Unable to get online

Posted:
in Genius Bar edited January 2014
Hi.



First, I'd like to apologize if this is a topic that's been covered to death - I haven't seen it covered in any recent thread, and as a novice at OS X living a looong way away from any Apple dealer, I'm totally at my wits' end.



I have a 3-year-old iBook running OS X 10.1.2. The problem is simple: despite following the instructions in two otherwise-excellent manuals (Mac OS X: The Missing Manual and The Robin Williams Mac OS X Book), I can't get online. I get the error message "Internet Connect: A modem error occurred. Please verify your settings and try again." (I also got "Software Update is not able to connect to the Internet. Please check your configuration and try again.")



My old laptop running OS 9.2 and using the same phone line and ISP (BT) works fine, so I know that whatever problems there are must be at my end.



The connection is a dial-up, and the iBook has an internal modem, so my first question would be: Is there any way to test whether there is a fault with the modem itself? (I somehow doubt it, as this machine has been sitting unused for three years. Much more likely that I've made a mess of the settings.)



Would it help if I listed my various settings here?



Thanks in advance for any assistance - I really don't want to have to post off the machine to a dealer!





Alan

Comments

  • Reply 1 of 6
    dobbydobby Posts: 797member
    A usb modem would quickly prove if its your modem or not.

    I don't know if you can use Hayes commands on a mac to dial say your mobile phone to prove your modem is okay.



    Dobby.
  • Reply 2 of 6
    Quote:

    Originally posted by dobby

    A usb modem would quickly prove if its your modem or not.

    I don't know if you can use Hayes commands on a mac to dial say your mobile phone to prove your modem is okay.



    Dobby.




    Thanks for the suggestion - I don't know if you can either, but maybe someone else here does..?



    Thanks again anyway.
  • Reply 3 of 6
    Just in case anyone is kind enough to advise me on my System Preferences settings, here they are:





    The settings in the NETWORK pane are as follows:





    Location (drop-down menu): Automatic

    Show (drop-down menu): Internal Modem





    TCP/IP SCREEN -



    Configure: Using PPP



    IP Address (Provided by PPP server): [Blank] *

    Subnet Mask: [Blank] *

    Router: [Blank] *



    (* All of these have no boxes to enter information in)



    Domain Name Servers (Optional): [Blank]

    Search Domains (Optional): [Blank]





    PPP SCREEN -



    Service Provider (Optional): BT Internet Anytime

    Telephone Number: 0808 993 3001

    Alternate Number (Optional): Blank

    Account Name: **********@btinternet.com

    Password: ********



    Save password: [Box ticked]



    __________________________________________________ __________

    Clicking on the PPP Options button produces:



    Session Options:



    Connect automatically when starting TCP/IP applications: [Box unticked]

    Prompt every -- minutes to maintain connection: [Box unticked]

    Disconnect if idle for 15 minutes: [Box ticked]

    Disconnect when user logs out: [Box ticked]

    Redial if busy: [Box unticked]



    Advanced Options:



    Send PPP echo packets: [Box ticked]

    Use TCP header compression: [Box ticked]

    Connect using a terminal window (command line): [Box unticked]

    Use verbose logging: [Box unticked]

    __________________________________________________ __________





    PROXIES SCREEN -



    [All options left blank]





    MODEM SCREEN -



    Modem: Apple Internal 56K Modem (v.90)



    Enable error correction and compression in modem: [Box ticked]

    Sound: Off [Box ticked]

    Dialing: Tone [Box ticked]

    Wait for dial tone before dialing: [Box unticked]



    Show modem status in menu bar: [Box ticked]







    The settings in the INTERNET pane are:





    iTOOLS SCREEN -



    [Left blank]





    EMAIL SCREEN -



    Default Email Reader: Mail

    Use iTools Email account: [Box unticked]



    Email Address: ********@btinternet.com

    Incoming Mail Server: mail.btinternet.com

    Account Type: POP

    User Account ID: ********

    Password: *******

    Outgoing Mail Server: mail.btinternet.com



    [NOTE: I don't know whether my User Account ID should show just the bit to the left of the '@' character or the entire name including the @btinternet.com]





    WEB SCREEN -



    Default Web Browser: Internet Explorer

    Home Page: http://livepage.apple.com/

    Search Page: http://www.google.co.uk/

    Download Files To: /Users/******/Desktop





    NEWS SCREEN -



    Default News Reader: Outlook Express

    News Server: [Blank]

    Connect As: Registered user

    User Account ID: [Blank]

    Password: [Blank]





    Whew! Thanks again for any suggestions.





    Alan
  • Reply 4 of 6
    talksense101talksense101 Posts: 1,738member
    Post the system log message when you try to connect. You can get it from the console utility. The settings don't really matter if the problem is with your modem / driver.



    Why don't you try changing the type of modem in your setup to something with slower connection rate like a 33.6 instead of a v.90?
  • Reply 5 of 6
    Lemme take a crack at this for you...



    In your system prefs/network settings try entering the following information:



    1) Under PPP, enter all of your ISP information UNLESS you have AOL ... then it's a whole other beast. Tell me if you're using AOL and I'll post those instructions...



    2) Click the PPP Options button and make sure that only the following three boxes are checked: a) Disconnect when user logs out, b) Send PPP echo packets and c) Use TCP header compression.



    3) Under the TCP/IP tab make sure the "Configure IPv4" menu select "Using PPP"



    4) Under the "Proxies" tab make sure all of the prxies are unchecked and select "Use Passive FTP Mode (PASV)"



    5) Under the "Modem" tab select the internal modem on the computer, check "enable error correction and compression in modem" and "wait for dial tone before dialing"



    6) Click apply to save your settings



    7) Now, go back to the PPP tab and select "Dial Now..." and see if it connects...



    Hope that helps get you connected ... if not, let me know and I'll take another crack at it... 8)
  • Reply 6 of 6
    Wow - thank you so much for all that, it is much appreciated.



    Now comes the embarrassing bit: after much fiddling around with all the settings and still nothing working, I plugged the modem jack into a different phone socket - and it worked. The fault had been entirely mine: I had plugged the jack into a three-way adapter, along with my phone and the other modem. The other two items had worked fine, but not the iBook's modem, even though I was only using one device at a time. Simply plugging the modem jack straight into the phone socket cured the problem.



    Thank you all so much for all your help, and hopefully one day soon I'll stop slapping my head...



    Alan
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