Much of this is general to Windows95/98 and has been shamelessly plagiarized from Stand Alone PC Using PPP and a Modem on www.windows95.com, written by Steve Jenkins of WebSavvy. Send fan mail or small, unmarked bills to: stevej@mwci.net I have simply copied that and inserted codes and other information particular to idiom.
Note: If you have more than one drive (such as D:\, E:\ and so on), repeat the above procedure for each drive.
To add the Dial-Up Adapter, hit the Add... button, double-click Adapter, then scroll down the list until you can select Microsoft. Choose the Dial-Up Adapter and hit OK.
If you need to install TCP/IP, hit the Add... button, double-click Protocol, then select Microsoft, then TCP/IP, and hit OK.
Now your Network dialog box should contain both Dial-Up Adapter and TCP/IP. Select the adapter, click Properties..., Bindings, and make sure the TCP/IP box is checked. You're now ready to proceed to step 3. If this seems hard, relax. This is one of the more difficult steps.
There are six sections in this dialog box. Take a few deep breaths. There. Feel better? Now, we'll deal with them in order. In each case, you click on the tab to select the section.
Type 216.240.32.64 in the DNS Server Search Order section and press the Add button. Do the same for 216.240.32.65.
Type idiom.com in the Domain Suffix Search Order section and press the Add button. Also add dial.idiom.com.
When you're all done setting these options, press the OK button. Then press the OK button in the Network dialog box. Windows 95 will ask you to reboot. Press Yes and run to the fridge for a quick snack. You're almost done!
[If you don't have Dial-Up Networking in My Computer, go to: Start, Programs, Accessories, Internet Tools, to: "Get on the Internet". Select NEXT in the Internet Connection Wizard and select the Manual Setup Option. Then follow the steps below. When you finish, Dial-Up Networking will be in My Computer.]
Type Idiom or whatever you want to call the icon you're about to create to connect you to Idiom (the title won't affect the type of connection). Your modem (which should have been configured when you installed Windows 95) should be shown in the Select a modem: area. Press the Configure button and you'll get a dialog box.
In the General section, Crank up your modem speed to as fast as you think it will go. If you have a 14.4K modem, for example, make the maximum speed 57600. DO NOT, however, select Only connect at this speed. This will let your modem adjust as the connection needs. If you are like me, you may want to turn the volume off.
Don't worry about the Connection section, the defaults should be fine.
Next, select the Options section. Click the check boxes for Bring up terminal window after Dialing and Display Modem Status. Neither check box should be selected. Now hit the OK button.
Click the Next > button in the Make New Connection wizard. Enter in the local phone number of Idiom. You don't need to put in an area code if it's a local call. You may want to put in *70, (with the comma) if you have Call Waiting. This will disable it for this call only.
Press the Finish button and your icon will be created.
Press the Server Type... button. You'll get the Server Types dialog box.
In the Type of Dial-Up Server section, press the down arrow to drop down the list box. Since you're planning to use PPP, choose that server type in the list box.
Make sure that Log on to network in the Advanced options: section is not checked (this makes for an easier initial install, you can check it off later when you want to try some of the more advanced peer to peer capabilities of Windows 95).
Also, make sure that TCP/IP in the Allowed network protocols: section is checked, as is Enable Software Compression.
Click on TCP/IP Settings.
Click Server assigned IP address.
Click on Specify nameserver addresses. The Primary DNS address 216.240.32.64 and the Secondary DNS is 216.240.32.65.
Then press the OK button, and press the other OK button.
Hit the OK button in the remaining dialog box, and you're ready to dial!
Fill in your username and password. Your username is your email address without the @idiom.com part. Your password is what you chose when you registered for the account.
After you enter password check Save password.
Press the Connect button and your modem should start dialing. After a few rings, your modem will connect to idiom.
If you get a terminal window, just click Continue or hit F7. You can avoid getting the terminal window if you highlight the Idiom icon and select Properties from the drop-down File menu. Once there, select Configure, and there select Options, and in the section called Connection control make sure that no options are checked.
You should see Connecting to Idiom pause for a few seconds and then say that you are connected. If all goes well, the timer will begin, indicating that you are up and running. Congratulations! Now you can start any Web-browsing or mail software.
Note: If you're still having problems, open the Networks icon in Control Panel, select Dial-Up Adapter, then Properties, select the Advanced tab and set Record a log file to Yes. As you try to connect, Windows 95 will create a log file in your Windows directory called PPPLOG.TXT. Use NOTEPAD to view the file and trace your problem. Let me tell you, though, that reading this file requires an advanced degree in computer science.