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IP addresses and problem with a modem connection
IP addresses and problem with a modem connection
One day, connecting online via a modem will be as simple and reliable as making an ordinary phone call. For now, it is the "dirty little secret" of the online world that connecting online successfully is about as much of a sure thing as winning at roulette. There is always something that seems to be going wrong - whether with your software, your modem, your ISP, the phone line or the Internet backbone itself. Sometimes, the solution is as simple as trying to connect a second time. Other times, the solution can be much more difficult to find.
Case in point: I developed a symptom in the last few weeks where I would appear to connect just fine: the log on sequence was listed as "successful" by my modem. However, none of my Internet software would show evidence of a connection. Emailer would time out without getting my mail; Netscape would claim that it could not find any web site I selected. Making diagnosis more difficult, this would only happen sporadically.
After a good deal of detective work, I believe I solved the problem: it was an incorrect numeric IP address listed in the TCP/IP control panel. Now, if I can only figure out the other dozen or so quirks that periodically plague my connection attempts...
Update: I have received several suggestions of other possible causes and cures for this problem. Of particular note, Neil Thorne writes that this symptom is often "correctable by trashing the TCP/IP Prefs."
Case in point: I developed a symptom in the last few weeks where I would appear to connect just fine: the log on sequence was listed as "successful" by my modem. However, none of my Internet software would show evidence of a connection. Emailer would time out without getting my mail; Netscape would claim that it could not find any web site I selected. Making diagnosis more difficult, this would only happen sporadically.
After a good deal of detective work, I believe I solved the problem: it was an incorrect numeric IP address listed in the TCP/IP control panel. Now, if I can only figure out the other dozen or so quirks that periodically plague my connection attempts...
Update: I have received several suggestions of other possible causes and cures for this problem. Of particular note, Neil Thorne writes that this symptom is often "correctable by trashing the TCP/IP Prefs."
