Communicating on the Road

Here's a question for you -

Q: "What is the fastest way to drive Atul Chitnis round the bend ?"

A: "Send him to a place where he can't connect his notebook computer's modem to the telephone line !"

In the past few months, I have written about various modem aspects, but all of them were aimed at desktop users. Notebook computer users are increasing in numbers - it's time to address their problems.

WHAT ? NO RJ11 SOCKET ????

This has happened to me too many times in the past. I go to a place, need to connect my modem to the phone line, and find a "strange" phone line connector.

If this was the US of A, I wouldn't have that problem - a missing RJ11 socket (that little plastic plug found on modem-to-line cables) is more or less a federal offence, punishable with three years of potato peeling in the kitchen.

In India, such offenders would have a field day.

The RJ11 cable is probably the ultimate definition of civilised standards. The sight of that little square hole in the wall is reassuring - it is a clear indication that the establishment you are in cares. It lets you plug in your phone with minimal fuss. It is secure - no loose, crackly connection is likely. It is a standard - ANY telecommunication equipment will plug right in without a second thought, including a modem.

Tell that to the Indian P&T. They still prefer to use those miserable Bakelite boxes with lots of screws and "Y" connectors, exactly the same kind they used this time last century. Talk about resistance to change !

A TRAVELLING COMMUNICATOR'S TOOLKIT

When I travel around the country, I have to prepare myself for all sorts of "weird" connectors, and here is what you'll find when you take a peep into my little black bag:

First of all you'll find a standard RJ11 cable. The RJ11 cable is the lifeline from your modem to your telephone line. It usually comes in two flavours in India - one with RJ11 plugs at each end, one with an RJ11 plug at one end and "Y" lugs at the other.

My personal cable is ALWAYS one with a RJ11 plug at each end.

"So how do you use it in places where there is no RJ11 socket ?"

That's where the other little gimmicks in my bag come into play.

There are two little connectors there. Each of them has an RJ11 socket at one end. One of them has a set of "Y" lugs at the other end, the other connector has a set of crocodile clips instead. I call the first one "Lugsy" and the second one "Jaws", for obvious reasons.

If I go to a place where RJ11 sockets are available, then I simply use my standard RJ11 cable to plug in.

If the place is prehistoric, and uses the P&T's ugly Bakelite box, then I have two choices.

If I am going to be in that place for an extended period of time (like a hotel room), then I connect Lugsy's "Y" lugs to the phone line's connector box. That will give me a semi-permanent RJ11 socket that I can plug into whenever I need to.

If I am going to be in the place for a very short time (like at a client's place) where I will probably be history in under an hour, then I use Jaws. I simply clip the connector to the phone line using the crocodile clips. That again gives me an RJ11 socket that I can use, though of a more temporary kind.

Why not use Jaws in every situation ? Simple - crocodile connectors are convenient, but do not provide a very stable connection in the long run, since a little movement can disconnect them.

Note, too, that the connectors I use are of very good quality. Gold plated connectors are preferable, since they virtually eliminate "crackling" connections (naturally, they can't do anything about the noise the P&T supplies).

The next piece of equipment is very obvious - a small screwdriver. I use the one that comes with my Multitech modems - it has a small flat end at one end, and a small Phillips type star head at the other. Very handy - kudos to Multitech for being the ONLY manufacturer who supplies this much needed item with their modems.

The final piece of equipment is one needed by most notebook computer communicators. Unlike normal modems, notebook modems tend to have only one connection - one for the phone line. There is rarely a provision to plug in a phone in parallel, as you would do with a desktop modem.

So Raju (my partner and the innovative 'lectronics brain in my company) threw in a strange looking connector. He cut my RJ11 cable about 4 inches from the end where it plugs into my notebook's modem, and wired a RJ11 socket in parallel with the RJ11 plug, then taped the whole thing up again.

The result looks hilarious - this schizophrenic cable can act as a modem cable, a phone extension cable, or both! One end has a standard RJ11 plug for connecting to the phone line, the other end has a RJ11 plug AND a RJ11 socket. The plug goes into my modem, and the socket is used if I need to plug in a phone, too (very handy when the hotel management phones in and asks if I have a modem/fax connected to my room line - I can very innocently say "If I had connected a modem, how am I talking to you now ?")

All these connectors together cost me about Rs.200 - not much in terms of money, but invaluable when you need them.

ON THE MACHINE

Now that we have our modem securely connected, let's see what's on the machine.

I am a Windows freak, and since my notebook computer is emminently suited for Windows usage (it is a Compaq Contura 4/25cx, with 4 MB of RAM, a 80486-25DX, a 209 MB hard disk, a built-in 14400 bps fax modem, a built-in trackball and a glorious Active Matrix Colour VGA display - eat your hearts out !), I prefer using Windows programs for communication. Procomm Plus for Windows is the premier choice.

But most laptops and noteboooks in India tend to be more mortal - they are usually 80386SX machines with 40-80 MB of hard disk space, with only 2 MB of RAM. Running Windows under such circumstances is the rough equivalent to new shoes - they look great, but feel terrible. Also, Procomm Plus for Windows is HUGE. You may not have that much hard disk space to spare.

So the fallback is to use a DOS based communication program. Procomm Plus for DOS V2.x is best suited for this. Why ? More on this later.

I use only legal software, so the stuff I use tends to be expensive (Procomm Plus for DOS costs about Rs.9000 in India). A less expensive way is to use a shareware program like Telix.

Telix is very similar to the shareware version of Procomm (supplied with many modems), but has the added advantage of the Zmodem file transfer protocol. Since Zmodem is the ONLY way I recommend for file transfer, Telix is a given. Pick it up from my BBS next time you are on. It can be found in the COM forum's library.

Some poor souls who purchased modems with their laptops/notebooks very soon find that they have been conned - their modems have nor error correction - a violation of Atul's First Principle, which is "Thou shallst not attempt communication in India without MNP/V.42". For such victims (who obviously didn't read PC Quest before buying a modem), the solution is a program called Odyssey (also found on my BBS). Odyssey is very similar to Telix, but has built in MNP emulation. It is slower than a real MNP connection, but better than no MNP connection.

COMMUNICATIONS TO GO

Now that we are equipped with everything we need, let's see how we tackle the problem of phone numbers.

"What's the problem ?" you ask, "just enter the number in the comm program's dialler, and pick it everytime you need to call"

Not so simple, my friend. Picture this.

When I am in Bangalore (sigh - what a nice place to be), I dial 011-6845520 to connect to Kishore's BBS in Delhi, and 022-5787812 to connect to Suchit's BBS in Bombay. And I dial 341137 to connect to my own BBS.

But if I enter these numbers into Procomm's dialler, then I am in trouble when I go to Bombay or Delhi, since the STD codes will not apply. And I am too lazy to edit each and every phone number in the dialling directory for a 24 hour visit to Bombay or Delhi.

So what I do is to use the Long Distance Codes feature found in Procomm.

I have set it up so that "B" stands for Bombay, and contains "022". "D" stands for Delhi and holds "011", and "H" stands for Home (Bangalore) and holds nothing.

In the dialler, I have set up the phone numbers as B5787812, D6845520 and H341137. When I dial, Procom replaces those characters (B,D and H) with the numbers contained in them (022, 011 and nothing).

Now, when I go to Bombay, I simply edit these definitions - now B is set to blank and H is set to "080". Voila ! On dialling, the applicable STD code is used.

This is the reason why I use Procomm - I haven't come across any other communication program that is as powerful as Procomm, yet this easy to use.

TO TONE OR PULSE, THAT IS THE QUESTION

In Bangalore, I have tone dialling in most places (naturally, Bangalore is highly civilised and the P&T is very co-operative - they give you a phone line within 10 years of application, but don't use BEEPs to indicate the 3/5 minute local call interval).

But when I go to other cities, I may have to deal with pulse dialling.

I get around this by defining Procomm's dialing prefix as "ATD" instead of "ATDP" or "ATDT". Using ATD, the modem will use the dialling method last used or whichever is found in the NVRAM's setup.

Now, when I go to a pulse-dialling city, is simply type "ATP&W" once to the modem, and from then on, the modem will only pulse-dial. Back in Bangalore, an "ATT&W" sets things back to normal. Much easier and faster than going through Procomm's setup.

On the other hand, there are some situations where I HAVE to use Procomm's dialling prefix setting - for example in a hotel room.

Most hotels require you to dial "0" or "9" (or even "72") before you get the P&T's dialling tone. So if I am in such a place, I set Procomm's dialling prefix to "ATDT0W". This causes Procomm to dial "0" first, then wait for the P&T tone before dialling the actual number.

THE COLOUR OF MONEY

Many BBSs (including mine) tend to make life colourful for you - literally. They use ANSI sequences to change colours for you, pop up fancy menus, etc.

But fancy ANSI screens can create deep holes in your pocket if you are calling long distance, or calling from a hotel that charges you Rs.7 per local call, since they can take a long time to draw.

A seasoned communicator (meaning one who has received a stupendous phone bill at least once) learns very quickly that while fancy ANSI screens are nice to look at, it is cheaper to turn them off. Most BBSs let you do this. I advise you to avail of that feature if possible. Raw text is faster. So if you are asked whether you want Colour, B&W or None, choose None.

+++ATH0

Before I sign off for this month, I'd like to send a note of appreciation to all those who send me monthly "critical reviews" of my columns. Especially those people living in the USA and in UK, who seem to get their copies of PCQ before anyone else does. Thanks a lot, guys. Your input is much appreciated, since the ultimate compliment to a writer is when someone takes the trouble to write in his or her comments - a postive proof that he or she has READ the column ! ;-)

And hurray for PKR, PCQ's editor. He has finally got around to buying a modem ! Nothing less than a 14400 bps model ! Let's give him a standing ovation !

Ciao till next month.