Downloading and service restrictions

Whenever you use the internet you are constantly downloading, as you are receiving information into your computer via your internet connection. This information can be in the form of web pages you visit, or specific files you request to download such as film previews or music. Uploading is when you send information via your internet connection by clicking on a link or sending an email with an attachment.

You can download just about anything from the internet, including audio (i.e. music), video, text, graphics and software.Copyright and ownership laws still apply to online material, so you shouldn’t download any copyrighted material unless you already own a copy and are downloading for backup purposes. You should also always be aware of the laws concerning the downloading of illegal material.

P2P is a network of two or more computers that communicate with each other without using a central server. Peer to peer networks are often used by people to share files, such as music or video, over the internet. The resulting high volume internet traffic has lead to some broadband providers employing service restrictions (capping) to reduce this.

FTP is the standard method for downloading, or transferring, files from one computer to another. People who create web pages use FTP to get their files to the server where they will be accessed. The software to use FTP is available to download for free on the internet.

Streaming is a way of downloading large audio and video files without having to wait for them to fully download. Users can start watching or listening to the file while it is being downloaded. Streaming is also used for copyright reasons, as some streaming does not allow the file to be saved and stored.

Broadband providers often attach restrictions to your broadband connection. The most common restriction is on the amount you can download in one month – this is known as "capping" or service restriction. Broadband providers can also restrict the length of time you are allowed online each month.When your broadband package states that it has a service restriction it is useful to know what you can do within that restriction and whether it meets your needs.

This should give you a rough idea as to what you can do with the service restriction available to you:

• surfing the net: 10MB per hour
• receiving & downloading emails: 240kB per email
• music tracks: 4MB per track
• minutes of video clips: 5MB per minute
• hours of online gaming: 20MB per hour
• hours listening to online radio: 25MB per hour
• number of internet phone calls: 40MB per hour
• program & security updates: 36MB
• other program downloads: 100MB

Although it is difficult to know how much of your limit you are using, most providers give you online reminders when you are getting close to or over your limit. If you consistently reach or exceed your service restriction limit it may be worthwhile looking at upgrading your package to one that has a high capping level or no capping at all, although this usually increases your monthly cost.