MidPoint Advanced Features Distance MidPoint from the Competition Forrest Stroud
Advanced Features Distance MidPoint from the Competition
MidPoint distances itself from the competition in more ways than just its modem teaming capabilities. Among its finer selling points, MidPoint features on-demand connection capabilities which allow guest computers to automatically connect to the Internet as needed. MidPoint initiates dial-up processes on the host computer, establishes connections to the Internet provider or providers, and then automatically disconnects when finished or after specified periods of inactivity.
Another of MidPoint's advanced features is the Download Doubler, which can split a file into parts and use the modem teaming technology to download the file much faster than would be normally possible. A similar feature called FailSafe Downloading allows MidPoint to automatically and transparently recover any data lost upon a dropped connection and then resume downloading data from the point where it last left off.
MidPoint also acts as a natural firewall by ensuring that requests from the Internet are not passed directly through to your LAN. Only authorized users can pass information through the firewall and therefore between the Internet and your LAN. MidPoint doubles as a proxy server and routing service as well, meaning MidPoint can receive information from the Internet and in turn send it to the correct computer or computers on the network. This alleviates the need for each workstation to have its own IP address.
These features allow you to connect your network to the Internet without needing to purchase expensive hardware router equipment and separate firewall software. Another function MidPoint can perform is the role of a DHCP (Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol) Server whose duty is to automatically assign IP addresses to requesting computers on your LAN, which in turn greatly simplifies the process of getting guest computers up and running with your MidPoint-enabled 'InterNetwork'.
