Windows XP [Electronic resources] : Visual Quickstart Guide, Second Edition نسخه متنی

Figure 12.3. The Network Connections window lists your current internet and network connections. Type descriptive connection names when you're prompted; the names appear as icon labels in this window.

Securing Your Computer" later in this chapter.

Silencing Your Modem

I listen to the squawks, static, and pings that my telephone modem makes when it dials so I can track the progress and success of a connection. If you prefer silence, do the following:

1. Choose Start > Control Panel > Printers and Other Hardware > Phone and Modem Options.

2. In the Phone and Modem Options dialog box that appears, choose Modems tab > Properties > Modem tab.

3. Drag the Speaker Volume slider to Off. (You have two choices: On or Off. You can't drag the slider midway between them.)

4. Click OK in each open dialog box.

By the way, silencing the modem is a bad idea if you think that you may get a dialer virus; see "Securing Your Computer" later in this chapter.

Dial-up connections

You need an analog modem for a dial-up connection. Plug the telephone cable from your wall jack into the modem's

Line (not

Phone ) jack. If you have to run your modem and a phone off the same line at the same jack, run a second cable from the modem's

Phone jack to the telephone's

Line jack. If your PC didn't come with a built-in modem, buy a 56 Kbps model and install it (see Chapter 8).

To set up a dial-up connection:

1. Choose Start > All Programs > Accessories > Communications > New Connection Wizard.

The New Connection Wizard appears.

2. Click Next to skip the Welcome page.

3. On the Network Connection Type page, select Connect to the Internet; then click Next.

4. On the Getting Ready page, select Set up My Connection Manually (refer to the first three pages of Figure 12.1); then click Next.

Detour: If you have an AOL or other installation CD, select Use the CD I Got from an ISP; click Next; click Finish; insert the CD; then follow the onscreen instructions and skip the rest of these steps.

5. On the Internet Connection page, select Connect Using a Dial-Up Modem (Figure 12.4 ); then click Next.

6. On the Connection Name page, type a connection name; then click Next.

If you're a traveler with multiple dial-up connections on your laptop, use names like

AOL (New York) or

SBC (San Francisco).

7. On the Phone Number to Dial page, type the phone number that connects your PC to your ISP (including a prefix and area code, if necessary); then click Next.

8. On the Internet Account Information page, type your user name and password; check or uncheck the connection options (Figure 12.5 ); then click Next. Check Use This Account Name and Password When Anyone Connects to the Internet from This Computer to let

all logged-on users use this connection; uncheck it if you don't want to share the connection.

Check Make This the Default Internet Connection if this connection is the one that you use most often to dial up the internet.

9. On the Completing page, review your settings; then click Finish.

A new connection icon appears in the Network Connections window (refer to Figure 12.3).

10. Double-click the connection icon to go online or right-click it to see its properties.

Tips

To suppress the Connect dialog box (Figure 12.6 ), right-click the connection icon; then choose Properties > Options tab > uncheck Prompt for Name and Password, Certificate, Etc.

To have Windows connect automatically when needed, right-click the connection icon and choose Set as Default Connection. Next, choose Start > Control Panel > Network and Internet Connections > Internet Options > Connections tab > select Always Dial My Default Connection.

To add alternative dial-up numbers to a connection, right-click its icon; then choose Properties > General tab > Alternates.

To create another connection quickly, right-click an existing connection icon; choose Create Copy; then right-click the new icon and edit its properties.

High-speed connections

As noted earlier, sometimes a technician sets up your broadband or network connection, but you can set up (or troubleshoot) it yourself. Before setup, make sure that there's a cable running from your PC's Ethernet (network) port to a DSL modem, a cable modem, or a network jack. The correct lights on the modem must be lit. (Typically you want to see four steady green lights, but refer to the documentation.)

Next, ask your ISP or network administrator if you have a static or dynamic IP address. An

IP address identifies your computer uniquely on the internet. A

static (or

fixed ) IP address stays the same every time you connect; a

dynamic IP address changes each time. Unlike a static IP connection, a dynamic IP connection (also called a

PPPoE, DHCP, orrarely

DDNS connection) requires a user name and password, and must be initiated

(leased) each time that you reconnect to the internet. For some ISPs, your connection hardware can handle reconnection; for others, you have to initiate it yourself, like a dial-up connection.

Windows often refers to

connection as

enabling and to

disconnection as

disabling.

Hanging Up

An icon () in the notification area (system tray) reminds you that you're online; if you don't see it, check Show Icon in the connection's Properties dialog box (see Figure 12.8 later in this chapter). You can point to or click the icon for connection status.

When you close your browser or other internet program, your dial-up connection doesn't hang up automatically; it ties up your phone line until you disconnect it manually. To hang up, right-click the notification-area icon; then choose Disconnect. (You don't have to disconnect broadband connections. They don't cost extra or tie up the telephone line when connected.)

To make a connection hang up automatically after an inactivity period, right-click the connection icon in the Network Connections window; choose Properties > Options tab; then select a time limit from the Idle Time Before Hanging Up list.

To set up a dynamic IP connection:

1. Choose Start > All Programs > Accessories > Communications > New Connection Wizard.

The New Connection Wizard appears.

2. Click Next to skip the Welcome page.

3. On the Network Connection Type page, select Connect to the Internet; then click Next.

4. On the Getting Ready page, select Set up My Connection Manually (refer to the first three pages of Figure 12.1); then click Next.

5. On the Internet Connection page, select Connect Using a Broadband Connection That Requires a User Name and Password (refer to Figure 12.4); then click Next.

6. On the Connection Name page, type your ISP's name; then click Next.

7. On the Internet Account Information page, type your user name and password; check or uncheck the connection options; then click Next (refer to Figure 12.5).

8. On the Completing page, review your settings; then click Finish.

A new connection icon appears in the Network Connections window (refer to Figure 12.3).

9. Double-click the connection icon to go online or right-click it to see its properties.

Tip

To suppress the Connect dialog box (refer to Figure 12.6) or to have Windows connect automatically when needed, see the Tips in "To set up a dial-up connection" earlier in this chapter.

Why Dynamic IP Addresses?

Dynamic IP addresses are more complicated than static ones, but they're needed because of the IP-address shortage. About 4.3 billion addresses exist (ranging from 0.0.0.0 to 255.255.255.255), but along with the growing number of networked computers, "IP-aware" cellphones and consumer toys, car navigation systems, shipping containers, and other devices are swallowing them up.

The problem with static addresses is that once an IP address is allocated to a particular computer or device, it's off the marketeven when that machine is offline. With dynamic addresses, an online machine asks the server, "Got an IP address I can use temporarily?", and the server replies, "Take this one while you're here." It's a technically more difficult but more efficient use of a scarce resource.

To set up a static IP connection:

1. Choose Start > Control Panel > Network and Internet Connections > Network Connections.

2. Right-click the Local Area Connection icon; then choose Properties (Figure 12.7 ).

3. On the General tab of the Local Area Connection Properties dialog box, double-click Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) in the connections list (Figure 12.8 ).

4. On the General tab of the Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) Properties dialog box, select Use the Following IP Address; select Use the Following DNS Server Addresses; then type your IP addresses (Figure 12.9 ).

5. Click OK in each open dialog box.

Tip

If Windows ever prompts you to connect to the internet, choose Start > Control Panel > Network and Internet Connections > Internet Options > Connections tab; then select Never Dial a Connection.

Troubleshooting Tools

Windows includes a few tools that let you inspect and troubleshoot your internet and network connections.

To use Windows' built-in diagnostics tool, choose Start > Help and Support > Networking and the Web > Fixing Networking or Web Problems > Diagnose Network Configuration and Run Automated Networking Tests > Scan Your System.

These command-line commands are faster and more useful than almost anything else in the graphical interface: ipconfig, netsh, netstat, pathping, ping, and TRacert. Also try 3D Traceroute (free; www.hlembke.de/prod/3dtraceroute).

To determine your actual internet connection speed (as opposed to what your ISP tells you), go to www.bandwidthplace.com/speedtest or http://speedtest.dslreports.com.