| What is Shotgun Technology? Shotgun is Diamond Multimedia's exclusive technology that bonds together two modems to work over two ordinary phone lines. The result? One powerful Internet connection. For instance, keep your existing 33.6K modem, add a speedy Shotgun-enabled SupraExpress 56K modem to your PC, and get download speeds up to 89.6K. Better yet, two 56K Diamond modems deliver up to 112K! Another alternative is to purchase a SupraSonic II modem which integrates two powerful 56K modems together on a single board. Just plug the SupraSonic II into two ordinary phone lines for one powerful Internet connection -- up to 112K! Plus it works with Shotgun™ technology to deliver this amazing speed without monopolizing the use of your second phone line. Questions and Answers regarding Shotgun Technology. 1. If Shotgun uses two phones lines, do I need to install a third line for voice calls? No. Shotgun's unique, built-in features keep your voice line available for incoming calls. When a call comes in on that line, Shotgun releases the data connection and allows the call to ring through. This feature is designed to work with the SupraSonic II only. 2. Do I need special phone lines to use Shotgun? No. Shotgun works over the ordinary, analog phone lines that you already have. 3. What products will come with Shotgun technology? Shotgun will be packaged with all SupraExpress 56K modems. If you already own a SupraExpress 56k modem, you will be able to download Shotgun from our website when it is released. Shotgun technology will also be built into the new SupraSonic II dual-line modem. 4. Can I use Shotgun in combination with other modem brands? Yes. Shotgun will bond your SupraExpress 56 to virtually any modem. Diamond will maintain a compatibility list on the company website of Shotgun-tested modems. 5. Can I bond two different modem speeds? Yes. Shotgun will combine the speeds of any two analog modems. For example, if you bond your new SupraExpress 56 with your old 28.8K modem, you can achieve speeds of up to 84.8 Kbps. 6. Will I lose voice calls during two-line downloads? Shotgun's unique voice priority feature on SupraSonic II will detect an incoming phone call on the voice line, and then release the line to allow the incoming call to ring through. You can also manually release or add your second phone line to your Internet connection "on the fly" by clicking a software button. 7. Is Shotgun's voice priority feature available when using 2 modems other than a SupraSonic II? Because different modem manufacturers design their products differently, we can
not guarantee that voice priority will function with other brands and models of modems. To
fully utilize the voice priority feature of Shotgun technology, we recommend using our
SupraSonic II dual-line modem. No. When the voice priority feature releases the second phone line, the data transmission continues on the SupraSonic's first line, uninterrupted. You can disable the voice priority feature and call waiting will be disabled for that particular call. 9. What if I'm downloading a small file and don't want to use both phone lines? By default, Shotgun only dials out with one line. Shotgun technology's bandwidth-on-demand feature "senses" when you need greater bandwidth for your Internet connection and automatically adds your second phone line. When you need less bandwidth, your second phone line is automatically released for other uses. 10. What ISPs support Shotgun technology? 11. Does Shotgun require two accounts with my Internet Service Provider? Yes, and we offer dual account access to all our customers. A Shotgun account can be purchased for $32.95 per month. 12. When will Diamond offer Shotgun for (Windows '98, NT 4.0/5.0, Macintosh, Unix)? When will a(n) (external serial, USB, PCI) SupraSonic II be available? Diamond has announced Shotgun technology for current SupraExpress 56 line products for the Windows 95 and Windows 98 platforms. The SupraSonic II is being introduced as an internal ISA bus peripheral for the PC platform. No announcements for other hardware models or operating system support have been made at this time. Diamond will continue to monitor interest from the market for variations to the present announcements. 13. I already own a SupraExpress 56 modem - how can I get Shotgun software? The Shotgun application for SupraExpress modem owners is available at Diamond's Web Site this is a downloadable file. 14. Does Shotgun speed up web content like audio and video streams as well as web pages? Yes. Shotgun is transparent to the content requested and provides higher bandwidth to all objects - text, graphics, audio, video, chat, push technologies, online gaming, and others. 15. I currently connect at 26,400bps with my 33.6K modem. How will Shotgun technology help me? If your phone lines cannot support the full capability of 56K modems, Shotgun technology can still provide the maximum speed of each line (for example, 26,400 + 26,400 == 52,800bps). This is achieved when combining an existing modem with one of our SupraExpress 56 modems or by replacing the current modem with a single SupraSonic II. 16. I have an internal modem today and want to buy an external SupraExpress 56 modem. Will this combination work with Shotgun? Yes, the two modems can both be internal, external or a combination thereof and still work with Shotgun. At least one of the modems must be a Diamond SupraExpress 56 product. 17. Can I buy Shotgun software to use with my XYZ modem? Shotgun technology is a feature found exclusively in the Diamond SupraSonic II and SupraExpress 56 line of modems. It is not sold separately. 18. Does the SupraSonic II include voice mail or speakerphone? No, the SupraSonic II is designed for the fastest Internet connections possible over analog phone lines. It provides data speeds up to 112Kbps and fax speeds to 14.4Kbps. 19. I have two phone lines wired to a single phone jack in my home. How do I hook up two modems or SupraSonic II to this? If all four phone wires are hooked to a single jack, you'll need to purchase a line splitter (available at most home repair locations or phone service centers) to break the lines apart for two modems. However, the SupraSonic II provides a jack that can be connected directly to the 2-line wall jack. 20. Does Shotgun technology only improve my download performance or does it help uploads too? Shotgun provides all-around performance. Uploads are bonded just like download speeds, so a maximum of 67.2Kbps (33.6K x 2) can be achieved over analog phone lines. 21. How is Shotgun affected by the 56K standards battle? Shotgun technology utilizes the connection speeds the modems negotiate with the ISP server, regardless of the protocol. Since Diamond modems use K56flex today and are flash upgradeable to the upcoming V.90 standard, users will get the highest performance when connecting to ISPs using those protocols. 22. If my ISP imposes a metered rate surcharge for connecting with more than one line ( we do NOT), how does Shotgun make this affordable? Shotgun technology utilizes bandwidth on demand. First seen in Diamond's NetCommander ISDN card, the second phone line is added only when the first line is used to its maximum. Settings in the Shotgun application allow the user to determine how long to wait before adding or dropping the second connection. This allows you to maximize the use of the voice phone line and minimize any additional charges incurred while logged on to your ISP. Pay for only what you need! 23. I currently have a modem that uses x2 technology, but I want to access the Internet faster. How does Shotgun technology help? When used in conjunction with a SupraExpress 56K modem on a K56flex-based ISP, you may obtain a connection speed up to 89.6K (56K + 33.6K). The x2 modem should be able to connect at V.34 rates when calling a K56flex ISP. Assuming both modems are eventually flash-upgraded to a V.90 protocol and the ISP is also V.90 compatible, the maximum data connection speed would increase to 112Kbps. 24. Does Shotgun technology improve the latency (round-trip turnaround time) on the Internet? Shotgun improves delays in receiving data from the Internet when the modem connection is the bottleneck. 25. How much will my ISP charge for using two lines with Shotgun? Most ISPs will charge some amount more for accessing their services with two lines. Please contact us for additional details. 26. Why is BACP not a part of Shotgun technology? Diamond has announced that the Multilink PPP (ML-PPP or MP) and
Ascend Communications' Multichannel Protocol Plus (MP+) protocols will be a part of the
Shotgun technology to be released during Q1'1998. Equipment is widely available today
incorporating these specifications. Shotgun™ System Requirements How much does it cost for Shotgun capability with you guys? We offer a Basic Shotgun Account for Shotgun/Multi-Link PPP to your account. We offer this account for $32.90 monthly with NO extra set-up charges. We only provide the capability to use this
technology and do not provide the modem. |