Hi, I'm not getting much time to work on this, but I have some more queries please ...
> -----Original Message----- > From: Volker Kuhlmann [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Sent: Wednesday, August 16, 2006 8:36 AM > To: linux-users@it.canterbury.ac.nz > Subject: Re: Connect to Internet - where's the dial-up button? > > > For SUSE, you forget that you ever heard anything about kppp, and use > kinternet. In any case, configure your modem properly in yast first - > dial-on-demand, user name, modem control strings if necessary (several > ISPs require the "stupid mode" setting for making a successsful > connection (this is a flag which yast sets for wvdial). I think it is configured, but I'm not sure how to test that. Yast shows three lines for initialization strings - should I be giving it the usual modem init strings - or will it detect it's a modem and know what to do with it (at least with 'standard' modem commands)? I'm now trying with an old external 36k usrobotics modem - it's on com port one so I said modem was on something like /dev/ttyS1 - is this correct? > > The dialling is initiated in any case by smpppd (SUSE meta ppp daemon), > which is a daemon collecting system state and user commands. When > requested, smpppd starts pppd (which in turn starts wvdial for dealing > with the ISP login - none of this chat script cr*p in SUSE since about > '99). cinternet is a front-end to smpppd, kinternet likewise for the KDE > panel. I seem to have cinternet - is there no 'click on the panel button to start dialing' thingy under gnome desktop? At the moment I can't even see where to initiate the dial-up, and cinternet seems rather involved, if only those man pages would give examples somewhere then I would be able to cut and paste and see what happens - but as it is I don't know which are the essential parameters to add (and don't really want to go there anyway - far too complex). Should I be changing to the kde desktop to get a click for dialup thingy? If so, how hard is this to do (I did not choose to install kde when I installed suse), should I just reinstall suse picking it as my desktop instead? Then at least your kinternet notes will apply to me. >In terms of functionality, the kinternet/smpppd construction > leaves anything else I've seen for stone dead. Clicking on the panel > icon starts dialling, clicking again hangs up; no effect for > demand-dialling, but kinternet allows to disable demand-dialling > altogether (like when you want to make sure not to spend money). Trouble > connecting? Right-click on the panel icon, select "show log". None of > this: become root (is that edible?), start your favourite editor (what's > an editor?), look at /var/log/messages (there's no \var\lg\mssges - what > do I do now?). kinternet will also ask for the dialup password if you > deliberately didn't configure it in yast. Oh yes, most importantly, > kinternet handles any number of modems and ISPs with zero trouble. > > Remember that kinternet only controls the dial-up, but not the dialling > etc, so if your modem / internet connection /etc isn't working properly, > the log is the only real use you'll get out of kinternet. The log is > however the primary source for trouble-shooting. Run yast to fix things, > "configure modem" or similar from somewhere in kinternet. > > Volker I'm a bit disappointed with Linux in that something as essential as getting connected to the internet is still so fraught with difficulty (if only we had broadband where I live it would be much simpler).....but I'll persist a little longer. My replies will not happen quickly, as currently only computer at home is the non-functional linux one so I have to try to send mails from work and recall what's actually going on ..... Thanks, Bryce Stenberg.
