On Jun 13, 2004, at 9:16 AM, Rod Wynne-Powell wrote:
unless each time the IP address was re-allocated the ISP did a DNS change for you, and the users used the name rather than an IP address.
Which is pretty much exactly what various dynamic DNS providers do. I've not used one of these services... and I agree that a static IP is needed for any serious internet work... but these dynamic DNS services might be a viable lower cost alternative for occasional users. Do a Google search on Dynamic DNS and you'll find a number of such providers.
The DSL line that I have at home does have a dynamically allocated address but its only reallocated when a connection is lost and reconnected. I have an Apple Airport (sorry to admit that I'm using this apparently seriously inferior hardware) serving as router on this system but most any could be configured the same way. I have it set to stay connected to the DSL line regardless of whether a computer on the network is accessing it or not. The counter that shows time connected on my PowerBook is the time the Airport has been connected; not the laptop. It starts over after 1000 hours. I know its rolled over at least once since the last time the Airport was reset... usually for a software upgrade. I'm currently showing about 300 hours of connectivity so that means its really at least 1300. So for the last 1300 hours I've had a "static" address. I'd imagine that with a system like this and some sort of dynamic dns service one could get on just fine with simple FTP or web services. Where a dymanic dns service is going to have problems is if you're in a situation where the connection (and your IP address) are changing numerous times throughout the day.
The other issue with dynamic addresses for serving up images is speed. The lower cost lines that have dynamic addresses are often very slow on upload speeds while having blazingly fast download speeds. The client trying to pull a file off your computer is limited by your upload speed... on some DSL lines thats only marginally faster than a good dialup modem.
Bob Smith
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