The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #81375   Message #1490288
Posted By: George Seto - af221@chebucto.ns.ca
21-May-05 - 06:51 PM
Thread Name: Max: Could you set up an MP3 section?
Subject: RE: MP3 section? - Recommend NO
I'd recommend no.

As someone already said, Bandwidth problems. FOr those who wonder what that really means? Well... The internet, as a "super"highway of information is akin to the modern interstate (in the US), you have about a dozen streams of traffic headed in one direction, and another dozen going the other way. At some point in time, there are off-ramps. At those junctures you find a limit usually of one to two lanes. That narrowing of the traffic flow is what we're talking about.

There is a physical limit to how much data can come out of a single computer.

For instance, there could be as many as (total guess on my part) 10 people on the Mudcat at one time. OK, now it's not TOO bad when we're accessing the Forum, or the DT, as they're basically a database of text. So the speed is reduced but not terrible. If you wound up with all TEN of those people downloading a bunch of MP3s, then there is no capability for the Mudcat Computer to be available for the Forum or DT.

We have enough complaints (not from me) when the Mudcat is unavailable for even half an hour. Let's NOT compound the problem with MP3 Downloads. The MIDI section is similar but does NOT take up the vast amount of time MP3 downloads would require.

It's MUCH easier if people had their own web-pages (and it's easy enough to do that) and had their OWN links for their OWN MP3s.