Q: I read your article about how more and more people are streaming video from the Internet. We do more online now than ever with Netflix, VoIP phones, Skype, streaming music, online games for the kids, etc. At the same time I read your column I received notice that AT&T, as of May 2, will begin usage limits for residential DSL service. Are other providers also setting limits and what will this do as far as the trend to stream video?
Craig Richardson
A: I think data caps have the potential to slow down the move to streaming video, but not to stop it. As you mentioned, AT&T will move to a data cap. For AT&T DSL customers it means paying extra for those who go past the 150-gigabyte cap. Those who don't use data-intensive services such as video streaming are unlikely to get even close to that cap. But heavy users of video streaming who also use all the other services you mentioned could exceed the cap and end up paying more.
I have mixed feelings about all this. I hate to pay more since I'm a heavy user. However, some countries have long sold metered Internet service, where, just as is true for electricity and natural gas, you pay based on how much you use. I also know that if video streaming explodes -- and I think it will -- Internet providers will have to spend money to improve their systems so that they can handle the load. And some of that money likely will come from the revenue generated by heavy users of data. That seems fair, compared to spreading out the costs to people who aren't heavy data users. Most Internet providers nowadays do have similar data caps. For instance, Comcast sets its data cap at 250 gigabytes a month.
Q: Do you have to have a desktop computer to set up a Wi-Fi connection for home laptops? Or is there another way?
James B. Makos
A: The Wi-Fi will work fine without a desktop computer. You can temporarily connect the wireless router to one of your laptop computers to set-up and configure the system. Once the brief set-up has been done there's no need for a computer to be attached to the router. The set up is simple, and the router will come with directions for that.
Q: When I use Windows Picture and Fax view I find that a large number of pictures remain. That happens even after I simply browse photos at, for instance, an auction site. I've been going into the program and deleting all these photos and images. But it takes a long time and I often have to delete 100 or more pictures at a time. How do I get rid of this annoying problem?
Greg Roth
A: There's no need to remove the files or to worry about them. Here's what happens. The computer keeps them in a temporary file and eventually deletes them with no help from you. There's no harm in what you're doing, but unless you are really desperate for the hard disk room I'd just leave them alone and let Windows delete them in its own good time.
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