On Tue, 4 Sep 2001, Ben Dow wrote: BD>Ok... I'll start off by saying I'm not all that familiar with Mandrake, BD>and I haven't fooled around much with printing, so I'll skip that part. so will i, for pretty-much the same reasons... 8\ BD>But as for the network, I'm kind of confused about what's going on there. BD>You're trying to connect to another machine on the same network (I assume BD>you've got them wired right, with a hub or crossover cable), right? Does BD>the network card show up as detected in the kernel start-up messages? Is BD>the interface configured correctly? Can you ping another machine? Am I BD>making any sense here? the first thing i would look for here is a link indicator. when the two machines are "supposed" to be networked (by connecting them directly together via cross-over cable or by plugging them both into a common hub of some sort with straigh-through cables), the interface cards (and the hub, if you're using one) should have some sort of LED or light that shows that there is a connection. if that does not happen, then the rest of the effort is pretty futile... if there IS a link light, the next trick is to make sure that both systems are on the same network, but with different network addresses. (don't think for a second that this should be obvious. i've seen worse.) when you're this far, THEN see if you can ping the other system from each box.... for that matter, try pinging localhost, too. if a system can't ping localhost, then it's got Bigger Issues... 8( don't worry about SAMBA unless you're trying to make the Linux boxen available to a WinDOZE box. BD>Also, how is your internet connection set up (ie dial-up, etc), and how BD>are you trying to connect to them? (what commands do you run) It sounds BD>like pppd isn't actually connecting to the other side, but it's hard to be BD>sure. if you're looking at a local LAN, then this is a moot point. BD>> I have yet to unpack how one goes about fixing that. BD>> Most recent challenge was to get a network connection established between BD>> two machines on 3Com cards on a 3Com box. if i remember right, 3Com should be supported. i can't say that it is out-of-the-box, since i don't know Mandrake. Red Hat may require recompiling the kernel for 3Com support. BD>> Any thoughts, or maybe even just a weak hearted consoling word or two. you're all-right. really. ;) as long as we learn from our mistakes, we're all-set. i've made more than my share (sometimes more than once), and i'll make more... <sigh> BD>> My deepest and sincerest thanks to the learned who had to endure hear a BD>> young fool trying to find his feet. anyone that can survive me talking too much will find your message a cake-walk. <g> good luck... Bill Smith Fall River, MA