Net neutrality is a hotly contested issue, and has come under renewed fire as several ISPs have been caught throttling Internet speeds and others have publicly stated they plan to test metered broadband services. Users, caught in the middle, will soon have a new tool to use against their ISPs: a detector that will tell them if their Internet speeds are being throttled by the ISP.Slashdot and HotHardWare are reporting that a Google engineer says that the company is going to be testing technology that will allow users to detect if their Internet is being slowed down by the provider.

Google senior policy director, Richard Whitt, said in a public forum, "We're trying to develop tools, software tools ... that allow people to detect what's happening with their broadband connections, so they can let [ISPs] know that they're not happy with what they're getting -- that they think certain services are being tampered with."

I say it's about time. My home broadband is supposed to have download speeds of 20 Mbps and upload speeds of 5 Mbps via fiber optics. I test it using standard browser tools constantly, especially when I notice slowdowns. Outside of high-traffic times during each work day, I've noticed distinct times when my home broadband is slower than it should be. I've seen download results as low as 5 Mbps, one-quarter what it should be. Since I work from home, and my Internet connection is essential to my work, I am especially sensitive to network slowdowns. I am a heavy user of the Internet. I stream a lot of video, and I am constantly uploading and downloading large files for my work. Do I believe I am a target of throttling? Not necessarily.

However, I'd like to know, or be able to test, when I think I am being throttled. Having the tools to do that would be helpful, especially if the slowdowns prevent me from doing my job. I'd be able to provide feedback to my broadband provider and back it up with proof.

Bring it on, Google. I am waiting.