Ok, lightning strike near the in-laws house, modem stops working, but otherwise computer seems ok.

Take out the old modem. Buy a new modem, install it, install drivers, still won't dial up. Tried the new modem in two different PCI slots, no luck.

All dial-up settings are correct, the modem is reported in device manager as working properly, but I don't even hear a dial-tone when trying to dial.

Message from msn dialer is that modem is not functioning or is already in use.

So what gives? Com port dead? Need an external modem?

Both PCI slots work fine with a sound card...any ideas welcome...thanks in advance

Yep, I would return the new modem for an external brand.

Is the modem, by any chance running through a surge supressor?

If so bypass it and try again.

Thanks for the fast replies, you guys are awesome...

Nope, no surge protector. It's a Win98 machine and when I go into the control panel, modem properties, diagnostics, select the modem and click More Info, I get a "couldn't open port" message...

When I try to dial, I don't even hear the dial-tone of the phone line, which should be there since I have the modem sound turned on. I'm thinking Com2 is burned out on the board...

Is there a way to change the com port? I disabled the serial port which is com1, but I can't seem to change the port the modem wants to use. This is a Dell dimension l667r, by the way, so the BIOS options are not especially extensive...

Is it a software or hardware modem?

If it is software, then uninstalling and reinstalling the dirvers should move, if not try another slot.


If it is a hardware modem try reserving its IRQ in BIOS maybe it will then move....

Both software modems...

Tried all 4 slots, uninstalling and reinstalling the drivers...I even tricked the old modem into using com1, but it still doesn't seem to help...

When I uninstall the modem, then go into the Modem Properties in control panel, I can install it manually using the "Have Disk" option...when I do this, it allows me to choose com1 and com2 doesn't even show up...

Still, I get nothing when I try to dial-up, not even the dial-tone and I know my phone works. The results are the same with both the old (presumably broken) modem and the one I just bought...although I suspect that the modem is not really using com1 since that is still also assigned to the serial port...

I guess my last chance here is to buy a serial modem and a usb modem and see if I can get either of those to work...man this is pi$$ing me off...

Have you tried disabling com ports in the bios? I know you said there weren't many options, but there is usually an option to disable as a minimum.

I assume you have deleted the modem settings in Device Manager and reloaded. I had to futz with several modems recently and I still am not exactly clear how I got them working, but in one case it involved disabling a com port and ended up with the modem on Com3. It worked, so I left it alone.

Good luck,
Budfred

COM ports are virtual ports, but can be added by using the Add new hardware wizard.

Add at least two more ( COM 3 & 4 ), then after removing modem try it installing it again.

Also see if there is a diagnostic tool from the modem manufacturer's website.

I would also try Hyperterminal, see if you can connect thru there.

The only option in the BIOS that has anything to do with com ports is where I can disable the serial port...

I have added com ports and tried the modem on different ones, but the results have not changed...error message saying the modem is not functioning or is already in use...

I'm beginning to think the ^%%#@%!&@ lightning has nothing to do with this problem and that something else is screwed up on the system...

I can't get modem diagnostics to work on either modem no matter what pci slot or com port it's using...

The results SHOULD be different on the new, good modem...all the pci slots are fine, but the modems won't work...

Try resetting the BIOS; if that doesnt work then try upgrading it-it's possible that the strike " fried " part of the BIOS code.

Mercy.....

I am glad to see that I am not the only
one to have problems with soft-modem
installation.

Until my face turns blue.

Couple things I've learned. They will not
work unless the drivers are loaded first.
And then Windoz pointed to thier location
at installation.

Also, if it is a voice/fax type modem the
unit will need a wave device type driver
included also. Or these units won't talk
to anything. Let alone shake hands with
an ISP.

I have better luck looking at the chipset
(Rockwell for example) and then going to that
particular site for drivers.

Extreme aggravation when a person buys a
modem over the counter and it takes an
intervention of the PC Gods to get it to work.

Google has a ton of help sites and FAQ for
modems and I've learned some interesting things
about these software beauties.

These beauties that I would like to drop in
my driveway and drive over them for a week.


RD.

:eek:Sorry, what I meant to say was that I disabled one of the serial ports and ended up with the modem on Com3. Even though I reinstated the serial port, the modem still ran. Might be worth a try although I suspect the problem is deeper than that.

Budfred

Well, I'm not trying to solve the modem problem anymore...after flashing the bios, uninstalling and reinstalling dial-up networking, isp software, both modems several times and being unable to get a single program to recognize the modem or be able to communcate with it, I ran NAV 2002 which reported a MBR problem and upon rebooting, the system was fragged...

And I don't mean like it needed to be defragmented, I mean like there was an invalid system disk message on reboot. Whereas previously, the 30gb hard disk had a 20gb partition with 6gb used and an 8gb partition with nothing used, it now had a 7gb partition with 3gb used and 21gb of unpartitioned space...

Don't know if it was a virus, bad juju from the lightning or an unruly copy of NAV, but Windows 98 was done...tried to fdisk the mbr and restore the registry to no avail, so I'm installing XP right now and hoping the brother-in-law doesn't miss his 3 or 4gb of mp3s...

Thanks for all the help...at this point any guesses as to the cause of all of this are welcome :confused:

Man, what a pain in the rump, eh?

I'm thinking the lightening and the modem deciding not to work are two different unrelated happenings.

Guess you will know for sure if something's wrong with the drive once you get XP installed.

Buy a couple of sixpacks, sit down with your brother-in-law and explain the dynamics of a lightning strike.....

Hmmm.....I'd seriously consider looking at the PSU being a little flaky.

Been reading this thread. Sounds like your modem troubles may be due to unruly ghosts in the machine. Nevertheless, I am struck by the fact that so many of us still use modems (I have no choice; I live in rural Virginia and my only broadband option for the forseeable future is satellite!!), and they continue to be a pain in the ass. Generally, I've had excellent luck with 3com hardware faxmodems, but anytime I've used anything else, I've had problems. These suckers are too widely used and have been around too long to still be such a pain.
Good luck goonz, always have enjoyed your posts.

Marty
Verona, VA

XP installed no problem...well on the second try, that is...my first try was to use the existing partition to install XP in an attempt to save some of the data, but the partition was corrupted beyond repair...so it was repartition, then install...

Luckily, XP found drivers for everything (it's a Dell, so drivers for a different OS aren't easy to come by) and the modem tests fine. Once I get the username/password for the dial-up account, I'll see if the modem works for real...