Data Transfer Rate

Data Transfer Rate

Data Transfer Rate: The speed at which data flows through a particular connection.

This is another case where it is important to remember the distinction between bits and bytes and how they are denoted.

This is because the rate of transfer is measured in bits per second, as opposed to bytes- remember that bytes are 8 bits long.

Switching the notation could lead somebody to believe the wrong specs about a computer, which can interfere in software, hardware, and programming in general.  One of these possible issues arises with bandwidth.

Assume you have HDD that can handle a maximum DTR (data transfer rate) of 480 Mbps- megabits per second- but you mistakenly note that your HDD can handle 480 MBps- megabytes per second, which would be 3840 Mbps.

Now, if 3840 mbps didn’t raise your suspicions, the near total stop of data transfer would be your next clue that something is wrong.

Remember that bandwidth is how much data can fit through a connection in a given time, and exceeding it can cause a bottleneck that slows down data transfer considerably.

Therefore, the DTR is closely related to bandwidth, and going any faster than the total DTR capacity will likely also mean there will be too much data trying to flow through a connection. Therefore, while they are not directly connected, what affects one may affect the other under the right circumstances.

This constant conversion is certainly annoying and time- consuming, and likely persists only because it looks much better for ISP’s (internet service providers) to say they have connection speeds of 80 Mbps rather than 10 MBps.

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