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newsue
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Yes, SL involves a lot of data being downloaded to your viewer.  Everything you see in the world must be downloaded.  That includes all the information about the prims, terrain, avatar, lighting, landscaping etc.. 

How much data you 'use up" per month will depend on how long your inworld and what you do outside of SL on other web sites.  If you plan on being in world a lot, you may want to increase the amount of data you are allowed to download or go to an unlimited plan if one is available.

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SL sends a packet of data to your viewer for every frame. At dozens of frames per second, it can add up to a lot of data.

Here's a little tip that I bet many are not aware of:

When the SL viewer is minimized (or even if it is visible but it is not the active window), the frame rate is reduced. That means it is using less internet bandwidth. So just making sure the SL viewer isn't the "active" (or focused) window when you walk away from your computer for a while can help.

But for those of you who do not mind changing Debug settings, you can reduce the frame rate even more when the viewer isn't the focus.

Just go into the debug settings and find BackgroundYieldTime. I set mine to 400. This slows the frame rate to 2.5 frames per second, but only when the viewer is not the active window. Works great, and saves a little bandwidth.

 

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i don't believe you download what is already cached..not until you clean your cache again..so if you have a routine of being in the same places it is much less of a drain on banwith..

we had a thread on this i think last summer about bandwith use..

mainly because of AT&T switching to limits on banwith..

if i can find it it could be helpful in giving you a better idea of how much you would use monthly..SL is not really as much of a drain on bandwith as you would think as far as most monthly plans would go..

if i can find that thread i'll post the link to it here...=)

 

ETA: ok found the thread..wow i thought i never would  lol

http://community.secondlife.com/t5/General-Discussion-Forum/Thanks-AT-amp-T-A-question-about-average-SL-bandwidth/td-p/801217

 

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PeterCanessa Oh wrote:

Well done there!  I thought of that thread too, since I remembered putting some stats on there.  Glad you did the work of digging it out for me :-)

((ETA: Awe =) Peter and Marcus..thank you both for the kind words *hugs* hehehe))

 

i was curious about that thread myself..i remember at the time they had not set bandwith limits on my u-verse..

but it's gone into action now..i'm on the 250 Gb pack per month..

i'm in the FAQ's right now on their site..there is no way i would ever reach a 250 GB limit in one billing period with my use..

let me see if i can just copy and paste their example of what all we could do in one month hehehe

How much do I get with 150 or 250 GB?

You can do a lot with 150 or 250 GB. Here is an example.

============================================================

 Monthly Activity     

150 GB                       250 GB

10,000 emails           10,000 emails

 

 -and-                           -and-

Download/upload a medium resolution photo to social media site like Facebook     

 

2,000 photos             2,000 photos

-and-                            -and-

 

MP3 Songs downloaded     

 

1,000 songs         1,000 songs

-and-                            -and-

 

Stream a one-minute YouTube video (standard quality)     

 

1,000 views          1,000 views

 -and-                          -and-

Watch hour-long TV Shows (high quality)     

 

75 shows               100 shows

 -and -                         -and -     

    

Stream full length movies

(Standard Definition: SD; High Definition: HD)   

 50 SD or 25 HD movies     100 SD or 50 HD movies

=================================================

Usage examples are estimates based on typical file sizes and/or duration of file transfer or streaming event.

just some random things from their service i thought might be useful..

Will spending a lot of time on the Internet cause me to exceed my data plan?

Time alone is not the determining factor; it is the activity that matters. You could spend several hours reading emails, for example, and use less than 1 GB of data. You could spend 30 minutes downloading a movie, on the other hand, and use 2 GB of data. It is important to remember that it is what you are doing on the Internet, not how long you do it, that determines the amount of data that you use.

What will happen if I exceed my data plan?

You will receive a notice the first time your usage exceeds your data plan and will not be billed.

 

In the following months, we will send you additional notices any time your usage exceeds 65% and 90% of your data plan to help you track and manage your usage. The next time you exceed 150 GB you'll once again be notified, but will not be billed.

 

If you exceed your data plan in any subsequent billing period, we'll provide you with an additional 50 GB of data for $10. You'll be charged $10 for every incremental 50 GB of usage beyond your plan.

Importantly, if you do not receive a notice from AT&T, it means that you have not exceeded your data plan. In some cases, it may mean that we cannot measure your usage yet. Either way, you should not be concerned about your usage patterns for billing purposes.

 

I have an AT&T 3G MicroCell. Since that utilizes my home broadband network to boost my wireless data signal, does that mean my wireless usage also counts against my wired broadband monthly data plan?

No, the wireless traffic from your AT&T 3G MicroCell does not count toward your monthly home broadband plan. Please register your AT&T 3G MicroCell account and your residential AT&T Internet account at www.att.com/internet-usage-MicroCell to help ensure accurate Internet usage billing. If you have broadband service with another provider, you do not need to register your account.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

    

 

 

 

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I thought of that thread also and while looking for it I got distracted by this thread:

http://community.secondlife.com/t5/General-Discussions/Bandwidth-Usage/m-p/477491/highlight/true#M228950

and got semi-sidetracked into looking at bandwidth monitors because of the screen shot in that thread.


PeterCanessa Oh wrote:

Well done there!  I thought of that thread too, since I remembered putting some stats on there.  Glad you did the work of digging it out for me :-)



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wow that looks pretty neat..

i know there is someplace i can go to check mine..but i just got the whole u-verse package a couple of weeks back..i have phone and hd tv and highspeed intternet which is like 12 mbs i think ..so they are still putting all my stuff together as far as me able to go on and check my stuffs..

i hope i get some kind of bandwith increase with all that stuff lol

whats wild about the tv stuff is it's like streaming also.. lol

but i think that doesn't get tacked onto my bandwith..but it's scary goodness hehehehe

i just have to find that thing where it will show my use during the month for my internet..it's like a maze..the more stuff you get from AT&T the more times you have to log in with the same name but in different places lol

 

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Ceka Cianci wrote:

wow that looks pretty neat..

i know there is someplace i can go to check mine..but i just got the whole u-verse package a couple of weeks back..i have phone and hd tv and highspeed intternet which is like 12 mbs i think ..so they are still putting all my stuff together as far as me able to go on and check my stuffs..

i hope i get some kind of bandwith increase with all that stuff lol

whats wild about the tv stuff is it's like streaming also.. lol

but i think that doesn't get tacked onto my bandwith..but it's scary goodness hehehehe

i just have to find that thing where it will show my use during the month for my internet..it's like a maze..the more stuff you get from AT&T the more times you have to log in with the same name but in different places lol

 

I am on U Verse also, just for Internet.  I watch almost no television any more except for local news with rabbit ears and one of them new fangled digital converter boxes.

The only time I really notice the 12MB is downloading new viewers.  It's awesome.  The higher upload speeds are fantastic also.  

I've never used it but you can check your usage here.

http://www.att.com/esupport/internet/usage.jsp#fbid=cdwP1Xr1ZlT

(the account here is in my housemates name and I don't have his password)

I can't think that any of my International friends complaining about reaching their cap except my Australian ones.  And it has been a while since I've heard that.

When I went to Australia I didn't even think about the caps.  Never crossed my mind.  I didn't log in to SL while there but did succeed in maxing out my families limit uploading high res pictures to my hosting site.  So for several days we were throttled to dial up speeds.  As soon as it rolled over to a new month I cut back my uploads till I got home and then posted all my pictures.

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Ceka Cianci wrote:

i don't believe you download what is already cached..not until you clean your cache again..so if you have a routine of being in the same places it is much less of a drain on banwith..

 

Thanks Ceka, being new to SL and having a few initial problems I was clearing the cache quite regularly so next month I'll be more careful.

Sue

 

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newsue wrote:


Ceka Cianci wrote:

i don't believe you download what is already cached..not until you clean your cache again..so if you have a routine of being in the same places it is much less of a drain on banwith..

 

Thanks Ceka, being new to SL and having a few initial problems I was clearing the cache quite regularly so next month I'll be more careful.

Sue

 

how much are you allowed in bandwith per month..

 

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Yes it does use a lot. As everyone else pointer out. I live in Australia, and we have been getting ripped off for internet usage for years, and it is only recently that we have recieved "unlimited" internter ( the ealrly unlimited was , funnily enough, limiten to 100 GB)

I found a new provider that, for $59 per onth i get 100 GB with no extra fees for over usage, insteadm they shape my internet. Meaning the slow it down, but if i notice it slowed, i can buy a block of data for 10 to get me over the billing period. Though, since changing provider, i have never gone over the data usage, not even gotten close.

Ceka has some good data there regard data usage, but there are 2 conditions:-

1) the movies/music/or whatever will contain differant amounts of data ie for instance a song with vocals only as compared to a singer back by an entire orchestra will have vastly different amounts of data thereby effecting your usage differently.

2) it also depends on how you ISP counts your data usage too. you can do the exact same things with different providers and be billed totally different amounts. I found this after i changed providers. 

All i can say is, shop around, or go to your provider telling them your going to shop around for a better deal. if you are happy with them apart from the extra charges. they will probably come to the party and shape you instead, otherwise shop around for this type of deal, then instead of getting huge bills in the mail ( we get billed 2 cents for every Megabyte, 2cents x 1024 MB but i have recieved bills in excess of $800.00) you will just notice you internet speed has slowed, a much better way of finding out you exceeded your limit.

 

good luck and hope this is helpfull

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Alazarin Mondrian wrote:

If you're in the UK I strongly recommend 
  as the internet provider of choice for SL residents. No caps, no bandwidth limits, no fair use policy so you can spend as long as you want in SL creating as much stuff as you want or tootling around to your hearts' content without a care in the [Real] world.

Thanks, I am in UK and will certainly look in to this one.

Sue

 

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newsue wrote:

Ceka,

I've got a big query with my provider, I've had it for a few years and was under the impression it was 'No Limit', the provider is now claiming I have a 20GB monthly limit   :womanindifferent:

 

Sue

 

ouch!! i hope you have other options ..because that sounds kind of low..

i was pissed when i heard my isp was putting limits on my internet...it's 250GB..but i had no limits before..

i guess i just hate when services change the rules in mid flight to give less for the same price or don't even offer a pack for the unlimited ..

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