StayOn Pro 4.0

Overview

StayOn Pro is a Windows communications utility that aims to help people still using dial up internet technology to remain connected. Often the ISP will see a lack of internet activity as being away from the keyboard and disconnect the service to save on network resources. This can often be a good thing because it cuts down on the per minute charging, however for some users who prefer to always stay connected it can be rather annoying indeed.

This software will work around the period of inactivity by automatically acknowledging requests from the ISP to confirm that the user still wishes to stay connected. The utility loads up and sits in the system tray ready to leap into action to get rid of reminder windows checking if the user still wishes to stay connected. The software can also help to look at the internet connection settings to ensure they are correctly optimized for the best possible speeds. A Proxy server can be configured and used.

Installation

The installation either comes as an executable file or a zip file. In either case, the file size is less than 1 MB so the download is over in a couple of seconds.

Interface

The interface is basically a white and grey window with many buttons that perform different commands. It could certainly be laid out much nicer with more graphical design put into it. There is an ISP setup button, Internet Protocols, Timer, Proxy settings, and Wizard to take the user through what needs to be set up. There is also a FAQ file too.

Pros

• Connect to the ISP
• Auto detect the correct ISP settings
• Maintain connect to the ISP by ensuring the net connection never goes down
• Automatically confirms dialog boxes to ensure that downloads stay alive
• Maintains an active connection
• No need to stay with the screen to click messages that wish to verify that the user is still online as the software automatically acknowledges those ones
• 30 day free trial
• Works with Windows 95, 98, Me, NT, 2000, and XP

Cons

• Not useful for anything other than a dial up connection.

Conclusion

The StayOn Pro software is designed to be helpful for people who are still back on dial up connections. It may also work for some other types of internet connections where excessive idleness on the line may temporarily disconnect the connection.