster as a brand name, Brady said, "I don't think we announced it (the change). I think we just did it as a new product line, a V.90 line with new packaging and a whole new look to it. We used the switch as a way to bring it into the market." For current Sportster and Courier modem users, the upgrade path for users has not been without its bumps. Users have complained to Newsbytes about the 3Com update wizard, which is used to make the V.90 flash upgrade. The wizard is downloadable form links at 3Com's World Wide Web home page at 3com.com . Most user complaints have involved modems for which the V.90 upgrade is not yet available. Some users also complained about the wizard's inability to function over an active Internet connection. Instead, it direct-dials a 3Com server. Asked about unavailable upgrades, Brady told Newsbytes 3Com decided to release flash upgrades for various modems as they became available, rather than make everyone wait until every model was ready. He said all upgrades including some still missing for Courier models will be posted by April 1. About the direct dialing, Brady explained the wizard needs to start with the modem off-line in order to query it about the exact flash software it contains. Then it makes a direct call to the server in order to avoid delays and potential problems using IP (Internet Protocol) data transfers. The average upgrade phone call takes "two to three minutes," Brady told Newsbytes. "At 30 cents a minute, it comes to under a dollar." Newsbytes notes a timed actual upgrade from a California location took just under 3.5 minutes. The procedure was completed without a hitch in this test, but as they say in the newsgroups, YMMV (your mileage may vary). Some users have reported their modems connect at lower speeds after a V.90 upgrade than before -- but the lower connection speeds often produce faster actual data transfers. Newsbytes remarked that some 3Com spokespersons danced around direct questions about connection speeds in previous interviews. "It's kind of a dancing issue," replied Brady. "We can't guarantee that everyone will have better connection speeds. But our goal has been to improve the results for most users. Some won't see any change, some will see improvement, and there are some whose reported connect speed will go down. "But overall, we expect throughput performance -- the measure that is actually the key to getting the best possible Internet experience -- to either stay the same or improve for the vast majority of users." Brady explained that lower reported V.90 connection speeds actually result from better line-probing. Modems with V.90 use line-probing to analyze the state of a connection line, which can vary from one central switch to another even inside the same telecom area. "The reason it behaves differently now from last year is that we've learned a lot about line conditions since then. So a user's modem can determine better now how to perform best on a given line. It's much more accurate than before." Brady said the firm's V.90 modems now come with a Net.Medic utility from Santa Clara, California-based VitalSigns Software. The program reports on connection performance, with actual data throughput, including initial connect speed (a figure that Windows 95 does not update when a modem "trains down" its speed to reduce errors) and other aspects of a session. Newsbytes notes Net.Medic is a general purpose program that does not require a 3Com modem to work. A trial version of the program may be downloaded from VitalSigns at vitalsigns.com . More on 3Com US Robotics upgrade schedules and products can be found at the firm's Internet site at 3com.com . Reported by Newsbytes News Network: newsbytes.com . o~~~ O