Why Do I Get Dropped Connections?
There are many reasons, why you may experience dropped connections.

The stability of an connection is affected by the quality of the communication that occurs between two modems; the clearer the communication, the more stable the connection. Some of the variables that affect the way modems communicate with each other are as follows:

• The clarity of your phone line. The signal on an phone line can be degraded as a result of weather, the distance between your home and the phone company’s switching equipment, electrical interference, or anything else that affects the transmission of electrical interference, or anything else that affects the transmission of electrical impulses along copper wire. If you hear static on the line when you attach a regular phone, it is a sure sign that you have noisy line, but the lack of static is not proof that your phone line is clear enough to establish a high speed connection. In some parts of the country, customers can have the local phone company "condition" the line to ensure that the phone line is performing optimally, but even that is no guarantee, if your home is a long distance call from the phone company’s switching equipment.
  
• You may have a defective jack. Try plugging your modem into a different phone jack in your home.

• The compatibility of the two modems. Despite the fact that modems communicate according to standardized protocols, modem manufacturers implement those protocols differently. Consequently, a modem manufactured by one company may not communicate well with a modem manufactured by a competitor. To increase the likelihood that your modem is performing optimally, make sure that you have the latest modem drivers installed and are using the right modem initialization string.
  
• The configuration of your TCP/IP software. Your TCP/IP software tells your computer how to communicate with your modem. If it is configured incorrectly, it will produce errors that will degrade the stability of your connection.
  
• How well your TCP/IP software loaded into the system at start-up. Sometimes the quality of a connection can be improved simply by restarting your computer. Chronic problems with your TCP/IP software, however, may be rectified by uninstalling and reinstalling the TCP/IP system software.

• Additional telephony devices (fax, phones, answering machines, splitters, etc.) may be producing interference on the phone line, even if they’re in a different room. Try disconnecting them and trying to establish a connection again.

For additional helpful information, please refer to:

http://www.cvc.net/hp/connection_qanda.htm
or http://www.cvc.net/hp/56K_Technology.html