Empathy Instant Messenger

Empathy by default only works with connections that are connected using Network Manager . When using Wvdial Empathy does not detect the network and so does not work . There is a work around for this problem .

Procedure :

Step 1: Open a terminal and enter

gconf-editor

Step 2: Go to “apps > empathy”

Step 3: uncheck the box “use_conn”

Step 4: Close the windows

Empathy should detect your Wvdial connection and you should be able to connect to your IM IDs now.

Before you use your Gtalk ID in Empathy you may have to make a few changes for a successful connection .

Procedure :

Step 1: Click “Add” to add a new account .

Step 2: Select “Gtalk” in th Add New drop down box

Step 3: Click on the “Create” button

Step 4: Enter your login and password.

Step 5: Click on the advanced tab

Step 5: Check the Encryption required (TSL/SSL) checkbox

Step 6: Enter “talk.google.com” in the server textbox

Step 7: Click Connect

To delete an account just click on the small bin icon displayed to the right of each account .

Ubuntu 9.10

If you have upgraded to (or had a fresh install) of Ubuntu 9.10 you would definitely have encountered many problems and bugs . My advice would be to connect to the internet and perform a full update as soon as you can .

If you are a mobile broadband user , connecting to the internet in itself would be a major problem . The revamped network manager in 9.10 is exceptionally buggy and i have read of a lot of complaints from users (across the world) of having had problems with using mobile broadband .Native support is in-built for almost all mobile broadband ISPs (of India) theoretically and yet practically a lot of them dont work .

Problem:

Network manager will detect your modem correctly but will refuse to connect to the internet .

Solution:

A bug report was filed by a Reliance Netconnect Broadband+ user . An update may have been released  by the developers  as many users have reported that the Network manager started connecting to the internet successfully after an update .

So update your karmic Koala using another connection .

Workaround: (Use Wvdial)

If you like me dont have another connection , boot up windows and download the wvdial software for karmic koala install it in ubuntu and use it to connect to the internet and update your system .

Procedure

1. Download the following files (in windows or any other machine) and install them in ubuntu

If you have an intel processor select the i386 links and in the next page select an Asian server .

Dependencies

http://packages.ubuntu.com/karmic/libwvstreams4.6-base

http://packages.ubuntu.com/karmic/libwvstreams4.6-extras

http://packages.ubuntu.com/karmic/libuniconf4.6

2. next download and install wvdial in your Ubuntu

Wvdial

http://packages.ubuntu.com/karmic/wvdial

wvdial is installed in your Ubuntu machine !

3. Now follow this guide to setup your connection using wvdial in ubuntu

http://reliancewireless.wordpress.com/2009/05/01/setting-up-your-reliance-broadband-connection-in-linux/

PS : I am guessing people using the newer Huawei EC1260 modem may have more problems with the network manager .

Finally figured out how the billing systems work  , and now i am really left laughing at my own naivity . FJ was kind enough to point  out in my last post that i was billed only for the first 10 days . So you are billed according to the tariff of the plans you choose and not according to your usage  (as i had first thought) .

I just checked my next month’s bill which does confirm that . I have been billed Rs850+ taxes . which finally comes upto a sum of  Rs 937  .

Just  got my first month’s bill for my reliance netconnect broadband+ connection . I was pretty anxious because in the past some of my friends had said that Reliance may cheat and make me pay some extra bucks by billing me wrong , on top of this i also had not bothered to keep track of my usage .

I am using the 2.5 GB plan which costs me about Rs 850/- per month .So i was really surprised to receive a bill for just Rs 324/- . My usage was recorded as 800 something mb , which  in my opinion is correct , so i had 1.5 GB that i  had not used  . I am not sure how this billing system works , but as i was not  told of any discounts i am guessing that you are made to pay only for the amount of data transfer you used . which is really nice ! will try and confirm this .

PS : I double checked just to make sure that it is indeed my bill and have also payed the same , so its no mistake ! .

Jaunty Jackalope

ok guys i was told that there is a simpler way to connect your reliance netconnect broadband+ in Linux . I do not know if it works with Ubuntu 8.10 and 8.04 , as i did not have the chance to try it out . I ll update here once i do get the chance . This is possibly the simplest way to connect your Reliance in Linux

This was done in Ubuntu Jaunty using the Huawei 168c  modem

PROCEDURE

Just plug it in.

“Preferences>Network Connections> Mobile Broadband” should detect “Auto Mobile Broadband CDMS connection”

select the connection to add phone number “#777″ and you username/ password, both of which should be your 10 digit phone number.

that is all. choose the connection from notification area and enjoy.

in case it does not work. just try the following command on the terminal.

“sudo wvdialconf /etc/wvdial.conf” which will
detect the modem and install it for internet connection.

Update:

Both the Huawei modems i.e EC 168 and EC 1260 work out of the box in Ubuntu Jaunty Jackalope  ! You can use the default Network manager to install the device .

Cheers !

General trouble shooting tips

-> Have you completed the first time activation procedures for your connection ?

-> Have you unchecked ‘Work offline’ mode  in Firefox ? Otherwise it wont open any web pages inspite of your internet connection being open .(Refer to my previous post here about the Firefox work offline bug).

-> Have you got any other wired/wireless internet connection ? . If so please disconnect/unplug it physically while you are trying to make a connection for the first time .

-> Are you executing wvdial with super user previleges ?

If you still have a problem check the following …..

wvdial Configuration TroubleShooting tips

Open the wvdial configuration file

-> Have you entered the user name and password correctly ?

-> Try varying the Modem option /dev/ttyUSB0 to /dev/ttyUSB2 (This one’s a little difficult , i found mine correctly only after a few trial and errors )

->When you execute sudo wvdial look for the following lines

Modem initialized. (If you get this line , it obviously means that your modem has been successfully detected and wvdial managed to initialize it )

Carrier detected. Starting PPP immediately (This line tells you that it has detected your carrier i.e Reliance)

->Finally make sure that it ends by listing your Primary DNS,secondary DNS,local IP address  . If it does your internet has been succesfully connected !

Reliance Netconnect Broadband+ Huawei EC168C modem

BSNL became the forerunner in the race to introduce high speed wireless internet in India with its introduction of BSNL Evdo cards and USB modems . Even though their plans were excellent value for money BSNL Evdo’s adoption by people was hampered by their very limited coverage . At this stage two other Internet service providers TATA INDICOM and Reliance decided to unveil their own wireless Evdos .

TATA Indicom’s Photon and Reliance’s Netconnect Broadband+ are similar to each other in many respects   . For one each uses an advanced 3G service so they are capable of  delivering higher speeds ( 3mbps compared to BSNL Evdo’s 2mbps).Both the services also have a better coverage area . But i personally am very impressed with Reliance’s Service . Reliance claimed to have a coverage of over 30 cities and villages . Pretty tall claim . so i decided to put their claim to the test .

Having tested in 2 different cities (Chennai and Coimbatore) i got more or less consistent speeds of upto 1mbps. Pretty impressive for an Indian isp .In both the cities i made a point of testing in the fringe areas (outskirts) of the city .I separately tested using speed test sites as well as Downloads .

Heres a link to one of my Tests using a server based in London (using speedtest.net)

http://www.speedtest.net/result/464860835.png

(copy paste the URL in your browser’s address bar )

Positives

->   Reliance’s Broadband+ service has the largest coverage area . According to them more than 35+ cities and villages .

-> Free Roaming inside India .

-> Consistent speeds in different cities .

-> Highest Download and upload speeds .

-> Monthly packs pretty economical

Negatives

->  Unlimited night time pack has a capped data limit of upto 10GB only . This Fair Usage policy unfortunately also effects TATA Indiacom Photon’s plans

Solution :

Temporary solution:

Make sure to uncheck  File>Work Offline mode every time you open up firefox when using wvdial

Permanent solution :

Alternatively you can set Firefox to start in online mode by default regardless of  Network manager’s status

1) Open up a Firefox window

2) type about:config in the address bar of your FF web browser

It should display a warning . click on the I promise to be safe Button .

3) It displays a number of options in alphabetically order . Go to the browser.offline option and set it as follows

browser.offline userset  boolean false

This is a basically just a simple guide on how to use your Reliance Netconnect Broadband+ connection in Linux . I myself am no expert in Linux ,but I managed to configure and connect  my Reliance Evdo in Linux quiet easily .

Ok enough talk lets cut to the chase !

So here’s what you do .

Stuff you Require

1.      USB modem/Data Card with activated connection along with your password and username.

2.      Machine with Linux installed

3.      Linux OS CD

4.      wvdial ( A generic software client in Linux)

To install wvdial

a) If you do have an alternate internet connection in Linux . Open a terminal and type in

sudo apt-get install wvdial (with your alternate internet activated)

b) If you don’t have an alternate internet connection

Go to System->Administration->software sources. Add cd as a source and close . Insert your Linux OS CD .Now open a terminal and type in

sudo apt-get install wvdial

Procedure

Activating your connection

1)       First get your connection activated and connect it to the internet using a windows or an Apple machine . Open up a web page just to make sure that its active .

Pre-Configuration Procedures

2)      Boot up Linux

3)      Open up a terminal  and key in su (Stands for Super user and it gives you administrative privileges )

4)      Plugin your USB modem and unplug any other devices you have installed (including any wired/wireless internet connections you may have).

5)      Next key in lsusb (This command lists all the usb devices currently connected to your system )

Your output should be similar to this

Bus 005 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0002 Linux Foundation 2.0 root hub
Bus 004 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0001 Linux Foundation 1.1 root hub
Bus 003 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0001 Linux Foundation 1.1 root hub
Bus 002 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0001 Linux Foundation 1.1 root hub
Bus 001 Device 004: ID 12d1:1412 Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. 
Bus 001 Device 001: ID 1d6b:0001 Linux Foundation 1.1 root hub

It may vary slightly depending on your modem make (Huawei or quallcom).

6)    Make sure to note down the number that you get . Here for example it would be 12d1:1412

7) Next key in  modprobe usbserial vendor=0x12d1 product=0×1412  ,

make sure that the number you enter for your vendor and product are the number you got for your lsusb command.

Configuring software client wvdial

Now we are going to use wvdial in Linux to connect to the internet .wvdial is just a generic internet client which can be used to connect to any internet connection that requires dialing . For example : your landline Dialup connection or in our case a mobile broadband internet  Its kind of like an all purpose internet client software.

8 ) open up wvdial’s configuration file using this command

gedit /etc/wvdial.conf
9) Paste the below code into the window that pops up ( make sure to enter your relevant details ).

[Dialer Defaults]

Init1 = ATZ

Init2 = ATQ0 V1 E1 S0=0 &C1 &D2 +FCLASS=0

Stupid Mode = 1

Modem Type = USB Modem

ISDN = 0

Phone = #777

New PPPD = yes

Modem = /dev/ttyUSB0 (This may also be dev/ttyUSB2 depending on where you plugged in your device)

Username = 9xxxxxxxxxx (your username, should be a number )

Password = 9xxxxxxxxxx (Your password , should be the same number)

CBaud = 460800

Delete all the comments in the brackets . The fields you should edit are Modem , Username and password the only ones with comment .

Save and exist .

10) That’s it ! your done , that was simple was nt it ?

Fire up a new Terminal and key in sudo wvdial , enter your root password in the password prompt . it should generate a long list of codes finally ending with Primary DNS Secondary DNS . If it does you have got your connection working successfully  ! enjoy.

Closing your connection :

You can disconnect your client by selecting your terminal and pressing  Ctrl+C

Note : Before you open up a web page make sure to check that File->Work offline mode is not selected in your firefox . Otherwise FF will not open up web pages even when you are connected to the internet !

Note 2: If you are a newbie its most likely that you have nt yet got your internet connection going , don’t worry keep trying you may only have made small mistakes somewhere. If you want any help just leave in your questions as comments here .

I ll put up a simple trouble shooting tutorial in one of my future posts .