Macintosh Internet Connection Programs

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Macintosh uses "dialer" programs to connect your computer to the internet via your ISP. These dialers have changed quite a bit over the years so the hard part is figuring out which program is being used. Most people have one of the versions of PPP and newer Macs use a very similar program called remote access. You will be able to tell which one is installed by going to the apple icon (top left hand corner of your screen) and clicking to the control panel to look for PPP or Remote Access (as pictured below).

The example above goes to Remote Access. If you don't have Remote Access then you will see PPP (or possibly FreePPP on older systems). You will see one of the following windows. The PPP window is on the left and the Remote Access window is on the right. As you can see, they are very similar. You might need to click the little arrow in the top left corner of the second window (next to "setup") in order to see all of your options as pictured below.

This is where you put in your username and password to connect to your ISP. Many ISPs require you to include @ispname.com on the end of your username so that you can be sure to route to the right ISP server to get your password checked.

This is also where you put in the phone number to reach your ISP. If you need to dial "9" to get an outside phone line then put a "9" followed by a comma followed by the phone number. (This is common in hotels and corporate phone systems.) You can also put a "*70," in front of the phone number to disable call waiting IF you have call waiting on the phone line that is connected to your computer. (Note: Don't put in the " " but do put in the asterisk *.)

After you've set the phone number and password, you need to click the options button at the bottom to make sure that you've got the right options.

The initial options window is pictured below. Notice that this window is in the redialing tab. Don't worry about this window. Click on the tab that says "connection."

The connections tab window varies. Pre-7.6 operating systems usually look like the first option below. Post 7.6 operating systems (including System 9) look like the second window after the first one. We recommend that you set your system to "connect automatically" or to "launch status" depending upon the version that you have. Don't use verbose logging. You can do what you like about prompts to maintain your connection and automatic disconnects after ten minutes or whatever time frame you choose. Just remember that if you set your computer to automatically disconnect then it will do so.

Click the protocols tab when you are ready.

The protocols tab also varies between pre-7.6 operating systems and later operating systems. The first window below applies to the older systems. The second window applies to the newer systems.

Once again, we recommend that you set your computer to "connect automatically." We also recommend using error correction and TCP header compression. Do not attempt to use a "command-line host" or any script unless you are a Macintosh systems expert.

If you have the second window then make sure that "use protocol" is set to use PPP. If not, click the drop-down arrow and choose that option. Click OK when you are finished.

Your internet "dialer" is now setup. You still need to check your TCP settings to make sure that those settings are correct.

Click here to go to the TCP settings tutorial.

Return to main internet setup page.

Return to main Mac options page.

Last Update: Friday, May 04, 2001