Originally Posted by
green granite
There seems a confusion here, so lets define something
Kbs = kilobits/sec KBs = kilobytes/sec xxx KBs is 8 times faster than xxx Kbs in terms of download speed.
As a general guide, I use a factor of 10 in calculations, not 8. This is because the kb/s figure is "raw", covering
all bits that come down the pipe. However, when you download a file or do other things, the protocols you use are imposing an overhead on your bandwidth.
For example, when you download a file, each packet has multiple protocol layers: HTTP [ TCP [ IP [ MAC ] ] ] ]
On my 1Mb/s connection, I can get 105 kB/s downloads, which I suppose I can't complain about. (Ireland is some way behind the UK in the bitrate races.)