How long will this download take (Ask a Web Coach Wednesday)?

I got a great question about audio downloads:

I ended up missing a teleclass. I have the link to download the recording. However, I am concerned about attempting it since I only have dial-up internet service. Should I even bother trying to get it?

I’m so glad this question came our way, because I have broadband (high-speed, which in my case is delivered through fiber-optic cables) internet access, and it’s easy for me to assume that downloading audio files is as easy for my readers as it is for me. Oops!

Here are a couple of helpful tips on downloads and connection speed:

First: Check your speed. While there are rules-of-thumb about how long downloads will take, you really won’t know for sure unless you check your actual connection speed in real-life. Many sites will do this for you. Here’s a link to a free speed-tester provided by CNET.

Just enter your area code, connection type, and, optionally, your ISP:

CNET's bandwidth tester

After you click “go,” you’ll get a screen that indicates testing is in progress. Let this run its course (especially if you have a slow connection, don’t worry if this takes a few minutes). Next, you’ll see a chart that looks something like this, with your result in red, helpfully labeled “you”:

Chart showing the results of CNET's speed test

Pay attention to the red number, the one that is in kbps (kilobytes per second).

Second: How big is the file you want to download? An hour-long call can be up to 30 Mb in size. I recently downloaded a free PDF that was about 750 kb. Video files are often much bigger.

Now you get to do some math. If math scares you, just use this handy online calculator (you still need to know your connection speed first!). Basically you take the file size and divide by your connection speed, and the result is the number of seconds your download will take.

And then keep in mind that a ton of factors can influence the actual speed (usually to slow it down).

Using the online calculator, I figured that downloading an hourlong call that’s 15Mb in size on a dial-up connection would take at least half an hour (and of course it could be longer).

As an alternative, you can always try listening to the audio file straight from the web (this is called “streaming audio,” and it’s the default behavior for audio links. You’ll have to judge for yourself whether you get good audio quality with streaming audio. I don’t have dial-up myself so I can’t test it, but I would love to hear whether any of my readers are able to do this successfully. Please chime in on the comments or contact me to let me know.

Or, of course, there’s the freeloader plan: Ask a friend with a fast connection to download it for you and burn it to a CD, or perhaps download the file on your office computer (if you have one and if you won’t be violating any company policies by doing so).

Whichever way you choose to go, we want you to have free and easy access to our audio files. So please do let us know if you have problems or concerns.

Share and Enjoy: