Proxy settings - more info
What is a proxy server?
A proxy server is a server, which saves the information we download when we browse the internet. By doing so, the same document can be delivered with high speed the next time the information is needed, because it is delivered by LAN speed (100/1000 Mbit) from a local server and not with WAN speed (theoretically 100 Mb, in practice a lot slower) from a server on the other end of the globe.
Why should I use the proxy server?
Because you get much faster response times. The proxy server also helps others to get a faster response because there is less load on the WAN-line. The proxy server remembers what other users have downloaded, so that you don't need to download it again.
Why is the Internet connection so slow?
There are a lot of websites that for some reason cannot be saved in the proxy server, i.e. pages that depend on the user's input. These pages have to be downloaded from the web server every time, and if this web server is placed in the basement of a pig-farmer in Timbuktu, then you can't expect high speeds, proxyserver or not.
How to setup other programs/browsers to use proxy
Not all browsers support the WPAD standard (WWW Proxy Auto Detection), which makes it possible for the program to get the proxy settings automatically. If it is possible, you can instead use the configuration script, which is placed at http://wpad.iha.dk/wpad.dat.
The advantage of using this script instead of the method below is that all local trafic is not guided through our proxy server, which will be faster.
If you want to force all trafic, including trafic for internal servers through our proxy, you can configure the program to use the proxy server:
www-cache.iha.dk on port 3128, sometimes written like this: www-cache.iha.dk:3128.