AT&T Option Wireless GT Ultra Express Configuration

[woodhousem]

USB Quicksilver

I'm glad everything worked out MacFloridaKeys - just goes to show that sometimes those "tech guys" actually earn their pay!

Now when others come to the forum with that problem - and we've already had one other (lightscaler) this may be their solution as well.

Woody

 

[Chris1600]

I've been using an Option Wireless GT Ultra Express with my MacBook Pro and Leopard for three months or so now. When it works the 3G speed does all I expected of it as a practical network to get work done while away from my regular networks. It's good enough that I don't even bother with the public WiFi networks I used to rely on when in airports etc. However the card and its software are unreliable to the point that I'm probably going to trade it in.

I will admit high expectations and to taking convenient shortcuts with my MacBook Pro. I just close the lid, unplug network cable, power and external monitor take the MacBook to a meeting, or onto a train, flip up the lid, put the card in if necessary and expect to carry on working while the machine adapts to whatever network connection works there. A few years ago such convenience might have been asking a bit much - but for the most part technology is now robust enough that it's not a problem when switching between Ethernet and WiFi networks - and that's as it should be - the technology disappearing into the background.

However, not with the Option GT and its associated software. The card will work if you're prepared to be disciplined and take its foibles into account. Takes me back 10 years!

When I first got the card I would just close the lid with the card in and the GlobeTrotter Connect software running. I soon discovered that was a big No No. The Option GT wants to be treated a bit more carefully. So my pack up and go routine became...

Disconnect from the VPN if I'm using it.
Disconnect in GlobeTrotter Connect and Quit.
Pull the card
Close the lid

In use the software resets the network Location to GlobeTrotter Connect which was created during installation. After quitting the software it usually reset the Location to Automatic. Sometimes it would leave it at GlobeTrotter Connect, but if it did I could always change the locaton manually so I could connect to a regular ethernet or WiFi network.

These efforts to keep the technology happy worked for a while and I was prepared to live with them even if it was less streaemlined and natively Mac like than I had hoped. But now things have got worse.

After closing everything down in a respectable way as above and reconnecting to an ethernet or WiFi network I cannot get a connection. The Location has not changed from GlobeTrotter Connect. Opening System Preferences and selecting the network control panel to try and change the location results in a spinning cursor. Only solution - a reboot.

Frequently when starting up GT Connect it says there is a problem with the card and asks me to remove and reinsert the card. This never works - the same message reoccurs and again the only solution is to reboot.

Even during these reboots the machine does not shutdown correctly. All apps quit as expected and the desktop clears of icons but the startup/shutdown clock face icon spins in front of the desktop pattern. The only recourse is to hold down the Power button. This seems safe enough though - on power up no warnings about an incorrect shutdown show up.

The card may work better on Windows - it wouldn't be the first time that a vendor's Mac drivers are less well tested than those for a Mac. However, breaking workflow to reboot machines constantly in 2008 just isn't good enough.

Does anyone have any similar experiences?

Details:
OS X 10.5.3
MacBook Pro
Model Identifier: MacBookPro2,2
GlobeTrotter Connect Version 1.3.0 (d164)

 

[woodhousem]

Chris1600 - I also have a MacBook Pro running Leopard but I do not have the problems you are describing. Yes, I do disconnect the modem and close out Globetrotter Connect before turning off the computer but I have always been in the habit of doing so. There is also another option that was posted by
3GMac on how to get your MacBook to use the card natively (connect without Globetrotter program) , which was how it worked under the last OS.

Currently, when I use my aircards (I have multiple) the MacBook connects with no issues and when I pull the card and go home or to a site that has WiFi, it goes to "Automatic" and immediately picks up the WiFi connection, if I'm at home or another public location that I have been to before, or asks if I want to connect if it is a new location.

The only time I ever had a problem with using the card was in Canada and that was because I didn't have the right account setup with AT&T - they had to give me what they called "true" International Coverage but once they did that I was on the 3G train in no time.

You may have to get with Tech Support to see if they can identify the problem, since the card was working fine (although you had to go through certain steps) and now it isn't. Sorry, I couldn't be of any help but the majority of posts here have been from users who cannot connect at all or those, like myself, who wanted to get the native experience back.

Woody

 

[Chris1600]

Thanks Woody,

Worked through this thread again carefully - but I don't see where 3GMac describes a native connection for the Option GT Ultra Express. 3GMac does describe it for the Sierra 881 USB device though.

KinOfCain describes (currently) at post #16 using an Option card natively and later assures us, and offers photographic evidence, that it's the Ultra. That method didn't work for me though. All the right menu options are there as KinOfCain describes - but I get "modem error" when I connect. Show us the photo KinOfCain .

Besides the slicker integration with the OS the native option is attractive because I hope it will make the problems I described above go away - as they appear to be due to the GlobeTrotter Connect software.

My current thought is that I would have been better off with the Sierra USB 881 and its native capability. Went with a card instead of a USB device as it seemed a less cumbersome attachment to the MacBook, but reliable software is more important than that.

BTW - haven't even factored the VPN issue into the discussion - it would add to the already wide thread creep here . Suffice to say I follow this solution . Am hopeful that native access would confine this hack to the trashcan too.

 

[woodhousem]

You're right Chris, that was for the 881 USB device, I have four different aircards so I get confused at times! Actually I had five and it was the 1st of those five that worked natively - it was one of the earlier USB devices that stuck straight out from the laptop, which is what led me to the GT Ultra Express because, as you said, it was less cumbersome and just a better form factor to me. Shortly afterwards they came out with the 881 USB, which at least came up at a 90 degree angle from the laptop but the "nativeness" was still an issue but I requested three of these devices and two of the GT Ultra for my office laptops - since the Mac and our new Dell came with Express Card slots. I also have two PC Cards - one from Verizon and the other with T-Mobile that work just fine but also require connection software.

I have not encountered any problems with any of these cards when using the managment software but did want the option to go native because, like you, I believe that going between 3G and WiFi and connecting to either network should be a transparent operation.

In reference to VPN, again, no problems using Cisco VPN with my aircard in order to access the LAN. I think that my lack of problems is because the AT&T vendors we deal with, on the Federal Government side, send us pre-configured aircards and our Help Desk gives you a very good setup guide for using Cisco Client with an aircard (or using WiFi, which we usally don't do because of security issues). Therefore, while many out there are having to go through extra steps to get these devices to work, us government-types are just happily slapping in aircards and going about our merry way! AT&T needs to do a better job in having these aircards ready for the end user out of the box and having more love for Mac users to where the software auto loads when the express card is detected like it does for PCs.

 

[KinOfCain]

Show us the photo KinOfCain .

I just got a new MBP, and I had to google for my own instructions to get my card working on the new machine, apparently the migration assistant isn't completely bulletproof (although it's pretty damn amazing as is).

So I see that you guys still don't believe me that I have this working, so I took screenshots of the config screens, and photos of my card and the box for the card, and uploaded them to my initial post (page 1, post 16).

If you're getting a modem error, I'm guessing you selected the wrong "GlobeTrotter HSUPA Modem" from the devices list, try another one, and then another, until it works. It has been the second one in the list for me on THREE SEPARATE MACHINES, so I'm pretty sure it will be the second one in the list for you, but hey, YMMV.

Like I said in my original post, if you still don't believe me, PM me, and you can come look at the machine yourself, but it will cost you lunch.

 

[Chris1600]

woodhousem - can you PM me?

 

[Chris1600]

First of all to KinOfCain - didn't mean to suggest I didn't believe you had this working on the Ultra - just picking up on your offer of photographic evidence in the disbelief from other posters.

Anyway - thanks for the screenshots - pretty much confirmed we're seeing the same things. I do see one fewer Globetrotter item in the Interface menu (step 8). I'd tried all of them out (twice) before my earlier post and have tried again since. We're just getting different results.

One thing that might be a clue is the following from the system.log. You can monitor it from the Console application in Applications/Utilities. This is what appears when I plug the card in. GlobeTrotter Connect is not running at this point - but is installed.

Nov 10 18:17:33 Macintosh-20 kernel[0]: QC: Device Manufacturer = Option N.V.
Nov 10 18:17:33 Macintosh-20 kernel[0]: QC: Device Type = Globetrotter HSUPA Modem
Nov 10 18:17:33 Macintosh-20 kernel[0]: QC: GT HSUPA Control found
Nov 10 18:17:33 Macintosh-20 kernel[0]: QC: GT HSUPA App found
Nov 10 18:17:33 Macintosh-20 kernel[0]: QC: Option WAN configured
Nov 10 18:17:33 Macintosh-20 kernel[0]: QC: GT HSUPA Diag found
Nov 10 18:17:33 Macintosh-20 kernel[0]: QC: Remote wake-up not supported
Nov 10 18:17:33 Macintosh-20 kernel[0]: OptionWanController: Ethernet address 00:0X:0X:0X:0X:0X
Nov 10 18:18:18 Macintosh-20 kernel[0]: Error: no space in rx queue!


Does anyone else see that last Error line? It typically appears about 45 seconds after the other items listed.

How about the line "Remote wake-up not supported"?

Also possibly relevant is the version of the GSM.ccl file in /Macintosh HD/Library/Modem Scripts/WWAN.ccl/Contents/Resources. Mine shows a date of Oct 10 2007. Looking at the plist files in WWAN.ccl it seems that everything here belongs to Apple's WWAN software version 1.0.1. As far as I can tell WWAN.ccl is what's being run in KinOfCain's native connection method. The contents certainly correspond with the supported products that 3GMac pointed us to here.

 

[woodhousem]

Chris, I have not seen any of those error messages - just plugged in card, used Globetrotter Connect and BAM! was on the AT&T 3G network. I tried to send a PM to you but got a message that you are not set up to receive them. Check your profile and get back to me.

Woody

 

[Chris1600]

I had previously set the following option on my account "You can allow other members to send you email messages.". I don't see anything else to enable PMs.

Did you have the Console open and showing system.log open when you plugged in the card? Even if there are no errors you should see most of what I listed.

On the inability to receive/send PMs this may be why

Before you can send a Private Message or email to another forum member, these conditions must apply:

You must have a post count of at least 5, as shown in your user profile.

This message should have pushed me up to 5 posts .

 

[justinemooney]

I am also having this problem

Does anyone have any similar experiences?

Chris1600, I am also having this problem, but I have the Quicksilver Connect Device... have you figured out a solution yet?

 

[Chris1600]

Justine,

I have not solved my problems. Though we're using different devices the GlobeTrotter Connect software is common to both. I see that there is a later version of the GlobeTrotter Connect flagged for the Quicksilver and I assume that you are using that.

Have you tried avoiding GlobeTrotter and connecting "natively"using the Network item in the System Preferences. You still have to install the GT to get some drivers installed. You might want to try the approach described above at post #16 on page 1 by KinOfCain though your device might show up as something different than "GlobeTrotter HSUPA Modem". It didn't work for me, but as they say "your mileage may vary"!

Chris1600

 

[justinemooney]

Thank you

Thank you Chris1600,
I will definitely try that... It's just a little frustrating, every time I close my computer and then re-open later I have to go through the whole set up again... go the GT, add the APN, and go from there... and every time I want to go from the connect card the Wireless internet, I have to change the network pref., my computer freezes, I have to hold down the power button, and then restart... FINALLY it will work after that... SOMETIMES! HM? I don't know much about MAC's, I'm a new user, so I don't know all of the little things I can do to fix things like this... Thank you for your help though

 

[Chris1600]

Justine,

Well - welcome to the Mac - but it's not supposed to be like this! Very frustrating.

Having to reenter the APN every time is definitely wrong. Have never had that. Maybe if GT Connect never quits gracefully it doesn't get saved. Perhaps it will take if you set it in GT Connect preferences then quit without doing anything else.

Yes it does sound like we're seeing the same problem. I was traveling for three days last week and must have had to reboot three or four times. A new theory did begin to emerge though. I can be connected through GT for some time and working away in some other application - then I return to GT and find that the clock is no longer ticking and the Disconnect icon has changed back to Connect. It's as if the software has disconnected - though that's clearly not the case as the network connection is still functioning. I'm beginning to suspect that the inability to revert back to any other type of connection without a reboot happens only after that - but I'm still testing that theory out.

Chris1600

 

[clam]

Imperfect Workaround with Quicksilver USBConnect

Workaround updated for the Quicksilver modem: http://blog.19clicks.com/2008/11/19/running_att_usbconnect/

 

[justinemooney]

Thank you for your help... I will def. try these things and hope for the best... so now that I seem to have found some people that know a little about what's going on... can anyone help me with downloading DVD's to my mac, burning DVD's and putting DVD/tv shows on my ipod??? Lots of questions I know... I just have no clue how to do this stuff... trying to learn on my own... not working too well. Again, thank you so much for taking the time to help me

 

[woodhousem]

DVD to MAC to iPod

Justine, there are many software programs to choose from that can do what you described in your post. The one I'm currently using is ImTOO DVD to iPod
http://www.imtoo.com/dvd-to-ipod-suite.html - which works very well. I also use AVEX DVD to iPod for my PC, which I think has a better interface (does all the thinking for you) but is only for Windows platforms whereas ImTOO specializes in working with MACs, iPods and the iPhone. Sometimes you have to do some minor tweaks to the settings in order to get a good recording (especially with the newer DVDs) but it works pretty well. You also have Xilisoft (again you have to deal with settings) and another option is Handbrake, which is actually free. http://handbrake.fr/?article=download I have not used Handbrake yet but will be giving it a test spin this evening. Handbrake supposedly has a better user interface than other programs and there is actually a Handbrake Lite that they were talking about which after much searching (the original host website for the program is closed) I found here:
http://handbrake-lite.mac.findmysoft.com/download/#. The lite version is supposedly easier to use and I will give it a whirl as well, although I don't mind having a more advanced version that allows me to tailor my DVD burning experience. Since you say that you're just beginning, this may be the program for you.

Woody

 

[justinemooney]

Thank you

Thank you so much for your time and help... I have 3 movies on my ipod now... very excited that I figured this out with your help!!! Thank you!!

 

[woodhousem]

Your Welcome

You’re most welcome Justine! I thought I was doing well until my brother-in-law came back from an 18-month deployment in Iraq with about 800 movies on his PC (they can buy DVDs for $2.50/$5.00 a piece over there) and over 100 on his iPod! I loaded the AVEX program on his laptop before he left and gave him a quick class and now look at him!

I must admit, I still haven't tried handbrake as when I activated the program on my Mac, it required me to load another program which took about 2 hours to download from the remote site! While it was doing that I just used my Im Too program to copy the "Wanted" DVD I purchased onto my PC and load it onto my iPods. The quality is excellent and I have a device that I can snap my iPod into and it turns it into a portable player with a 7" screen for when I travel. I also have the AV cables to connect my iPod to a TV (you can also use the top model iHome device to do this) and another device to view movies that are on my PC on the big screen TV. You're just getting your feet wet, so I don't want to inundate you with iPodable devices, but give it a few months and you'll be helping someone out on this forum!

Woody

 

[bozo_z_clown]

Thanks!

Just got off the phone with AT&T and had me up and running in 5 minutes.

1. Download software on Option site (AT&T's will not work on a Mac)
2. Activate SIMM, turn it off for 5 minutes and plug the card back in.
3. Populate the software with the following information in the manager
software settings that was downloaded;

APN: isp.cingular
USER: ISP@CINGULARGPRS.COM (all caps)
PASSWORD: CINGULAR1 (all caps)

It couldn't of been easier. Number 3 was where I was stuck on, a call to AT&T was all it was needed instead of a Friday night messing around myself.

Many thanks PhilC this is what I needed to get me up and running. Your karma tank is full

Perry

 

[sinitry23]

Hi, I recently purchase the AT&T Option Wireless GT Ultra Express card and follow the instructions listed on this post but it does not work. I get a message with Network error please check settings? Please advise on how I can get this to work. Below are the steps I did while attempting to get this to work. Too bad I can not return this for a full refund to Newegg.com. Also, I am upgrading to Snow leopard soon, do any of you know if this will work on Mac's new OS?

Hardware:
-MacBook Pro 17 2.8 ghz
-Leopard OSX with all updates installed
-AT&T Option wireless GT Ultra Express card from newegg http://bit.ly/14niH4

Installation:
-Remove sim card from my iPhone and installed it into the Option express card
-inserted express card into my Macbook Pro express card slot
-download the option globetrotter software from the website for my card and version of operating system
-Installed Globetrotter and enter the following settings
APN: isp.cingular
USER: ISP@CINGULARGPRS.COM (all caps)
PASSWORD: CINGULAR1 (all caps)

I can detect the 3G signals but it will not connect. It prompts me with a message to check network settings. However I do see a blue flashing LED light on the card.

 

[carolynba]

Help - Options Globetrotter and Cisco VPN

Does anyone now how to trouble-shoot using Cisco VPN with the Options software. I get this error: "Error 51: Unable to communicate with the VPN subsystem. Please make sure that you have at least one network interface that is currently active and has an IP address and start this application again.

Any help here would be appreciated!

 

[milk242]

Hi, I recently purchase the AT&T Option Wireless GT Ultra Express card and follow the instructions listed on this post but it does not work. I get a message with Network error please check settings? Please advise on how I can get this to work. Below are the steps I did while attempting to get this to work. Too bad I can not return this for a full refund to Newegg.com. Also, I am upgrading to Snow leopard soon, do any of you know if this will work on Mac's new OS?

Hardware:
-MacBook Pro 17 2.8 ghz
-Leopard OSX with all updates installed
-AT&T Option wireless GT Ultra Express card from newegg http://bit.ly/14niH4

Installation:
-Remove sim card from my iPhone and installed it into the Option express card
-inserted express card into my Macbook Pro express card slot
-download the option globetrotter software from the website for my card and version of operating system
-Installed Globetrotter and enter the following settings
APN: isp.cingular
USER: ISP@CINGULARGPRS.COM (all caps)
PASSWORD: CINGULAR1 (all caps)

I can detect the 3G signals but it will not connect. It prompts me with a message to check network settings. However I do see a blue flashing LED light on the card.

I don't believe the iphone sim will work, some how att is blocking it. Well at least when I tried it, it did not work, but when I popped in my friend's att blackberry sim card, it worked.

 

[woodhousem]

I'm almost certain that you cannot use your iPhone SIM with the express card but you may want to check with the AT&T Tech Support folks. When we order the express cards they come with their own SIM so this is a non-issue. I have had to contact AT&T when I've had SIM problems in the past as sometimes they are accidently blocked or their end and I had to verify my user information.

As for the VPN problem carolynba is having - are you using a MAC or PC? I ask because I use VPN to connect to my work LAN but the only laptop they allow to do this are the older Dells they issued to us and they are still using the PCMCIA aircards. The only time I have seen an error message is if I do not have an active 3G connection with the aircard before I attempt to use the VPN software.

Woody

 

[chipshot4me]

Does anyone now how to trouble-shoot using Cisco VPN with the Options software. I get this error: "Error 51: Unable to communicate with the VPN subsystem. Please make sure that you have at least one network interface that is currently active and has an IP address and start this application again.

Any help here would be appreciated!

Quit VPNClient, open a Terminal window, (Applications -> Utilities -> Terminal) and type the following and give your password when it asks:

sudo kextunload /System/Library/Extensions/CiscoVPN.kext
sudo kextload /System/Library/Extensions/CiscoVPN.kext

then try restarting VPN..should work