Limo.Net Internet Services FAQS

Setting Up Macintosh Internet Connections

In order to connect to the internet with a Macintosh, you need to configure a "dialer" and "TCP" but there are several versions of each. You also need to configure your modem and you may need to enable your modem, dialer and/or TCP in the Macintosh Extensions Manager. Each of these topics will be covered. The rest of this page provides an introduction to these topics. You can go straight to the setup instructions by clicking the "Quick Links" listed above.

Dialers: The two main "dialers" are PPP (a/k/a Open Transport PPP or RAS Remote Access) and FreePPP. Both work well when they are used in the right version of the operating system. There is an old dialer called ConfigPPP but it doesn't work very well so don't use it. Your ISP's installation CD will upgrade you to at least FreePPP if you don't have Open Transport 1.1.1 or better installed.

You can see which dialer is installed by clicking the blue telephone in the top right corner of your screen. One of the options will say something like "FreePPP Setup" or "PPP Setup" or "RAS Setup" or something similar. That tells you which dialer is installed on your Macintosh. Click the right link below to see the setup instructions:

FreePPP Setup Instructions (Mac 7.1 to 7.9)

PPP [Open Transport] & RAS Remote Access Setup Instructions (Mac 7.6 to Mac 9)

Note: There is some overlap in Mac 7.6 to 7.9 where your Mac may be using regular PPP or it may be using Remote Access RAS. The Remote Access is the best but PPP also works.

TCP: There are two version of TCP/IP for Macintosh. The old one is MacTCP. It is not a reliable version. You want to use the newer TCP (a/k/a Open Transport TCP). Your ISP's installation CD will upgrade you to the newer TCP if you don't have Open Transport 1.1.1 or better installed. Click the link below for the TCP setup instructions:

TCP Setup Instructions

Modem Configuration: Your modem is almost always pre-configured correctly so you will rarely have to worry about it. However, you can also go to the modem section in the control panels to make sure that it's setup if you get modem errors after setting up RAS, PPP, FreePPP and/or TCP.

Modem Setup Instructions (if needed)

Extensions Manager: If you can't get to the configuration options for a dialer, TCP or modem then you may not have them enabled in your Macintosh Extensions folder. Click the link below to make sure that the right extensions are enabled on your computer.

Extensions Manager Check-Up Instructions