NetXpress FAQs
| General | Using other Web Browsers |
| Downloading and Installation | Product Details |
| Using NetXpress | Known Issues |
General
What is NetXpress?NetXpress is a dial-up accelerator available to Secure by Design customers. NetXpress requires no additional equipment and no waiting. It accelerates your Web surfing experience using your existing phone jack and modem.
What gets accelerated?
| What Gets Accelerated? | What Does Not Get Accelerated? |
| Web Pages – HTML markup and Javascript | Streaming media, audio and video files |
| Graphics – including JPG and GIF images | Secure pages, such as those for on-line banking and credit card forms |
| Text | Files and attachments such as music and digital photos |
How does NetXpress work?
Data Compression and Image Optimization – Before the text and graphics that make up Web pages get sent to you over your phone line, NetXpress compresses them using a proprietary technology. Less data is sent so your surfing experience is that much faster!
Memory Enhancement – NetXpress uses caching technology to store elements of frequently visited Web sites so they load faster on future visits. So in addition to an immediate boost, your surfing will get even faster as you continue to use NetXpress.
Continuous Optimization – NetXpress continuously optimizes the communication between your system’s modem and our network while you are online. That means that is always working to shorten the amount of time it takes to connect you to the sites you visit.
Will NetXpress speed up everything I do on the Web?
NetXpress accelerates certain text and graphics on Web pages. With NetXpress you will notice a significantly faster experience when you visit Web sites, check your Web-based e-mail, and perform many other Web-based activities. NetXpress will not currently accelerate file downloads such as music files, streaming media or non-Web-based e-mail programs such as Outlook Express.
How fast is NetXpress?
The exact amount of acceleration can vary from 1X to 7X faster.
What if I am not happy with NetXpress?
No one is obligated to use NetXpress with their dial-up connection. We encourage everyone to try it, as we feel it is a breakthrough product for dial-up internet, however it isn’t for everyone.
Download and Installation Help
I downloaded the NetXpress installer but now I can’t find it on my computer. Where is it?
Use the Windows Find tool located in the Start Menu to search for the file “NetXpress_Installer.exe” (without quotes). If you still can’t find it, re-download it and ensure that you save the file to your Desktop.
I tried to install NetXpress but keep getting a message: “A required .DLL file, WS2_32 DLL was not found.” How can I fix this?
You likely need the “Window Sockets 2” upgrade for Windows 95. It is available from Microsoft, please follow this link for the upgrade and detailed installation instructions.
I’m having difficulty installing NetXpress. Where can I get additional assistance?
Click here for detailed installation instructions. A full set of screenshots are provided to assist you with the installation procedure.
It you are still experiencing problems installing, contact support staff for further assistance.
Using NetXpress
How do I start NetXpress?
The NetXpress is launched automatically every time Windows starts. You do not have to launch it manually. A NetXpress icon appears in the Windows system tray to show that it is operating in the background.
How do I change the image quality for a particular image?
Right-clicking on an image within Internet Explorer and selecting “Show Original Image” allows you to view the original image.
How do I change the image quality setting for all images?
Right-click on the NetXpress taskbar icon and select “Settings”. Select the “Image Quality” tab. Adjust the slider bar to the desired image quality setting. Press OK to save the changes.
Using Other Web Browsers
Can I use NetXpress with Netscape Navigator?
Start Netscape Navigator and browse as you normally would. NetXpress is launched automatically every time Windows starts. It operates in the background to accelerate your web connection. No user intervention is required.
Can I use NetXpress with other browsers such as Opera or Mozilla?
Yes. NetXpress works with any web browser that allows you to specify an HTTP proxy. You must set the HTTP proxy host to be “localhost” and the port number to be “5400” (without quotes). Consult your browser’s documentation for information on how this can be done.
Product Details
Does NetXpress speed-up email?
The current software release does not include an email acceleration component. Future versions will include email support.
Does NetXpress speed-up my secure (HTTPS) transactions such as web-banking?
The NetXpress does not accelerate secure transactions. Secure websites will continue to work by bypassing the acceleration component.
What operating systems can NetXpress be installed on?
NetXpress can be installed on any of the following operating systems:
- Windows 98
- Windows 98SE
- Windows Millennium Edition (Windows ME)
- Windows NT 4.0 and 2000
- Windows XP and Vista
- Mac OSX – Version 10.2 and above
NetXpress works best with Internet Explorer 4.0 and Netscape 4.0 or any later version of either browser (Internet Explorer 6 is recommended). Newer versions of Microsoft Internet Explorer are available for free through Microsoft.
What system requirements are necessary to use NetXpress?
The recommended system requirements for the NetXpress are a Pentium 200MHz with 64MB of RAM and at least 5 MB of hard-disk space. Regardless, NetXpress will work within your current system configuration to provide you with the best content acceleration.
Known Issues
Why does my downstream “Bandwidth Savings Ratio” appear to go below 1.0?
Accelerating your bandwidth channel incurs a small amount of transmission overhead. In most cases, this overhead is negligible when compared to the actual bandwidth savings provided by NetXpress.
However, occasionally interactions between Internet Explorer and certain plugins (such as the old versions of the Adobe Acrobat Reader plugin) may cause documents to be unnecessarily downloaded twice. It is important to note that this type of behavior occurs regardless of whether NetXpress is used. The Accelerator is merely showing the download statistics in these situations.
Why do some Java-applets (such as certain games on www.pogo.com) not work?
Older versions of the Java Runtime Environment (JRE) cannot display certain image types (such as ‘PNG’). To fix this problem, simply set your image slider to the maximum quality level or upgrade to the newest JRE.
Troubleshooting
This section helps troubleshoot common problems while installing and using NetXpress.
When trying to connect to the NetXpress Service, I get the error message, “NetXpress cannot connect to the NetXpress Service…”
Here is a step-by-step list of things you should verify
- Check that you have successfully connected to Secure by Design in your usual manner (e.g. Did your dial-up connection successfully connect?). This step is independent of whether or not you launch NetXpress.
- Verify that the Connection information located in the Settings dialog is the same as that provided to you.
- If you are running firewall software, make sure that a firewall rule is present that allows access to the Remote Server Port (located in the Settings dialog).
- Try uninstalling NetXpress (Control Panel >Add/Remove Programs and select NetXpress) then re-install it.
- Contact us to verify that the NetXpress Service is up and running.
When attempting to connect to the NetXpress Service, I receive the error, “The NetXpress Service does not allow connections from your current IP address…”
The login credentials you specified on the “Settings” – “Connection” tab were not valid. The service requires that you to enter a valid username and password to use the NetXpress Service.
When attempting to connect to with NetXpress, I receive the error, “The NetXpress Service could not be started due to an authentication timeout …”
Please carry out the following steps:
- Ensure that the authentication information provided to you by the Net Idea has been keyed in correctly.
- Try reconnecting to the Internet.
- If the problem persists contact us for assistance
I receive the error, “NetXpress cannot be started due to an internal error …”
Here is a step-by-step list of things you should verify:
- Try restarting your machine and launching NetXpress.
- If the problem persists contact us for assistance
I receive the error, “NetXpress was unable to load the sdicore.dll library …”
The likely cause of this is that you accidentally deleted a file or resource required by NetXpress. Fully uninstall and then re-install NetXpress.
