Given that I'm 400 odd miles from Milton Keynes, I think the pingtest distance aspect relates to the ping between the pingtest server and the last Plusnet node (see my pingtest data in my sig).

My guess is that the network routes via London (London - Sheffield = 160miles). Pure guess though.

I wonder what conorMK gets?

In reply to a post by ian72:

Whilst I understand the sentiment the 100 miles difference the 2 of you have to the test server would most likely account for much of the ping change. It would only be fair to compare them on the same line with the 2 different providers to provide a close comparison. Perhaps professor has a similar result from when on Plusnet that would give that proper comparison?

Whatever the server, I found Plusnet more Pong than Ping!!!
http://speedtest.net/result/2042456161.png
http://speedtest.net/result/1581329742.png

Edited by professor973 (Fri 31-Aug-12 17:37:54)

The speedtest servers always give worse pings than the pingtest servers. See mine.

In reply to a post by camieabz:

The speedtest servers always give worse pings than the pingtest servers. See mine.

I have never been able to get to the bottom of that. Speedtest & Pingtest sites seem to be linked, but even tests to the same apparent server vary wildly.

All Plusnet connections terminate in their London data centres where they have their peering links to the rest of the internet.

Thanks.

I did a speedtest.net speed test not long ago, one MK and one Namesco. Both gave the < 50 mile figure, so what you say makes sense.

So are they pinging my router, or a PN one in London? Or timing the first hop to get a distance and the user IP address for the real test? That's the only way that would make sense, just rendering the distance figure irrelevant.

speedtest.net is just doing a Geo IP on the registered address for the IP block

Thanks. IIRC that's what said earlier I though must be happening. However a WHOIS lookup on my IP address semi-failed. Gives nothing beyond PN at Sheffield. My O2 one used to give the Be Zone.

The distance they give is rubbish - it's based on your IP address using data from when people give their location on various web sites.

I've never revealed my location and get wildly different figures. Currently it's giving me http://speedtest.net/result/2152366770.png - I'm over 100 miles from London!

In reply to a post by jelv:

The distance they give is rubbish - it's based on your IP address using data from when people give their location on various web sites.

I've never revealed my location and get wildly different figures. Currently it's giving me http://speedtest.net/result/2152366770.png - I'm over 100 miles from London!

Lots of discussion since I posted and clearly I was reading something into the distance that just isn't true. Never actually considered before how they got the distance - guess if I had thought about it then it would have been clear it was a nonsense number.