• Remember that abnormal weather conditions can affect how your modem performs, particularly high winds or damp.
   
• Noise on the line is one of the biggest causes of connection instability. To check the quality of your signal, dial 17070, select the option for a quiet line and listen carefully for any crackles. The line should be free of any random noises.
   
• Call your phone company and tell them that you are using a modem on your line and that you want AGC (automatic gain control) turned OFF and the gain increased. Make sure that you say there is nothing wrong with your normal voice communications (if that is the case), otherwise they will just do a normal line check.
   
• Disable call waiting on your telephone line. For most phone companies this means dialling dial #43# on your voice phone
   
• If you have two phone lines or more in your house, you may find that they have been installed using a DACS box, which effectively splits your phone line into two, each of half the bandwidth. This is fine for voice calls but completely ruins the speed of an internet connection. If you have more than one phone line, ask your phone company if they have used a DACS box, and if they have, enquire about the possibility of having two *full* phone lines, i.e. two actual cables from your house to your exchange, instead of a DACS box.