This is the 'official' successor to the SD releases of MacPPP. It's still based on Merit's MacPPP 2.0.1 release but there have been several bugs fixed and features added hence the new name. It is also intended to eliminate the confusion over what version of MacPPP does what (one of the reasons for the new name). Since I hate to write (Dammit Jim, I'm a programmer, not a writer!) and FreePPP 1.1 will have extensive documentation changes this document just describes the changes from the MacPPP 2.1.2SD release. Consider this file to be a supplement to the accompanying MacPPP 2.1.2SD docs and be sure to read them also.
ÑWarnings and Known ProblemsÑ
FreePPP currently requires Color QuickDraw which limits it's use to 68020 or better processors (this may be addressed in a future release). It also requires System 7.1 or later.
Do not keep more that one copy of the PPP extension (be it FreePPP's or one of the MacPPP derivatives) on your boot volume. This is because the PPP extension needs to find itself by it's file signature when opening a connection but all MacPPP derivatives currently share the same file signature. If FreePPP mistakenly opens the wrong file bad things will happen.
PowerBook 500 models with internal Global Village Mercury modems (are there actually any other internal modens for these machines?) will lose modem feedback on connection attempts after the first one. Even though there's no modem audio and the GV menu doesn't appear the connection will be made. Re-booting between connections will restore modem feedback. The cause of this problem has not yet been determined.
Both Aaron 1.1.1 (the faux Copeland look extension) and Aladdin's Magic Menu extensions may conflict with FreePPP. If you have them installed and FreePPP crashes while opening a connection, try disabling these extensions first when trying to determine what the conflict is.
The combination of the GeoPort Telecom Adapter/Express Modem software and FreePPP is very unstable on machines with Virtual Memory turned on. At this time it's recommended you turn off VM if you are using a GeoPort TCA.
Be sure to look at the accompanying MacPPP 2.1.2SD docs for other warnings and known problems as well as some common FreePPP/MacPPP FAQs.
ÑFreePPP and Virtual Memory/RAM DoublerÑ
On some systems FreePPP does not function well if Virtual Memory (and RAM Doubler is just another form of VM) is turned on. If you have VM turned on and are experiencing crashes while using or opening a PPP session, turn off VM. Despite what you might have heard VM does not make your Mac run any faster. What it does is allow PowerPC native apps to run in a smaller memory partition. If you must use VM you might investigate RAM Doubler 1.6 which has been reported as working with FreePPP.
ÑOpen Transport Notes and Configuration InstructionsÑ
Until Open Transport 1.1 is released you will need to re-boot between PPP sessions if you have a dynamically assigned IP address. Dynamically means if you get a different address assigned to your Mac when you dial up which is how most Internet Service Providers (ISP) have their systems configured. If you have a statically assigned, i.e. permanently assigned, IP address you should be able to connect and disconnect without re-booting. If this is important to you now ask your ISP about a static address - they're usually available for and additional fee.
As of this writing Open Transport 1.0.8 is the current version and can be ftp'd from ftp.support.apple.com. If you are using any earlier version of OT I highly recommend updating to 1.0.8 as it is the first version that will allow Eudora to send mail reliably.
With Open Transport 1.0.7 or 1.0.8 the proper settings for the TCP/IP control panel to use FreePPP are:
- Connect via: MacPPP
- Configure: Manually
- Domain name: (your ISP's domain name here - i.e. company.com NOT mail.company.com)
- Name server addr.: (your ISP's name server address in dot notation - i.e. 198.1.1.1)
Note: you can enter multiple name server addresses in this field
ÑSerial DMA 2.0.2 - Who needs it and where do I get it?Ñ
Serial DMA 2.0.2 is a new improved version of the DMA capable serial driver for all Macs with the GeoPort serial architecture. If you have one of these machines I recommend you get this update - especially if you are using the 115K or 230K DTE rates supported by FreePPP. You can obtain Serial DMA 2.0.2 as part of Apple's 7.5.2 Printing Update 1.1 (file name: 7.5.2_Printing_Update_1.1.hqx) which is available on ftp.support.apple.com (in case you don't already know it, this is where Apple's latest software updates can be found)
ÑInsufficient Memory ErrorsÑ
When MacTCP loads the PPP extension it's possible there will not be enough memory available in the System heap for FreePPP to allocate the memory it needs due to other extensions allocating large amounts of memory. This results in the error message 'FreePPP: Insufficient memory to Initialize Link Access Protocol' being displayed when the Finder loads and FreePPP will be disabled. There are two possible workarounds. If you have Conflict Catcher or Now Startup Manager there is an option to reserve system memory which should be set to about 96K. If you don't have Conflict Catcher or Now Utilities (and they are both highly recommended) try adding a space to the beginning of MacTCP control panel file name to force it to load earlier.
ÑNotes for TIA usersÑ
Send email to tia-mac-ppp@marketplace.com to get instructions on how to configure FreePPP and TIA.
ÑWhat's New in 1.0.2?Ñ
New script substitution strings: \u substitutes the string from the Auth. ID field in the Authentication dialog, \p substitutes the string from the Password field in the Authentication dialog. This allows building a script that does not display the login name and password. For example (assuming the login name and password have been entered in the Authentication dialog):
WAIT ogin:
SEND \u (<CR> box checked)
WAIT ord:
SEND \p (<CR> box checked)
is what my connect script looks like. Note that even though the password is not displayed in the Authentication dialog it is still saved in plain text in the PPP Preferences file and is not a secure method of stroing a password - it will keep casual observers in the dark however.
Now displays name of selected PPP server in connection status dialog.
Port speeds of 1200 and 2400 are back. Due to this change you will probably need to re-select your port speed, especially if you were using 115K or 230K.
ÑWhat's Fixed in 1.0.2?Ñ
Now compatible with Cyber Finder from Aladdin. This was related to FreePPP re-initializing the Mac toolbox everytime a connection was opened. We now only init the toolbox if we're loading at Startup.
FreePPP Connection Status dialog now allows switching layers during a connect while running Open Transport.
VM stability is better but still not 100% for some folks.
Disable Auto Connect option no longer prevents recognition of connection closing.
Fixed the 230K port speed mode - you could select it in 1.0.1 but it would fail to open.
ÑWhat's Fixed in 1.0.1?Ñ
Failure to establish communication problem - John Stephen
The problem with FreePPP 1.0 (and MacPPP 2.1.2SD) where it would get to the "Establishing Communications" phase and then drop the connection for some folks has been fixed.
Password display during connection - Steve Dagley
Due to popular request the text being sent by the connect script is no longer displayed in the FreePPP status window. This should make the folks that got upset seeing their password flashing on the screen happy.
ÑWhat's New (since 2.1.2SD)?Ñ
CHAP authentication support - Jim Browne
For service providers that require CHAP authentication for dial-up PPP connections, such as InternetMCI. This feature is enabled by setting the Authentication want/will flags in the LCP Options dialog when setting up your PPP Server configuration in the Config PPP control panel.
New Connection Status window - Rick Reynolds
The Connection Status window is now moveable and allows switching to another application while opening a connection.
Improved Virtual Memory compatability - Alec Carlson, Yan Arrouye, Steve Dagley
FreePPP should be much more stable when Virtual Memory is turned on.
Disable Automatic Connect - Steve Dagley
There is now an option in the Config PPP control panel that prevents automatic connections when a TCP/IP packet is detected. This is analogous (sp?) to the Hard Close command but it's persistant across re-starts. This change also resulted in the elimination of seperate Hard and Soft close buttons. If this option is on then a Close acts as a Hard Close, off and it acts like a Soft Close. This feature still needs some work but should solve >90% of the 'ghost' dialing complaints. If you are using one of the 3rd party utilities to open and close PPP sessions they will probably require an update before they will be able to open a connection with this feature turned on. If you leave it turned off, the utilities should work as before.
Long Re-dial Delay - Steve Dagley
For countries where the phone system requires a delay between re-dials there is now an option in the Config PPP control panel that sets the re-dial delay to 1 minute instead of the default 3 seconds.
Port Speed selection changes - Since most modems don't support a DTE rate (the connection rate between the modem and the computer) of 14400 or 28800 these speeds have been removed from the Port Speed popup. You should always set the DTE rate to at least twice the modem's DCE rate (the connection rate between modems) to allow the modem's data compression feature room to operate. This assumes of course you have a modem that supports data compression but I doubt you'd be surfing the Internet if you didn't.
ÑWhat's Next?Ñ
FreePPP 1.1 will ebout when it's ready and we're hoping that will be by mid-December. This version will support name and password prompting from the connect script as well as a completely revised and much more friendly version of the Config PPP Control Panel. It will also have color icons for folks that seem to think this is an important feature (we already have the icons - please don't send me any more).
ÑWhere can I find updates?Ñ
Check your favorite InfoMac ftp mirror site. All new versions of FreePPP will be posted to the /comm/tcp/ directory. Also watch the comp.sys.mac.comm newsgroup for announcments.
ÑCopyrightÑ
FreePPP 1.0.2 is based on MacPPP 2.0.1 which is Copyright ⌐1992-1993 Merit Network, Inc. and The Regents of the University of Michigan.
The changes from MacPPP 2.0.1 to FreePPP 1.0.2 are Copyright ⌐1994-95 by the FreePPP Group. All Rights Reserved. As is the case with Merit's statement regarding MacPPP 2.0.1, we make no guarantee about the performance or reliability of this software. Any risk in it's use is your own. Not for profit distribution is allowed/encouraged.
