h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I have a Windows-based PC connected to the internet via cable. I use a router for the connection. Can I connect our iMac via the router and use the same cable internet connection?

If so, how do we set up access on the iMac?

OK< aparently it's no problem to use the same router for both.

So what we need is setup and/or configuration instructions in order to get the iMac to recognize the cable connection.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!

not sure if this will be much help but i found this on the web

http://www.futureshop.ca/catalog/proddetail.asp?sku_id=0665000FS91048041&catid=10495&atab=4&PCName=&nAllReviews=true&logon=&langid=EN&MSCSProfile=3C79F0C7EA3162B2059EC88D75C732E8ACDC4D30DC7C62A16F932A9EA456D4AC8B9EB959FFA663CF0DCD64086076D1C5603A0B03C0F968293345AEC0DA7AC65EFB171EDBF0B9586F512D9C5C567DD5AB21C844F9875976A361570D841A00ECDE55C5FDDA22624717CFD12329F89D464C4B381B8485B5B64C&test%5Fcookie=1

Give the Mac an IP address in the same IP subnet as the router (EG: if the router has an IP address of 192.168.0.1, give it an IP address of 192.168.0.3 as 0.2 is probably used by your other PC). If your router does DHCP, you can probably get away with telling your mac to assign an IP address automatically. You might also have to manually assign the DNS address as that of your cable modem whether or not you've got those details set on the router or if you're not using DHCP. It's been a while since I used a mac but I assume you can make those changes from somewhere in the Control Panel

just found this as well

http://manuals.info.apple.com/en/iMacG3_originalEmergencyHndbk.PDF
is it more this you are looking for

Can you ISP not talk you through this?


The settings on OS9 are in Apple menu; control panels; TCP/IP

My ISP will charge me $50 an hour to talk me through this, and that ain't gonna happen. We don't need it *that* badly!

*feels sudden gratitude for own ISP*

I have an ibook running OS9 on an ethernet connection to an ADSL modem. I'm happy to tell you what I did (assuming it's the same for 'cable' - we don't really have that here) but Rogue pretty much covered it.

You can also use the Internet Setup Assistant on OS9.

Yeah, Rogue did. I think I might need to hold off on that till tomorrow, when I'm in a right mind. I'm sure I can copy down the ISP addresses and figure out how to put them in the appropriate spots on the Mac.

Though if someone with a sharp mind *and* a heart of gold were to explain it in layman's (read "idiot's": I've had three glasses of wine and he's not at all technically inclined) terms, I'd be eternally grateful.

Otherwise, thanks kea and Rogue, and I'll let you all know when I'm connected from the iMac.

Yeah it's always good to do this stuff when in a clear frame of mind *learnt badly from experience*


Go to Apple (top left corner) and open menu.

Go to control panels; TCP/IP

In the TCP/IP window there are some options to set:

"Connect via": Ethernet (presumably, like I said I don't really know what 'cable' is, but I'm assuming it's an ethernet cable from mac to router).

"Configure": either Manually or DHCP

DHCP will set your IP addresses etc automatically, which is good if you don't know the numbers. I'd try it this way first because it's easiest. It's problematic though if you want to set up the mac and the PC as a local network (eg to share information between the computers) but you can probably worry about that later.

DHCP requires you to type in the DHCP client ID - I'm not totally sure what this is but on mine it says 'admin' which is the login for my router. However on my OSX machine this field is blank so possibly you can leave it blank.

If you choose Manually you will have to type in the numbers yourself:

"IP address": is the one that your router uses (see the Router address further down) but with the last number different (as Rogue explained)

"Subnet mask": I don't really know what this is, the number was supplied to me. It's also in the router's information (type the router's address into the address bar of your browser and search the pages therein). I think it's specific to areas rather than computers so you could probably get it from someone locally. Or look on your PC.

"Router address": you can find this number on the router's page or probably on your PC.

"Name server address" and Search domain" - you'll need to get those from your ISP. It should be on their website.


From what I remember I had to set up the router too, but only once for the first mac. Not sure how that works for connecting a mac after a pc but can't see that it would be a problem.


If you get stuck also check out the Mac Help in the menu bar.


Good Luck

Traveller in Time only new in the Mac world
"Took me about three minutes to get it connected.

All information you need is on the Musof Windows Personal Computer

Go to the Network icon on the Personal Computer. Right click .. Properties.

Go to TCP/IP icon, select.

Go to properties button (or right click . . Properties)

The tabs have similar names to the one on the iMac

The 'Router'(Mac) is your 'Gateway'(PC) to the internet.
The 'NameServer'(Mac) is the 'DNS'=='Domain Name Server'(PC) your ISP provides to find any site names on the internet.

Use the [Cancel] button or [X] to leave the menu, do not leave any changes on the PC! The Mac will ask you to save them after closing. "

Thanks, TiT, but my PC finds its IP address(es) automatically. I don't configure those manually. I know the numbers for the router's IP address and subnet mask, have entered those, and still can't connect. Do I need to power off the IMac/modem/router, anything, in order to save the configuration?

Otherwise, I'm giving up.

Did you set up using DHCP or manually?

Have you tried Internet Setup Assistant?

When I set up my OS9 mac, and my OSX to wireless, I had a few problems where I had to reboot the router.


Is your router mac compatible?

HI, kea! I tried both DHCP and manually, and using the Internet Setup Assistant. Thank you so much, by the way, your steps were *so* easy to follow!!

I've emailed the router company's tech support in ask if the router is Mac compatible and should hear back by the end of the day tomorrow.

I will, however, try powering the router and modem off and back on again in the meantime.

You guys are great, and I really appreciate all the help! I have such a low threshold for patience with inanimate objects.

Traveller in Time on top
"For a better insight we would have to know something about the router. A router is a device on the local network acting as a bypass, connecting your local network to the Internet. It has a known address for each system using it to connected to the Internet.

As you have connection from the PC side this PC could be the tool to start looking for this address infomation.

Can you use the address bar in the browser ? If so try typing 192.168.0.1 (assumed Router/ modem/ Gateway address)

If it comes up with a username-password authentication you have found the router address .
If not you could try 192.168.0.10 or 192.168.0.100 or 192.168.0.200 or 192.168.0.254 (these are addreses I have seen factory default in Routers)"

I have no problem determining my router's IP address. The iMac is even displaying that as the IP address it wants to use for networking. But, the router doesn't seem to know there's anything attached to that port.

Contacted Linksys, and they say the router is compatible and requires no further configuration. As the PC is working fine, the problem is with the Mac's configuration, and not the router configuration. I'm most likely going to have our friend, the one who bought the iMac for my better half, come over and see if he can figure it out. With my luck I'll not only get the iMac online, but I'll muck up the settings for the PC while I'm at it.

Incidentally, I'm now having a problem with my oven door, and that's going to require more immediate attention. We can cope with one computer connected to the internet, but not without an oven!

No worries pc, I've had many times of banging my head against a brickwall in frustration, so I sympathise entirely! It gobsmacks me that the tech sector can sell so much product that is so hard to use (another thread topic perhaps ).


My router (Dlink) has a hole that you use a paperclip in to reboot. Turning it off and on isn't enough

If you give us the router name and model we might be able to trouble shoot some more.

Ah sod's law is in action then

(my last post was a simulpost btw).


>> As the PC is working fine, the problem is with the Mac's configuration, and not the router configuration.<<

If that's what the router company said, I'd take it with a grain of salt. When I was trying to set up wireless access I got bounced between my ISP, the router company, and apple for two days, all of them saying I needed to talk to the other support because their end of things was fine

Although Linksys could be right of course


If you reboot the router you will lose the PC setup too, so maybe best to wait for your friend.