Section 9.1. Connecting by Dial-up Modem

9.1. Connecting by Dial-up Modem

If you're used to connecting to the Internet via ordinary phone lines, courtesy of your PC's modem and an Internet service provider (ISP) like Earthlink or Verizon, you'll have to transfer your PC's connection settings to the Mac. Set asideoh, a good six minutes for this task.


Note: You don't have to fool with any settings at all if you use America Online. When you first run AOL for Mac OS X, it guides you through the setup process automatically.If MSN is your provider, on the other hand, you're in unsupported territory. There's no Mac OS X version of the MSN software, so you're best off switching to a new provider. Still, if you copy the connection settings from your PC as described on the following pages, you may be able to get your MSN connection to workalbeit without any of MSN's bells and whistles.

9.1.1. Phase 1: The TCP/IP Tab

Start by choosing System Preferences and clicking the Network icon. From the Show pop-up menu, choose Internal Modem, and then click the TCP/IP tab. Unless your ISP has told you otherwise , keep "Using PPP selected in the Configure IPv4 pop-up menu.

Your main mission here is to fill in the DNS numbers provided by your Internet service provider (ISP). You can get these numbers either from your ISP or by consulting your old PC, assuming it's still set up to go online:

  • Windows XP . Choose Start Control Panel, then open Network Connections. Right-click the icon for your dial-up connection and, from the shortcut menu, choose Properties. Double-click the row that says "Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)." The numbers you want appear in the "Use the following DNS server addresses." (If "Obtain DNS server address automatically is selected instead, then you don't have to put anything into the Domain Name Server boxes on the Mac.)

  • Windows 2000 . Choose Start Settings Network and Dial-up Connections. Right-click the icon for your Internet connection; from the shortcut menu, choose Properties. Click the Networking tab. Double-click the row that says "Internet Protocol (TCP/IP)." Once again, copy the numbers that show up in the "Use the following DNS server addresses." (Once again, dont put anything into the Domain Name Server boxes on the Mac if "Obtain DNS server address automatically" is selected.)

  • Windows 98, Windows Me . Choose Start Settings Control Panel. In the Control Panel window, double-click Network. Double-click the "TCP/IP Dial-Up Adapter row. You'll see your DNS numbers on the DNS Configuration tab.

9.1.2. Phase 2: The PPP Tab

Now click the PPP tab (Figure 9-1). Your job here is to fill in the blanksbut how are you supposed to know what to fill?

Here's a listing of the blanks you find here, and where, on your old Windows machine, to find the necessary information (assuming you were able to get online with that machine).

9.1.2.1. Service Provider

This is the name of your ISP, and it doesn't have to be exact ( EarthLink , for example).

9.1.2.2. Account Name, Password, Telephone Number

These are the three key pieces of account information that your Mac needs to dial up. They're easy enough to find in Windows:

  • Windows XP . Choose Start Control Panel. Open Network Connections. Double-click the icon for your dial-up connection.

  • Windows 2000 . Choose Start Settings Network and Dial-up Connections. Double-click the icon for your Internet connection.

  • Windows Me . Choose Start Settings Dial-Up Networking. In the Control Panel, double-click the icon for your dial-up connection.

  • Windows 98 . Open My Computer Dial-Up Networking. Double-click the icon for your Internet connection.

In each case, the Connect dialog box appears, with connection information staring you in the face. Copy this information into the corresponding boxes on the PPP tab on the Mac, as shown in Figure 9-1. When you're finished making your settings, click Apply Now.


Note: Only an administrator can make changes to the Internet dial-up settings. To make a change, therefore, you may have to click the little padlock in the lower-left corner of the dialog box to input an administrator's name and password.

Figure 9-1. As you copy your ISP details from Windows (XP, shown at right) to the Mac (left), note that your password is blanked out to prevent evildoers from copying it. You'll have to either remember it or submit yourself to your ISP's mercy, because there's no way to copy it directly out of Windows.


Incidentally, if you click the PPP Options button, you bring up a special Options box, filled with checkboxes that control your online sessions. Here, for example, you can specify how long the Mac waits before hanging up the phone line after your last online activity, and how many times the Mac should dial if the ISP phone number is busy.

One checkbox here that you'll almost certainly want to turn on is "Connect automatically when needed." It makes your Mac dial the Internet automatically whenever you check your email or open your Web browser. (Otherwise, you'd have to establish the Internet call manually, using the Internet Connect program described on Section 14.12.6. Only then could you check your email or use your Web browser.)

9.1.2.3. Alternate Number

If your ISP gave you a backup phone number when you signed up for service, enter it here. If your Mac can't connect using your ISP's main number, it'll try your alternate number before giving up completely.

9.1.3. Phase 3: The Modem Tab

This is where you specify the kind of modem you have. Every Mac OS Xcompatible Mac has a built-in Apple modems, which is why the pop-up menu already says "Apple Internal 56K Modem (v.90)" or "Apple Internal 56K Modem (v.92)."

Some of the other settings that can be handy include:

  • Wait for dial tone before dialing . This one's for you, North American laptop owners . Because the dial tones in certain foreign countries sound weird to the Mac, it won't dial because it's still listening for that good old North American dial tone. In that case, turning off this checkbox makes the Mac dial bravely even though it hasn't heard the sound it's listening for.

  • Dialing . Specify what kind of phone service you haveTone or, in a few rural locations, Pulse.

  • Sound . By clicking Off, you make your Mac dial the Internet silently, sparing sleeping family members or dorm roommates from having to listen to your modem shriek as it connects.

9.1.4. Going Online

That's all there is to it. If you turned on "Connect automatically when needed," your Mac dials and connects to the Internet automatically whenever an Internet- related program tries to connect (a Web browser or email program, for example).

If you didn't turn on that option, then you can make your Mac dial the Internet in one of these ways:

  • Using Internet Connect . This little program is in your Applications folder. The main item of interest here is the Connect button (on the Internal Modem pane), which makes the Mac dial.

    If you're smart, however, you'll turn on the "Show modem status on menu bar" checkbox found here. It adds a tiny telephone iconthe Modem Status menuletto the upper-right corner of your screen, which lets you completely bypass Internet Connect the next time you want to go online or disconnect (Figure 9-2).

  • Use the menu-bar icon . Just click the Modem Status menulet and choose Connect from the pop-up menu. Your Mac dials without even blocking your desktop picture with a dialog box.

9.1.4.1. Disconnecting

The Mac automatically drops the phone line 10 minutes after your last activity online (or whatever interval you specified in the PPP Options dialog box). If other people have accounts on your Mac, the Mac doesn't even hang up when you log out. It maintains the connection so that the next person can Net-surf without redialing.

Of course, if other people in your household are screaming for you to get off the line so that they can make a call, you can also disconnect manually. Either choose Disconnect from the Modem Status menulet or click Disconnect in the Internet Connect window (both shown in Figure 9-2).

Figure 9-2. Going online automatically (by launching an Internet program) is by far the most convenient method, but you can also go online on demand, in one of these two ways. Top: The quick way is to choose Connect from this menulet (which doesn't appear until you turn on "Show modem status on menu bar" on the Internet Connect screen or in System Preferences).
Bottom: You can also go online the long way, using Internet Connect.




Switching to the Mac[c] The Missing Manual
Switching to the Mac[c] The Missing Manual
ISBN: 1449398537
EAN: N/A
Year: 2006
Pages: 371

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