Even though my internet connection is advertised at a speed of 24,000kb the best speed I can achieve according to Speedtest.net is 3600kb. My ISP has said this is not a problem at their end of the connection. How can I achieve full speed on the internet connection?

24,000kb (or 24 megabits) is the top speed available on an ADSL2 connection. ADSL2 is the newest version of ADSL which allows you to achieve speeds higher than the maximum of 8 megabits on a normal ADSL connection. Even though ADSL2 may be advertised as 24 megabits, this is the theoretical maximum/optimal speed you can achieve on an ADSL2 connection. Such speeds would only be achievable if you lived very close to the telephone exchange, since the speed of ADSL slows down the further you are away from an exchange. Therefore, unless you live next-door to the telephone exchange it would be very unlikely that you would achieve speeds such as 24 megabits on the ADSL2 connection. That said, 3600kb (3.6 megabits) is still a reasonable speed for an ADSL connection.