SANTA CLARA, Calif., April 14 -- When your Internet connection slows to a crawl, who's to blame? Your computer? Your Internet service provider? The firms that operate the big coast-to-coast data lines? The computer at the other end?
In the World Wide Web's short but storied history, it's been virtually impossible for the average consumer to know. But now, in a development some industry watchers say could have broad effects on the Internet-service business, a small company here called VitalSigns Software Inc. says it has developed an effective finger-pointing tool.
It's a piece of software that runs on a personal computer and displays, in the corner of the user's screen, the performance of an Internet connection. If bottlenecks occur, the product, called Net.Medic, will indicate where they are, whether along a simple phone connection or inside sophisticated routing computers at the person's Internet provider, the company said.
In recent months, a growing chorus of computer users have complained of slowdowns on the Internet. Many industry experts have said a convergence of factors -- including overloaded Internet service providers, congested data lines and crowded Web sites -- have been responsible for the problem.
VitalSigns' chief executive, Montgomery Kersten, promoted the product, which was released today on the Web, as a "Darwinian accelerator" for the Internet, holding service providers and Web site operators responsible for managing usage.
"In the past, it's been impossible to know for sure who are the strong performers and who are the weak ones," said Kersten. "This will bring about some natural evolution. The weak Internet providers will be drummed out by the strong ones."
Some analysts say that may be overstating things a bit, but they agree that the software could put an unprecedented level of information at the fingertips of Internet users.
"It will give them more intelligence then they've ever had before," said Ted Julian, an analyst with market research firm International Data Corp. in Framingham, Mass.
The product, developed in conjunction with researchers from Boston University, analyzes data sent over the Internet, which is transmitted in "packets." Each packet, Kersten said, can be studied to deduce how much time it spent at various digital intersections between the origin and destination.
The software can also generate what's in essence a form letter of complaint, listing the specific technical problem, that the user can send to the responsible party.
Although there are scores of other diagnostic software tools for networks on the market, few evaluate the performance of a total Internet connection.
News of the software generated mixed reviews from Internet service providers today. "Certainly it's a good idea for customers to know why something's taking longer than they expected to load," said Mike O'Dell, a vice president and chief scientist at UUNet Technologies Inc., a Fairfax-based Internet provider. "But networks are complex things and products like this may mislead people."
The product will be offered for free in a 30-day trial on VitalSigns' Web site. After that it will be sold for $49 a copy, but people will be able to use basic features of the software for free.
The company, founded in 1996 by executives from the computer networking company Bay Networks Inc., is developing a version for corporations to evaluate the performance of their internal data networks.
Kersten said the company already has reached partnership agreements with Silicon Valley giants Oracle Corp. and Netscape Communications Corp. to sell Net.Medic.
© Copyright 1997 The Washington Post Company