Albert Harding wrote:
> When in OE 6and want to get into newsgroups. I keep getting "unable to
> connect to server" .
> I can send and receive E-mails OK. Been in touch with provider and all
> settings check out OK.
> Any help appreciated.
>
> Thanks Alco
>
>
If the computer has an Ethernet connection to the Internet,
you can use Wireshark to monitor what packets are sent and
received.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wireshark
You install it and run it. Turn on View : Name Resolution : Enable for Network Layer.
Then, go Capture : Interfaces, and select the interface that corresponds to your
"real" connection to the outside world. If the Window Firewall is enabled and filters
certain kinds of traffic, then you wouldn't see a packet logged in Wireshark when
your application attempted to send it.
The program will then trace the packets. The Name Resolution option should
cause you to see msnews.microsoft.com in the trace or whatever news server
you're using. If a packet is sent, and not answered, it could be a problem
at the server end. Or, some ISPs have even been known to filter off USENET
traffic. (UK ISPs do this.) In such a case, you could try another port number,
if the server supports it, or set up SSL. In some cases, this filtering is
by "time of day", so you may find your server connections work at some times
and not others.
If you want another server to test with, the AIOE server doesn't require
authentication for its usage. The port numbers and available protocols, are
listed on the main page. There is a posting limit of about 25 text messages
per day.
http://www.aioe.org/
I'm using AIOE to post this message. I'm using port 119, since my ISP doesn't
filter it (yet).
Paul