1. You must have a modem connected to a telephone line. If you have an external modem, make sure that it is turned on and connected to the computer.

2. All the required software to connect your OS/2 system to Express 56 must be installed. This includes:

   • IBM OS/2 Warp version 3.0 or 4.0
   • Internet Access Kit (IAK), from the OS/2 BonusPak CD
   • REXX language support, installed by default with OS/2

3. Print this document for reference during software installation.

4. Close all running programs before you begin software installation.

Configuring the Dialer

The location of programs relative to your desktop may be different, according to the amount of customisation you have done. The locations described here are based on the default placement of folders when you first install OS/2.

1. Open the IBM Internet Connection for OS/2 folder on your desktop, and from within that open the Internet Utilities folder.

2. Double click on the Dial Other Internet Providers item. This will start the IBM PPP Dialer program.

3. Click the Add Entry icon/button.

4. The Login Info tab will be displayed.

   Name

   This field contains a name for the connection. Enter Express 56.

   Description

   Specify a description of the connection. This is optional. Enter Express 56 Dialup.

   Login ID

   Enter your Express 56 login name.

   Password

   Enter the password assigned or nominated to you when you opened your Express 56 account.

   Phone Number

   Specify the phone number of the Express 56 POP you wish to call. Select a POP which is in your local call area.

   Login Sequence

   Enter NONE. This indicates that no login sequence is required beyond getting the modems connected.

   Connection Type

   Select PPP.

   Inactivity Timeout

   This is the amount of idle time (in minutes) allowed before the dialer will automatically close the connection. While this may be useful in some circumstances, it is recommended for trouble free operation that this be set to OFF.

5. Click the small right arrow at the bottom right of the dialog, or click on the Connect Info tab.

6. The first three items on the Connect Info dialog will be greyed out for PPP connections. This information is negotiated at the time of connection.

   MRU Size

   Enter 1500. Entering any other value here is not recommended.

   Domain Nameserver

   This is the 32-bit dotted decimal notation internet address of the server that resolves host names to IP addresses and vice versa. Enter 204.117.214.10

   Your Host Name

   This field is only useful for connections which are allocated a static (fixed) IP. For other types of connections, the entry in this field does not matter. Enter pppuser.

   Your Domain Name

   Specify the name of the domain in which your computer resides when connected to the internet. Enter express56.com

7. Press the right arrow button at the bottom right of the dialog, or click on the Server Info tab.

   News Server

   Leave this field blank.

   Gopher Server

   Leave this field blank (gopher is an obsolete internet protocol similar to www.

   WWW Server

   Enter the server for the Express 56 home page: www.express56.com

   Mail Gateway

   This entry is used for sending internet email. Enter mail.express56.com

   POP Mail Server

   This entry is used for receiving internet email. Again, enter mail.express56.com

   Reply Domain

   This is the domain part of your email address. Enter express56.com

   Reply (Mail) ID

   This is the user part of your email address. Enter your Express 56 login name (leave off @express56.com)

   POP Login ID

   This is the username you use to log in to collect email. Again, enter your Express 56 login name, and leave off @express56.com

   POP Password

   This is the password you need to give when collecting email. Enter your Express 56 login password

Note that the last three items above are only used by the default UltiMail mail client that is provided as part of IBM OS/2 Warp. If you use a different mail client (and there are many excellent ones available), then the entry in these fields will not be used.

8. Press the right arrow button at the bottom right of the dialog, or click on the Modem Info tab.

   Information on this dialog is very dependant on the characteristics of your modem. Unfortunately, OS/2 provides no modem autodetection to make your life easier, so you need to consult the manual provided with the modem to determine the optimal settings and initialisation string. Values suggested here are for a generic 28.8k or 33.6k modem.

   Modem Type

   Use Hayes Compatible. This is by far the most generic modem type (99% of modems manufactured these days are of the hayes compatible variety.

   Com Port

   Enter the serial port to which your modem is attached. If it is an external modem, it will almost definitely be com1 or com2. Internal modems either replace one of the serial ports, or are configured as com3.

   Speed (Baud)

   This is the speed your computer will use for connection to the modem (not necessarily the same speed as the connection to the remote server!). For 28.8k and higher modems, this should be set to one of 38400, 57600 or 115200. The ideal speed to use here is determined by your computer; slower computers should use slower speeds, otherwise characters may be lost between the modem and the computer, ultimately slowing down your connection by requiring data to be resent. Fast Pentium systems and PII systems can safely use 115200.

   Data Bites

   Must be set to 8.

   Parity

   Must be set to NONE.

   Prefix

   If your phone line is DTMF compatible (that is, it tone dials - and almost all phone lines in US are tone dial lines these days), then enter ATDT here. Pulse dial lines should use ATDP instead.

   Initialization String 1

   Enter ATZ. This resets your modem back into a default state.

   Initialization String 2

   A good generic string to use here is ATE0Q0S0=0V1X4&C1&D2&K3&S0&Q5. Consult your modem manual if you are curious as to what this does.

   Call Waiting

   The dialer allows you to enter the sequence to disable the call waiting feature on your telephone line. If you have call waiting and wish the dialer to disable it automatically, the enter the sequence * 7 0 .

9. Dismiss the dialog to return to the IBM PPP Dialer. You are now ready to connect!

Before actually connecting to Express 56, there may be a few additional items to check.

1. Make sure that the phone line you intend to use is free. Attempting to place a modem call while someone else is on the phone will not work.

2. If the phone line has the Call Waiting feature enabled, you should disable it to prevent incoming calls interefering with your connection to the internet, or configure the IBM Dialer to disable call waiting automatically (see previous section) (Modem Info).

   • Pick up a handset that is connected to the line.
   • Dial  * 7 0
   • If the state was changed (from on to off or vice versa), you should hear a tone.
   • Hang up the phone.

3. The equipment connected to the phone line you are using may affect the quality of your connection. Attempting to share the same phone lines with multiple devices such as answering machines, fax machines, other modems, hands-free stations and standard handsets may be successful, or may not, depending on the equipment. There are some items which are known to create problems however, such as some unexpensive phones - unless modified, these will pull current from the phone line every several minutes and usually cause your internet connection to suddenly hang up.

   The rule is, if you are suffering persistent sudden termination of your connection, or recurring severe degradation of performance, then first disconnect all other telecommunications equipment from the phone line other than your modem.

1. Open the IBM PPP Dialer by selecting Dial Other Internet Providers from the Internet Utilities folder.

2. Highlight the entry you wish to dial, in this case Express 56 and click on the Dial icon/button at the top left of the window.

3. As the dialer connects to Express 56, you will see progress information in the Status window. If your modem's speaker is active, you should hear the connection take place, including the dial tones and modem connection.

4. Refer to the Troubleshooting Guide if you have connection problems after this point.