Users helping Users
Have you tried everything listed here, and still can't get your configuration problem solved?
"I can't be the only person with this problem..."
"If only I knew someone to ask this one quick question..."
Or, maybe you're already up and running. Maybe someone has a question you have the answer to. Want to earn a few good
karma points?
In response to user requests, we've installed a configuration help bulletin board.
Visit the FlexNet Users Forums.
OpenOffice 1.0, a 50Meg File
What for? Well, to test out your download speeds for one. Also save us some bandwidth
too...
A few Hints
In a perfect world, no one would ever need to call for help.
But like they say, stuff happens.
News server access:
To access our news server (news.flex.com), you will need to authenticate
yourself. As an example, if your username is "del", then login to the news
server as "del@flex.com". Then for your password, put in your regular
flexnet password.
Modem Dialup Authentication:
- All Flexnet users must use "username@flex.com", and
your
normal password, when connecting. (Of course substitute your real username for "username". Some
people
actually type in "username" verbatim.)
Personal Webpages
Very Important Note: If you plan on having a FORM MAILER,
you better be using our FLEXMAIL.CGI
Form Mailer, else run the risk of paying a $50 re-activation fee if your own
Form Mailer gets hacked by spammers!
Okay, concerning Personal Webpages. First step here is to get a good book on HTML programming, with specific
reference to UNIX systems. FlexNet is a UNIX-based system running an
Apache Web Server.
Experienced Internet users should be familiar with Unix directory
structure, the concept of home directories, ftp'ing files back and forth,
the concepts of file permissions and stuffs like that.
We don't run Microsoft stuffs (like FrontPage, IIS or Access) and never
will.
The following should go without saying if you are an experienced Internet
user, but judging by my email, apparently not. Hopefully this
isn't your first time you ever setup an Web Page. If it is, you
will probably swear at FlexNet. If you've setup Web pages before,
you will be quite comfortable with FlexNet as we follow the same
basic conventions of 90% of all ISPs out there.
Nothing at all mysterious about how our system is setup. We follow
conventions.
Let's say your username is "keoki". Okay, all HTML files should be
uploaded (i.e. transfered) to the /home/keoki/public_html sub-directory
(another name for a Folder.) Your home directory is "/home/keoki" and that
directory is shorten in UNIX parlance to "~keoki" and thus your WEB HOME
DIRECTORY is "~keoki/public_html", or fully expanded as
"/home/keoki/public_html".
Believe it or not, many users have no idea what "index.html" is for. Well,
you need a HTML file called "index.html" in your WEB HOME DIRECTORY, as
this is how our Apache Web Server will know what to show Web browsers when
people on the Net want to see your web page.
So, can you guess
what the full path is for your index.html file will be? It is
"~keoki/public_html/index.html" or fully expanded
"/home/keoki/public_html/index.html"
An important point is that this beginning file must be called "index.html"
and not "INDEX.HTML" Unix is case-sensitive when it comes to filenames.
Note: Microsoft a while back decided to "muck" things up a bit, and
allowed a file called "index.htm" to be named in lieu of the proper name
(the 8.3 filename MSDOS restriction.) So yea, FlexNet allows "index.htm"
also, but gives precedence to "index.html"
Now, how to tell other people what your personal URL is? It is:
http://www.flex.com/~keoki
You now know why the "~" mark is in some URLs that you get! ...because it
is following a UNIX convention! (If you didn't know already.)
If you wish to run CGI's click on CGIwrap on the left-hand menu bar. For
CGIemail click appropriately.
All accounts come with 10Megs of space. Some of this space is taken up by
email, and when you have a personal webpage, all your HTML files will use
still more space of your 10Megs allotment.
Once you use up all your 10Megs (with webpage files and email), you won't
be able to receive anymore email, or upload anymore HTML files. So watch
what you do, and delete files when you have to.
You may check how much space you are currently using by going to the
Billing and Payment link on our home page.
Beyond the above info, no further "tech help" is available on how to
create and maintain webpages .
56K Modem Speed/Disconnects
56K connections are the bane of all ISPs. 56K is so
dependent on line conditions. You get what you get. No ISP in the
world can gurantee 56K speeds, or anywhere close to it.
If you say that your "other" ISP had better 56k connections, then
you best go back to that ISP. Really folks, a 3K or 5K difference
in connection speed is nothing.
The v.90 spec will shoot the initial connection speed (and that is
all Windows will report, the INITIAL connect speed, not subsequent
speed re-trains) up OR down.
Things you can do/try:
1. How's the Weather? Yup. Rain and Wind causes pops and clicks on your phone line,
which will knock your modem offline. If you hear clicks and other noise when you use
your phone to call someone, then you are in this category.
2. Force your modem into NOT going 56K. In your dialup window, put in three
commas after the phone number e.g. 240--3200,,, What this does is to force your
56K modem to wait fifteen seconds (each comma is around 5 seconds) before attempting
to connect via modem tones. This way the 56K portion of the handshake is skipped over
and our modems will begin to negotiate at v.34 speeds (28.8kbps or 33.6kbps). Yes,
I know this isn't why you bought your spanking new 56K modem for, but do you want to
bitch and bitch, or connect?
3. Make sure you have the latest modem drivers. See Left. At home, I have a HP
Pavilion 6460 that has a junky Rockwell HCF modem in it. Well, initially all I
could hookup at was 26K bps (no kidding.) After 1 million years search and navigating
HP's website, I FINALLY found the Rockwell HCF upgrade. Now I connect at 46K bps.
Uh-huh!
4. Do the 56K line test. Also see Left-side menubar. Another thing you can
do along this line (pun) is to have HawTel clean up/condition your phone line.
5. Get a better modem. Stay away from Rockwell chip set modems. Dang pain
trying to find Rockwell modem drivers. LT
Winmodems work okay, so do USR Sportsers. Stay away from those el cheapos.
They're cheap for a reason.
6. Check the INSIDE wiring of your home. Wires corrode and become flaky over time. One of our
users constantly blamed "flex's BAD SERVICE" over a prolonged period of time. She finally
got so much line noise, that she called in Verizon. Come find out that the wiring inside had
to be replaced, and once that happened, flexnet became "rock-solid". Okay, whatever...
Please don't call or email us about 56K problems. We can't do a thing
about it one way or the other except suggest the five things above.
"I Wanna Change My Username!"
Sign up again with a new username. See below about your "old" account. No
need to tell us anything, so please don't. I get way too much email as it is.
Account Cancellation
Pay nothing, Do nothing. Ignore all email dunning notices.Our system audit software will
automatically deactivate your account after non-payment.
After a three month hiatus, we may delete the account fo' real.
way too much email as it is.
E-Mail Support
You may also Send us your questions or a detailed description of the problem using the feedback form. Please include
your name and username. You'll get an answer back soon.
If your question could have been answered by you reading these
pages, then most likely I'll just delete your email without a response.
Don't take it personal.
Just remember, phone support for general advice on how to use a particular software
app, how to configure it, or how to do very basic things like download using FTP is NOT
AVAILABLE. That's considered technical support. And you're not paying for that, remember?
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