Need help with elderly iMac & USB wifi thingy
 

Just picked up a third-hand iMac for my little girl. Her very first computer!

I'm trying to figure the easiest way of connecting the iMac to my home wi-fi network. The D-Link modem router comes with a USB antenna (which works fine on a pc), but I can't figure how to persuade the iMac to use it to get online. The iMac is currently running Panther. All it sees is the internal modem - and I sure ain't no networking genius!

Any help much appreciated!

Dave

Precisely, exactly, with as much detail as possible, what iMac? What is it's processor? What is it's clockspeed? What operating system is it running?

Trevor

Trevor - I'm sorry. My bad. I know I should've included the details. I'm recovering from flu at the moment - that's my excuse, anyway! So:

It's an iMac 750, 600 mhz. 384mb (?) RAM.
Running OSX 10.3.9

The wifi is broadcast by a D-Link DSL G640T modem router, which comes with the aforementioned USB wireless adaptor.

Cheers,
Dave

And is it correct that the D-Link DSL G640T is working properly for the other computers on your network, and the only problem is how to get the included USB to WiFi adapter working with the iMac G3/ 600MHz?

Have you scoured the included CD for a driver for the USB to WiFi adapter?

Trevor

Thanks for the interest.
Yep, the USB adaptor works fine with PCs. My Macs don't need an adaptor, cos of Airport. Sadly there's no Mac support on the driver CD. Interestingly, I've googled some info that implies I need to d/l a Ralink driver for OSX. I'll try that tonight & report back.

So - assuming that everything is working - my problem is "procedural". Having plugged the adaptor in, what settings do I need to change in order to get the iMac to use the adaptor to see my wifi network?

Cheers,
D

I think you might have misunderstood my first question. Does the D-Link modem router work for you? (I'm not asking about the adapter.)

Exactly what Airport are you referring to? I think it would be a good idea for you to give us a full diagram of everything on your network--this is the first time you've mentioned Airport. What computers do you have on the network? How are they connected exactly? What modems, routers, hubs, switches, or adapters are being used? What brand and model? How are they configured?

A USB device will need a driver.

If you can't find a driver for the USB adapter that works, then you will need to buy an actual Airport card.

Trevor

Sorry again, Trevor. Let me try to be more specific:

The D-Link DSL G640T modem/router is working fine. I use three pcs & four Macs on an ethernet network. There are no additional switches, hubs or other adaptors used. The ethernet network is simply peer-to-peer, rather than having a server. The modem/router provides web access to three pcs & two Macs via ethernet. Additionally, I use Aiport software on both my PowerBooks to connect wirelessly to the modem router.

I'll post back tonight (after I'm back from work) as to what success I've had after installing the ra-link drivers. It appears that D-Link do indeed hold back on the OSX drivers on the CD for some reason.

Sorry again for being vague!

similar question/problem
 

...after lurking all these years I've taken the plunge and registered for osxhints. Here is my problem. I would like to be able to move my daughter's iMac G4 from our family room (where it is currently connected via ethernet to our DSL modem via a wired Netgear router) to her bedroom. The Netgear router is also a wireless device and currently supports an OS9 Powerbook and two XP laptops wirelessly. My daughter's iMac G4 does not have an Airport card installed...I purchased (for nine bucks) a Linksys 802.11b WUSB11 device...which, according to this rather exhaustive compatibility list:

http://home.earthlink.net/~metaphyzx/Wireless.htm

...should work, after downloading and installing the D-link DWL122 Drivers (which are found here, I think:

http://support.dlink.com/products/XP...DWL-122&OS=mac

...the G4 is running 10.3.

I've downloaded the driver and installed it...I would be grateful for some directions as to what to do next...my efforts have not met with success in that no wireless card is seen by the iMac.

Thanks.

Well I've had some limited success.

I finally installed the drivers ok, and now as soon as I plug the USB wifi adaptor in I get a screen saying that it finds my wifi network & gets a solid, high strength signal. However, I can't work out how to persuade the iMac to actually use this connection to get online.

In Network configuration prefs I have the old internal modem & two ethernet connections to choose from. There are no USB connection to be found. Am I supposed to tweak one of the ethernet connections to get online? I really am on the outer limit of my abilities with networks, as you've probably guessed by now!

All help appreciated. Thanks in advance,
Dave


(interestingly, the best help I found on Google was a thread back to this site! See http://www.macosxhints.com/article.p...50201091946184 )

The iMac does not have two ethernet ports. One of those is your adapter--probably the one whose name is NOT "Built-in Ethernet".

Trevor

Hmmm. This is where I need the help.

In the Network prefs for the new Ethernet connection I get the message "Ethernet Adaptor (en1) is currently active. Ethernet Adaptor (en1) has a self-assigned IP address and may not be able to connect to the internet".

I've tried every single option I can find, but can't figure a way to assign an IP address to the adaptor. Screenshots attached.

Thanks in advance,
D

A self-assigned IP means that you have a problem with the TCP/IP tab. I'd advise you to leave the Ethernet tab set to Configure: Automatically unless you know for sure that you have to tweak it.

Meanwhile, can you tell us your settings in the TCP/IP tab?

Trevor

Thanks for the continued support, Trevor.

I've set the Ethernet tab back to "automatic" config. The TCP/IP tab doesn't appear to have many settings that I can alter. The IP address seems to be uneditable (but we knew that anyway).

Help solve this and you'll make a seven year old girl very happy!

D

Well, sure enough, you're getting a self-assigned IP address. 169.254.x.x indicates that even though you have DHCP turned on, your computer is not receiving DHCP. Have you tried clicking the "Renew DHCP Lease" and "Apply Now" buttons? And maybe setting it to "Manual" and clicking Apply, then back to DHCP, then clicking Apply? Or changing locations, then changing them back?

So, do you have a DHCP server on your network? (Probably on your router?)

Does DHCP work on the other computers?

What ability do you have to configure the wireless adapter? Can you show us it's settings?

Trevor

I've checked the router & DCHP is running & seems ok on other computers.
There don't seem to be many tweakable options in the wifi prefs panel.

To make matters worse, I've found that if I config the TCP/IP prefs the network status actually reports all is well. But Safari etc all say that I'm still offline & refuse to play.....

Attached bunch of screens should tell the story:

continued:

I guess I'm stuck then....
Maybe I was dumb for getting such an elderly machine. I guess it'll make a good doorstop!

Well, you could always connect it with Ethernet.

True. But impractical, sadly.
It'd take meters of cable, plus drilling thru two floors. Mrs BigDave would go NUTS! :)

Wasn't there an Airport card adaptor (internal) available for that iMac?
I speak in the past tense since I'm sure Apple doesn't carry this anymore.
But you might be able to get it from eBay. Of course it is likely to be more expensive than you would like. (As I recall, the older (non-Extreme) Airport cards started selling at a premium over the new ones once Apple stopped carrying them.) And therefore not likely cost-effective for an older machine that likely isn't worth much more than you would have to pay for this adaptor.

Again, it may not be cost-effective, but there are 3rd-party standalone 802.11 (Airport) units that receive the wireless network signal and make the connection available via Ethernet. I.e. you buy one of these boxes, put it next to the iMac, and connect the iMac to it with Ethernet.

Good point, Hayne. I hadn't thought of that. Thanks!

BigDave

Don't give up on your iMac 750 yet... it is not a doorstop. :) I have an even older Bondi Blue G3 iMac 233 Mhz connected to my wireless network, and it is running beautifully. The router (Linksys WRT54G v 3.0) is in an office on the second floor of my home, and the iMac is on the opposite side of the house ont he first floor and I am getting very good connections. I am getting download speeds of about 5.8 Mbps while the computer that I have hardwired to my router is getting 6.2 Mbps downloads. Not bad if I do say so myself. :)

The short version of what I'm doing is I am using a D-link DWL-G122 vB1 USB network adapter with drivers from the chipset manufacturer (Ralink). D-Link does not provide Mac support on it's products, but Ralink does.

I could go into a long process of how I did this but if you have either already given up, or solved your problem I won't waste the time or the bandwidth. However, If you are still in need of help, and would like more details as to how I did this, please let me know and I will be happy to assist.

Cheers

rna_dna - GREAT!

If you've ever had to live with dashing the expectations of a seven year old girl, you'd know just how desperate I am to solve the problem!

The screenshots tell the story. Seems as if I have the very same wifi adaptor that you have. I'm beginning to wonder if I have the wrong driver for the D-Link G-122. It shouldn't be THIS difficult!

If you want to PM me or post a "how-to" thread here I'd be so so so grateful!

Thanks,
D

Ok great. I am not too late. I will do what I can, as I would hate to see a 7 year olds hopes dashed. :-)

I was looking at your screenshots, and I will begin working on a recommended course of action based on my experieces, and try to incorporate your situation.

It took me a long time to figure out how to make my configuration work... a lot of trial an error.

In the meantime, there is a little information that might be useful. It's great that we have the same USB adapter, as it should make things a bit easier, but it is important that you determine what version of the DWL-G122 you have. There are three versions (A1, A2 and B1) and apparently only version B1 works with the Ralink drivers as the A1 and A2 use the Prism chipset, while the B1 uses the Ralink chipset. It is quite possible that this is your problem--a 66% chance actually. ;-)

If you're interested, here is a comprehensive list of all the adapters that use the Ralink 2500 chipset. http://ralink.rapla.net/


I suppose that I forgot to mention in my original post that I have Mac OS 10.3.9 on that iMac, so I am using the latest USB drivers (Drv1.1.2.0). Unless you already have that set, you may as well go ahead and download it here:

http://www.ralinktech.com/supp-1.htm

Anyway, I'll go ahead and get started on this, and if you wouldn't mind, please determine which version of the DWL-G122 you have. I had to go to three different retailers before I found one that sold the B1 version.

Cheers,
Derek

Hello BigDave.

Upon further review, I have discovered there is a fourth version of this adapter. There is also a version D1. So your chances of having the wrong one that won't work with the Ralink drivers has now increased to 75%.

If you have a version other than the B1, then I cannot really help you other than to tell you that you need to procure one. I am not 100% positive, but I THINK there are Mac drivers available for the Prism chipset versions (A1 & A2), but I am not sure about this recently uncovered D1 version. It undoubtedly must use a different chipset.

http://support.dlink.com/products/re...tid=DWL%2DG122

If yours is not a Version B1, these adapters can be found readily and very inexpenseively (~16 USD, 9.09 GBP, 13.34 Euro) on eBay. Shipping however is another matter. :-(

http://search.ebay.co.uk/DWL-G122-B1...WLQ2dG122Q20B1

Good luck.

Cheers,
Derek

Thanks a million - I'm starting to hope that we can still get this sorted again.

Luckily my adaptor is indeed a B1. That's what it says on the label. Right now in the UK it's time for me to go out & work for the next 8 hours, but tonight I'll download the latest drivers & install them.

What I don't understand, though, is why I get a green light in Network prefs saying that I'm connected to the internet - but no apps will actually go online. Too weird for this non-techie guy!

Thanks again for your help - will post back later.

Dave

I believe in order for the connection to be set up properly, you have to use the included applications with the USB adapter. I had tried this same adapter with some success however, it was spotty ... some days it would work, others it would not.

My best suggestion is to get a wireless access point, connect to a hub, connect imac to hub.

Thanks, intrntmn. But I'm trying to do this on a very limited budget - it's also rapidly becoming a matter of principle! It should work, but no matter what combination of options I choose I can't get it to go online.....

rna_dna - I've downloaded the latest Ra-Link drivers, but the problem persists. The Ra-Link wireless software logs onto my wifi net no problem. It's configuring the network prefs that's the key... I think.....!

I still don't see why I get a green "connected to the internet" status in Network Prefs yet I can't seem to connect with any apps. Any ideas?

Post 1 of 4
 

I had started working on a small "tutorial" of how I did this, but it appears that you are quite close to a solution. I think all you need is to make a few setting changes in the WirelessUtilityUSB panels, and your Network System Preferences. You may even have to make a few changes in your router.

As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words, so I am going to take a page from your postings, and just post some screenshots of my settings. Not to say that you should do it exactly, but they should provide some guidance. I can only paste in three screenshots per post, so I will have to break this up into a few posts.

Attachment 1005Attachment 1006Attachment 1007

These are the ones of my Network System preferences. As you can see from the first screenshot, under the Network Port Configuration tab I went ahead and disabled the other connections. I do not know for a fact if this is necessary, but it just made sense to me that one way to be sure the system was using the USB adapter was to eliminate any other choices, which is why in the second screenshot (Network Status) you only see the USB adapter. I did have to go through one round of deleting the USB adapter and then adding it again (with help from the Assist me button at the bottom) before I got it working right. The next screenshots are the ones for the actual adapter. The third screenshot shows the TCP/IP settings. I am using DHCP, as my router has also been configured to serve DHCP. After setting up this configuration, I made sure to Renew DHCP lease… that did the trick for me.

As for the Ethernet pane… the Ethernet ID is set automatically, so just choose “Automatically” from the pull down menu for Configure. No real need to show a screenshot of that. : )

I will continue on the next couple of posts with the USBWirelessUtility screenshots and configurations.

Post 2 of 4
 

Attachment 1008Attachment 1009Attachment 1010

Screenshot one is the Site survey screenshot that shows when the WirelessUtilityUSB starts up. For obvious reasons I have changed the RSSID to show 00-00-00-00-00-00 . Screenshot two is the Link Status pane, and it doesn’t have any settings I changed. I did edit the SSID and the RSSID on the image for obvious reasons. I am merely showing this screenshot to illustrate the kind of connection and throughput I am getting with this setup… a “proof of concept” slide if you will. :-) The third screenshot is the Advanced pane, and you can see that I set the Wireless Mode to mixed, and the others to Auto. I do have the Tx burst set to on, but I cannot say if it is necessary to do so. I do have the AdHoc set off because I am not using an AdHoc network.


I will continue in the next post with additional USBWirelessUtility screenshots and configurations.

Post 3 of 4
 

Attachment 1011Attachment 1012Attachment 1013

The first screenshot is the Profile tab. This allows you to set up a profile with the settings so you don’t have to reenter them every time you connect to the wireless network. I have X’d out the pertinent information. By the way, I noticed that sometimes, even though the green checkmark shows that it's connected, if I tried to open a web page, I would get a message from the browser that I wasn't connected. When this happens, I would just highligh the profile, and click on the Activate button. This would recycle/reset the connection and presto... the browser would connect. If you click on the Edit button on that pane, you will call up screenshot two. This is the System Configuration pane. The settings are clearly shown there so I don’t have to describe them. Clicking the Authentication & Security tab on that pane calls up screenshot three. This is where I set the Utility to the same settings as the router. The pertinent info is once again X’d out.

I will discuss these settings more in the following post.

Post 4 of 4
 

On the router end I have a Linksys WRT54G v3.0 running 4.20.07 firmware. I know your router is different, but this should offer you some starting points as most routers work essentially the same. Nothing really different than what you would consider “normal”, except that I am running DHCP and I am starting my IP address at xxx.xxx.x.100 I do not know if this is necessary to make this work but it is working fine for me. I suppose you could try leaving at the default and see how it works for you. Insofar as security is concerned, the security mode you choose is critical. If you are going to use a security mode, you must use either WEP (I wouldn’t recommend that as it isn’t very secure) or WPA. To complicate matters even more, the TYPE of WPA algorithm you use is also critical. WPA2 is NOT supported by this Ralink driver, so you must use WPA. The Linksys firmware calls this WPA-Personal. The algorithm I am using is AES, although TKIP works fine as well. I have tested both, but I chose AES as it is (supposedly) more secure. Below is a synopsis of the Wireless Security pane on my Linksys router.

Security Mode: WPA Personal
WPA Algorithm: AES
WPA Shared Key: (enter your key of choice… make it a good one. :-) )
Group Key Renewal: 3600 seconds (default)



The only other thing that I think needs mentioning, is that I "hot" plug the USB device after the OS is at the desktop. I unplug it from it's little cradle while the machine boots up, and once it has reached the desktop then I plug it in. The driver recognized it, and then loads. I did see something in a Ralink forum about a potential solution to this. I will be investigating this and will get back to you on this.


I hope all this mess helps and is not more confusing. :-D I will try to help further if you have any need for clarification or more questions.

Cheers,
Derek

That has to be the most comprehensive answer ever!
Thanks so much for taking the time, Derek. It's very much appreciated.

Again, I have to go out to work right now, but will work thru the tutorial later/tomorrow.

Dave

Hello Dave

Not a problem--glad to help a guy out so as not to disappoint his daughter. :) Let me know how it goes. Good luck with it.

PS That issue I mentioned I would look into about fixing the need for hot-plugging... I have evaluated the fix, and am happy to report that it works. So when you get this current issue resolved, we can move onto that fix. :D

The link for it the software to fix the need for hot-plugging is: http://mitglied.lycos.de/thomsmac/

Cheers,
Derek

Hmmm - I'm still struggling, sadly.

It appears that if I follow your TCP/IP DHCP settings, the adaptor insists on manually assigning its own IP address & can't connect to my network. If I choose "Use DHCP with manual address" I can assign any unused IP address, and even get a green network status light, but can't actually go online.

I've tried reactivating the connection in the Ra-Link wifi, restarting, hotplugging etc but the problem persists.

I'll keep checking back here to see if you've had any ideas!

Dave

Hello Dave

I am thinking it might be something on the router end, so I have downloaded the PDF file of the manual for your router and will take a look to see if there is anything I might see needed changing.

I know it's kind of a pain, but if you would either send the pertinent settings from your router or perhaps screenshots, that might be useful.

I feel we are really close... don't give up hope yet. :)

Cheers,
Derek

Derek -
We've done it!

Thank you SO much. I was taking the router screenshots for you when I noticed that the iMac was trying to establish a dynamic IP address from the router. Just for a laugh I assigned a static IP address from the router, then configured the TCP/IP (manually) on the Mac - and hey presto!!!!

The timing couldn't be better - my daughter has her online iMac for Christmas. And now we get to the good part:

Several people have said that I could pick up a different wifi adaptor from Ebay. It was only my lack of technical ability that stopped me doing just that! And so now I want you to pick a charity and I will donate the approx cost of a new wifi adaptor to that charity in your name.

After all, it is Christmas.

Thanks again, Derek - and everyone else.

Dave

Hmmm - seems I may have spoken too soon. It was ok till I restarted the Mac, now it won't go online again. Samne symptoms as before :(

I think you are REALLY close. You may be "suffering" from the same issues I did before I downloaded and installed that hot-plug "driver" solution I mentioned. As I recall, I had to go through a few cycles of setting and restarting before the system worked repeatably. I know the settings will work because at the risk of undoing everything I had done to get it working, I deleted all my network settings, and all the WirelessUtilityUSB settings, and created a dummy account... essentially starting from scratch. I followed my procedure, and got it to work the very first time. :) And in case you were wondering, yes it was a nerve-wracking experience, and yes, I am glad I got it working agin... :WHEW: :D

For now, you may have to a) restart with the dongle unplugged, b) hot-plug the dingle once youre fully at your desktop and wait for the WirelessUtilityUSB to restart, and c) reactivate your profile, or reconnect from the WirelessUtilityUSB even if it shows a green and says it's connected. I used to have to do this sometimes. By the way, that hot-plugging solution I mentioned a few posts back has eliminated my need to do all this... now all I do is start up my iMac with the dongle alread in place, and just wait a few minutes--I will often just start if up in advance and then go do something else and come back to it later, at which time it is sitting there waiting for me connected to the Internet and ready to go. :) This would be a much more workable for a 7 year old, wouldn't you agree?

It's great news that we have established that a link is possible so it's just a matter of making it "stick". If you have those screenshots, go ahead and post them along. Like you, this is becoming a matter of prinicple! :-)

I'll keep looking into it, and checking in from time to time. We'll make it work...

Cheers,
Derek

PS If I dont hear from you before Sunday, I wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas.

Go into your router's configuration page and reserve the IP that you've manually set for the iMac so that nothing else on your network can use that IP.

Or else just manually set the IP for the iMac outside of the DHCP range of the router, but still in the subnet range. So if your router serves 192.168.1.100 - 192.168.1.150, you can set the iMac to 192.168.1.99 (for example).

Trevor

Dave,

I think trevors idea is a very good one. Although hypothetically having the router automatically assign an IP should work (it is how I have my router and Mac configured) trevors suggestion will definitely elminate any conflict issues... if one exists.

Short version, is that it can't hurt to do it. :)

Thanks for the input trevor.

Another option would be to set-up a remote access point. You willl have to give-up your wusb11 device and start anew-hardware wise. For instance, i use a dlink DWL2100AP to access a wireless internet connection outside of my workplace. I have an airport extreme base station connected to the dwl2100 via ethernet cable. The airport then brings the internet to any computer on the wireless system. You could use a dwl2100ap to pick-up the internet connection wirelessly, and then have you computer connected to the dwl2100 via their respective ethernet ports.