Turning off connect via IR port

[presque]

So, this is probably really simple, but I am several thousand miles away from the computer I'm trying to fix.

I recently switched to a new OSX powerbook, and gave my old OS9 powerbook to my mother, and then left the country to study for the year. She is now unable to connect to the internet, and I'm hoping someone either has an OS9 system or remembers how it works well enough to tell me where she should be going.

The OS is 9.2, and it's a Powerbook G3 from Spring of 2000. She is using Earthlink to connect, and she is still on dial-up. Although it had been working for several months, her computer will no longer connect to the internet.

As far as I could tell, her numbers are still set up correctly, AppleTalk is active (but set to Remote Only?), and she has a phone line connected, etc. One thing that seems wrong is that, in Control Panels>Modem it says "Connect Via: Modem (IR Port)". As far as I am aware, she shouldn't be using Infrared. She tells me that the Infrared Port in Extensions Manager is turned off.

I wasn't able to figure out how to change the connecting via the IR Port over the phone. Looking online, it tells me that OS9 should be able to change this under Control Panels>Modem, but there is no drop-down menu next to "Connect Via..." for her to choose from.

If anyone could give help and is still familiar with the OS9 system I would really appreciate it. Even suggestions of where to look or names of the various internet/connection related control panels for OS9 (so I can figure out where to look) would be wonderful. Thank you!

 

[emw]

Generally if things have been working swimmingly for months, then suddenly stop, I generally suspect that perhaps some software has been installed that altered the settings. Has your Mom installed or upgraded anything that may have impacted the modem settings?

If she's near an Apple store or other Apple retailer, she could probably bring it in and have them take a quick look at it as well.

I wish I could offer more direct help, but it's been forever since I've looked at dial-up setting on OS9. When I get into work, I know we've got some boxes there - I'll see if I can find anything out for you.

 

[jsw]

I can no longer boot my Lombard into OS 9, so I can't help directly. However, it's also possible that the modem just died. Hopefully, emw or others can shed some software-based light on this. Also, for helpful posters: how, in OS 9, do you see devices? If the modem's not there/not functioning, it should be determinable somewhere.

 

[emw]

how, in OS 9, do you see devices? If the modem's not there/not functioning, it should be determinable somewhere.

Apple menu > Apple System Profiler.

Unfortunately, none of the boxes here have modems (they're not PBs), so I couldn't get more info on the modem...

 

[presque]

Thanks--

I don't think my mom has installed anything... she's usually the one without any computer problems in the family because, even if she doesn't necessarily know how to do that much, she doesn't do anything that she isn't incredibly comfortable with (which pretty much excludes everything but Word documents, some web browsing, and email). I'll ask to make sure, though.

I'll definitely have her check out the devices with the system profiler--I hadn't even thought of the modem breaking (although that's perhaps why she didn't have any other options to select besides IR port in the modem control panel? That seemed very strange, and all I could find online was that in OS 8.6 the "default setting" is apparently IR, and that no drop down menu might indicate that there are no other options.) I suppose those modems are still replaceable?

Other that that, I checked and there is an Apple Store pretty close to her, so maybe I'll just send her over there if Call #2 doesn't work. They are sure to help (If they don't shun her too much for having OS 9... jk)

Thanks so much for checking through those boxes. I appreciate it, even if they didn't have modems in the end.

Alright. Time to go try and solve things...

 

[presque]

Yep... it was a broken modem.

Thanks for your help.