2 Xbox Live questions

I've got two questions about Xbox Live

1. I bought a Premium Version that came with a free month of XBL Gold. My question is, is it just a month or does it only count if I log onto XBL? I'm just wondering because I'm going to be out of town for a week and was wondering if that week would count towards that month-long subscription.

2. Can I play a game while a download is in progress? I'm only asking because I'm downloading a map pack and its taking a while.

Thanks for the help.

1. yes, it's just a month long. so, wait until you get back home before you start the subscription.

2. yes, you can DL and play a game at the same time.

1. it ends at a set date. regardless of how many hours you've consumed on live.

and numbo two, you can play games while downloading, but you can't play others on live (and arcade games... i think)

You cannot play a game that has online capabilites on it while DLing something. the DL will automatically stop. for example: you CAN play Oblivion, but you CANNOT play GearsRoughan-