56k?

Although modems are advertised as 56K the FCC imposes a 53K bandwidth limit to suppress crosstalk interference. Aside from that your real bandwidth is limited by your phone lines both inhouse and on the pole. I have a 56K modem, usually connect at 28K, occasionally at 37K and seldom download at over 3kbps. So the point is you have as good a connection as possible on POTS.

Modems are marketed as 56Kb, or kilobits...

Modem connection speeds (after you buy, install, and dial in) are measured in KB, or Kilobytes, as your PC relates file size, etc, to you in Bytes, not bits.

There are 8 bits in a Byte. If you divide your connectio speed by 8, then that should be approximately the speed at which you are downloading. Other factors come in to play, like: line quality, digital-analog converters, speed of the modem that's picking up (usually 56k compatible), distances between repeaters, etc...

Strange, but true... I connect all the tim to earthlink at 52.0 Kb, and download near 5KB per second.