Why is there so much lag when playing xbox live?

Question

why is there so much lag when playing xbox live, my son just told me he was standing right next to an enemy shooting him like crazy but he didn't see him.and out connection has 100.0mbps.

Answer 1

its probly not your fault

the person your son is shooting is probly next to his router pressing the standby button which makes serious lag

Answer 2

Lag has plagued online play for years now. It's been around since I started online play in the mid to late 80's.

Yes... that's right. Lag in text based MUDs.  It's not only your own connection that can cause it, but the server where the game is being hosted. And everything in between.

I used to have cable broadband and found that in the evenings, when everyone in my area was trying to play or download, or whatever, my speeds dropped to dial-up rates. It had nothing to do with what Windows claimed: 100mbs connectivity.

The internet is only as fast as the slowest component you are connected through. So if you are using a 100mbps card, connected to a 100mbps switch and router, but the router is connecting through a T1 at 1.5mbps, you will get 1.5mbps speed.

If the server at the other end is struggling under the load of several users maxing out it's resources, you will also see a lag. Or if the server is connecting through a route which is slowed down.

All you can do in that case is choose a different server with less lag.

If you see this kind of lag on a PC which is older, sometimes it's the computer which cannot process incoming data fast enough, resulting in a high connection speed, but lagging play. Not normally the case in consoles, but it can happen with certain games.

EDIT: Don, the websites you pull up on your PC are generally nothing compared to the amount of things a system has to process while playing a first person shooter. Since you are on an XBOX - basically a dedicated gaming computer - and using XBOX live via the internet:

= You are not actually getting 100mbps speed.  The adapter is only reporting the speed at which it is connected to the router, modem or switch, not the speed at which your ISP, or the gaming server, is able to send data which is considerably lower.

= Your problem is probably the XBOX live gaming server your son is connected to and its current load, and distance from you.

= Some games, like Two Worlds for example, just stink and are prone to lag.  This is no reflection on your network connection.