 The magazine of the Melbourne PC User Group Stay Connected! 2.3 Bernadette Houghton bernieh@iaccess.com.au |
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If you're on an unlimited or high access Internet service plan, you may find Stay Connected! useful. It pings your Internet server at pre-determined periods, so the server thinks you're still actively online and won't disconnect you. You may have temporarily abandoned your machine to watch Stargate or eat dinner, but as far as your server knows, you're sitting at your PC diligently surfing the world! Stay Connected also automatically dials up and logs onto your Internet Service Provider (ISP); if it reaches a busy signal, it keeps trying again until it gets through. And once you're on, it keeps you on until you actually sever the connection.
Stay Connected is a fairly simple program with a minimal set of features, but it doesn't need to do much. If your ISP is American Online, you'll find that Stay Connected offers a few features specifically tailored to that ISP; but otherwise, Stay Connected's default configuration should work okay. If you place Stay Connected in your startup folder, it will hide away in your system tray until you click on it to dial up your ISP.
Assessment
There is not a lot more to say about Stay Connected, except to tell you how
it worked for me. As it turned out, I derived no benefit from it. Firstly, my ISP doesn't support automatic
login. I have to log in manually each time through the terminal window, and if I don't input my username and
password within a minute or so, the server automatically disconnects me. So, Stay Connected's automatic
dialling feature didn't help me since I still had to be physically present to log in.
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Secondly, I'm on a limited monthly ISP plan, with a high hourly rate once I exceed my allocated time. My ISP doesn't automatically disconnect me after periods of non-use, presumably because it's more beneficial to them financially - as I can testify after I recently forgot to log off after a session! So, Stay Connected's pinging feature holds no benefit for me, but much potential terror (think bills, bills, bills!) if I forget to log off.
So, Stay Connected didn't suit me. That doesn't mean it won't suit you. You'll find it most useful if you're on an unlimited or high use Internet access plan, with an ISP which automatically drops you after a period of non use. Ideally, too, your ISP will support automatic login. If you have trouble connecting to your ISP at certain times of the day, you may find it useful to have Stay Connected log in for you beforehand and keep the connection open until you've ready to use it. You can try it before you buy it by downloading a fully functional 30-day evaluation copy.
Cost and Availability
US$19.95 registration; additional US$9.95 for optional
CD.
Download an evaluation copy from
www.inklineglobal.com.
Minimum System Requirements
486 processor, 8 MB RAM, 2 MB free hard disk space.
Reprinted from the February 2000 issue of PC Update, the magazine of Melbourne PC User Group, Australia
