Broadband users and researchers would now be able to gauge the performance of Internet connections – thanks to network neutrality tools released by Google and its partners. The tools will be of great help to computer users in testing connection speed as well as determining whether an ISP – internet service provider - is obstructing or throttling particular applications.

Launched on Wednesday, the M-Lab project is an effort towards the end of transparency for users while using internet connections. Of late, there have been controversies over the network management practices followed by Comcast – US’ biggest cable modem provider - and other broadband providers.

The net neutrality tools, at MeasurementLab.net, comprise a network diagnostic tool, a network path diagnostic tool, plus a tool to evaluate if the broadband provider is slowing BitTorrent peer-to-peer (P-to-P) traffic, or else degrading some particular users and applications.

Emphasizing the internet connection transparency factor of the M-Lab tools, Vint Cerf - chief Internet evangelist at Google and a co-developer of TCP/IP – said, during a Washington D.C. meeting, that the set of tools would not only help broadband users to test their provider’s performance, but also permit security and researchers to work towards the improvement of the Internet.

Expressing a similar opinion about greater transparency, wireless expert Sascha Meinrath of the New America Foundation said: “The goal is to let consumers see what’s under the hood of their Internet connection!” (Rupinder contributed to this report)