Dynamic Help Desk

What are some common mistakes I can avoid making in connecting my computer to the Internet?

1. Not reading the setup instruction sheet.

2. Placing the correct connection and server information in the wrong fields when setting up your dialup networking and browser.

3. Using capital letters in your username or password. When your log in fails, the first thing to do is check to see if the CAPS LOCK key is activated.

4. Installing Netscape Communicator Or Navigator and using its dialer instead of the Windows 95/98 dialer. You should always use the Windows 95/98 dialer when connecting.

5. Leaving the "File and Print Sharing for MS networks" option turned on over TCP/IP. Not only will this slow your Internet connection, but it will also open your system to access from the Internet, allowing someone to view or tamper with the files on your computer.

My computer is making lots of noise, but won't connect to my service provider. What's going on?

Check that your server type is set up correctly: Open the Control Panel| Dial-Up Networking | Properties | Server Type for the icon of your Internet provider. If you are set up for a PPP account, be sure the server type is set for PPP, not SLIP or CSLIP.

Check the telephone line connected to the back of your computer. Many modems have two plugs (that both look like telephone jacks). The plugs are sometimes labeled, but the print may be very small. One goes directly to the wall jack. The other one is for connecting a handset so you can accept voice calls when you are not on the Internet. Another possibility is that a telephone extension in your house is off the hook.

A. You can ask the phone company to check the lines in and outside your house for noise or bad telephone connections.

B. Ask the phone company to remove any repeaters from your telephone line if such repeaters are installed. Repeaters boost the telephone signal so it can travel longer distances, however they can interrupt data connections, which in turn slows your Internet connection.

A. Although a number of demons may be to blame, the quality of your telephone line and strength of the signal are likely culprits. In brief, your telephone line encounters varying degrees of interference, also called "line noise." This noise confuses your modem, causing it to drop the connection.

B. Ask your telephone company to test your line, or test it yourself with a utility such as Tech Tool Pro 2.

A. Install a new phone cord from your computer to the wall outlet. The shorter the cord, the better.

B. Avoid entangling the phone cord with other cords, especially power cords.

C. If you have other devices connected to the telephone jack, make the modem the first device out of the wall.

D. Make sure your modem performs at its best. Have the most recent firmware for it installed. Firmware is the hardware chip inside your modem that you can upgrade with software downloaded from the manufacturer's Web site. Upgrading your firmware will probably increase your modem speed and make its connection more stable.

E. Mac users should install the latest version of Open Transport, Apple's networking system software. This will make your connection more stable. Granted, Open Transport is already installed on Mac OS 8.0 and later, however, you still may not have the latest version.

The usual suspect is your Web browser's memory cache. Try emptying the cache first, then reloading the site you wish to view.

In Netscape Communicator: Look under Edit| Preferences | Advanced | Cache and choose the Clear Memory Cache and Clear Disk Cache buttons. Also set your disk cache at a reasonable size, such as no more than 10MB. Then exit and restart your browser.

In Internet Explorer: select View | Options | General tab, then click "Clear History" button and empty the folder.

Your computer uses the cache to keep local copies of frequently accessed documents. When you try to access that page again, having it in the cache reduces the amount of time it takes to retrieve it.
To obtain the most up to date copy of a document, select the Reload button on your browser. This will refresh the copy of your document with the most recent one.

Microsoft's Web site has a step-by-step tutorial that will take you through the features of Internet Explorer. Check it out at http://www.microsoft.com/ie/.