I normally double click on the Internet Explorer or the Netscape Communicator icon to connect to the Internet. Normally it brings up the connection and/or begins to dial automatically. However, now when I double click on the icon, it does not dial. It just goes right to the browser and says that it cannot find the server.

The Auto-Dial feature in Windows, whether you are using IE or Netscape, is controlled from the Internet Options icon in the Control Panel. If it is not dialing automatically, it is likely that this area is not setup correctly for that option. This, however, is normally an easy fix.

NOTE: Follow these instructions if you have Internet Explorer 5 or higher installed. If you do not have at least IE5, it is recommended that you upgrade to at least that version.

  1. Double Click on "My Computer"
  2. Double Click on "Control Panels"
  3. Double Click on "Internet Options"
  4. At the top of the Internet Options Control Panel, click on the Tab labeled "Connections"
  5. In the middle of the Connections Tab, you should see three options:
    "Always Dial My Default Connection"
    "Dial whenever a Network Connection is not Present"
    "Never Dial a Connection"
    You will want to make sure that the dot is next to the option labeled "Always Dial my Default Connection"
  6. Click "Ok" at the bottom of the screen and then close out of all the other Windows.

Following this procedure should fix this problem.

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