Or go feed the chickens. For more information on finger, see MORE Internet For Dummies, 4th Edition . The point of ping is to test that your Internet connection works and to see how long data packets are taking to get from your computer out to the Net and back. When you ping another computer, a little packet of information zings out to that computer, which responds right away. The ping program checks that the response it received, along with how long the response took.
Normal responses are well under one second.
To ping, you need a ping program. Under UNIX, type ping , a space, and the name of a computer to ping. At the DOS prompt, type ping , a space, and the computer to ping, and press Enter. You can ping a computer at your own Internet provider's site, for example, the computer from which you pick up your mail. For more information on ping, see MORE Internet For Dummies, 4th Edition .