At the bench online learning

Hi Andrea,

Regarding slow load time, I initially thought the same thing…then my brother suggested that I do 3 things and I realized that it was my relatively new computer and laptop that were the culprits…

  • first I switched my internet provider, to get a faster speed. I went from a very very slow speed of 3mbps (the fastest my internet provider offered in my area…!)…, to over 50-175mpbs, by switching from AT&T, to Time Warner Cable. (I forget what the top speed is for my plan…I am supposed to be able to get faster speeds, but that is only if/ for the computer (that) is cabled into the modem…the wireless speeds are slower than the advertised speeds, so you may need to go for a faster speed to get the adequate speed on a wireless laptop for example.

…i just did a speedtest this AM and the download speed on my laptop was 175mpbs, and the upload speed was 24mbps,…that was pretty fast…I was kind of surprised…normally my download speed is around 50-75mbps.

I think I recall that 30-50 mbps speeds are recommended for watching videos…I could not believe when I did the speedtest and my speed was a mere 3mbps…!

You can test your download/ upload speed by going to www.speedtest.net

  • then, I purchased (a few) usb wireless network adaptors, and plugged them into my laptop and desktop harddrive. The internal network adaptors that came in laptop and desktop were not as fast as these new network.adaptors.

you can check out wireless network adaptors usb online

I got this one:

  • then, my computer savvy friend checked to make sure that my modem was set up for using both of the available Ghz bands. Apparently there is the 2.4ghz band which is slower, but has a farther wireless “reach”, then there is the 5.0ghz band that has a faster speed but a shorter wireless “reach”…either one works well now that I have the wireless adaptor plugged into the computers. So, when I select a wireless connection, I can select either one…I don’t notice a big difference between the 2 bands…some people say that the time of day affects speeds as well…slower when more people are on the computer…?..so the 5.0Ghz band with the shorter “reach” is less crowded…?, would not know anything about that…

these three things eliminated the slow loading and buffering issues…

…I came to discover that the issue was my computer, not the website.

I hope I remembered and explained everything correctly…I am not a computer wiz but my brother is,!

Anyone, feel free to add info here.

Julie

I actually have fast speeds from my Internet provider and every other website pulls up in less than 2 seconds. I pinged his website through website speed test and it took 42.52 seconds for the home page to load. It’s not on my end.
My download speeds are 332.26 Mbps and upload 33.22Mbps. I can watch videos on other websites just fine without issue.

Click on the link for his website to see what I mean about page load times,.

Performance grade
C 77

Load time
42.52 s

Page size
3.3 MB

Requests
80

Tested from
Dallas
on Oct 13 at 09:13

It is not your internet speed, it is the website. Could be fixed, requires a whole set of things in addition to hosting/server stack.

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Unfortunately when I contacted Andrew about his slow loading pages in order to access the content he was in denial and brushed me off completely. Told me it’s not the case and basically I’m the only one that is seeing the issue. :confused: I was planning on purchasing a years worth of access too.

Ah well.

Hi Andrea

I was certainly not in denial. I was just informing you that the test you ran was only on the front page.

As the videos are not in the front page, their page layout in quite minimal and so will load a lot quicker and as mentioned in the emails to you, Amazon streams the videos so I would have thought that their technology is bang up to date.

Our website is going to be rebuilt from the ground up in the New Year as it has grown from a hand full of members to over 8000 from 63 countries in the 6 years it has been running and as you have quite rightly showed me, the layout of the site does need speeding up.

I appreciate you letting me have the website address to check the speed and will look forward to running the test again when the new site is up and running.

Thank you for your enquiry and your emails and I hope this post offers some explanation.

Hans, I very definitely prefer a well written printable tutorial with pics. I get very impatient with videos that go so long to cover a simple point. I like being able to go back to check various points, whereas with a video, this is not so easy. That said, the first time I am introduced to a new technique, it is very helpful to see a quick demo to see how the person holds the tools, at what angle, etc.

I prefer a physical book vs online, but so appreciate the availability of the internet.

Peggy K

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Hi Andrea and Seth!

Wow, you guys sure are tech savvy!

Andrea, wow! your speeds are lightening fast! I am quite envious! My current internet provider does not offer that speed…can you believe i was at 3mbps previously?..

Please forgive me for being presumptuous, I did not mean to be. I just wanted to share my experience and how I was able to resolve my issue, just in case for someone else.

Although my speeds are nowhere near your speeds, I am still able to enjoy watching videos ok.
I did the website test…my AtTheBench came in at 11.58 seconds, now 7.56 seconds, out of San Jose.
my Orchid.Ganoksin came in at 2.75 seconds…Go, Seth!
cool site! thanks for sharing!

I have turned into a video junkie and so love to watch them. But…! it has made my being a tool junkie even worse!

Thank you for also bringing it to their attention. I look forward to a new and improved site in the new year!

(I got “computer distance” glasses too and those have really helped to reduce my neck tilting strain while watching videos.)

Best Regards,
Julie

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Hi,

I’ve been a member of At the Bench for a couple of years now and find it very valuable. There are lots of in-depth explanations as he’s working in real time, and usually the entire process from start to finish is covered.

If the cost is high for anyone, he has (in the past) run specials around Christmas, so that may be worth waiting for.

Check out the free videos and see if his instructing style is useful to you. It definitely is for me.

I’ll also add that the few times I’ve had issues, he’s responded quickly – and I’m on the opposite side of the planet from him – plus, in my specific case, what few loading issues I once had disappeared when we changed ISPs.

Best,
Tricia

I am not a member, but given that he has 1,200 videos, certainly seems like a very fair price to pay…

Hi, Hans,

I love all kinds of instruction – there is so much to learn!

What I have found for me, personally, is that if I (sort of) understand the process I am trying to learn, then written instructions with accompanying pictures work well.

If it’s a process that I don’t quite ‘get’ yet, then a video helps me a lot.

A recent example is box clasps: I had no idea how to construct one, so I started with books (Revere, IIRC, and McCreight), then came to Ganoksin and read what was here, then purchased a video download… and then have been watching Mr Berry’s video series on both box and tube clasps. (Yes, it does take me a while, sometimes.)

All those sources work together for me to be able to create the visual representation in my head so I can work through the process in my head, and then with metal.

Many things are easier for me to understand than box clasps were / are, but I hope I’ve given you an idea of how all the different styles of instructing work together (for me, at least).

If your PDFs are publicly available (or for purchase), I’d love to see what’s available.

Best,
Tricia

Hi Dale,
I haven’t made any specific projects from At The Bench put I have used many of Andrew’s techniques is my work. He explains the process so well. I have learned so much from his videos.
Carolyn Tuchman
CMTuchman Designs

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Last I saw the video content from At The Bench was served from the Amazon Cloud, but authorization was painfully slow.

While I can read about the technique and look at static photos, I am a visual guy, so seeing the technique in action allows me to translate that written information into motions, etc.

Unfortunately, until you get Sense-o-Vision, you can’t get a sense of the pressure being applied to the tool or the give of the metal when struck correctly - all of the tactile sensations that are very important when doing some of the fine work goldsmiths need to do. :wink: