Page 1 of Anyone Any Experience With BT Broadband on 98?

Took a call today from someone who`s a friend of one of my regulars. She`s just `got` broadband, but can`t get it to work.

So I called round- PC is an old lookin desktop IBM model running W98, old but it`s got the necessary USB ports, so the modem BT sent was easy enough to set up. Straight off, I noticed there was an issue on the video card. It`s stuck on `Default Video Adapter` in the Device manager and it will only display at 640 x 480 at a very low resolution(256 colour I guess).She said it had been like that since she got it, but it hadn`t mattered to her as all she does is browse the net and does her college work on Word. No error showing on it in device manager, so it could just be a matter of a missing video driver.

Set the BT installation disc going, first problem BT Broadband doesn`t work with W98, only W98 SE onwards. We managed to overcome that by dropping W98SE over the top of W98


Set the Broadand installtion disc off again, and it warns about the low video resolution, and that it needs to be 16 bit as a minimum-I click ok to `auto` adjust and it actually gets past this point, but when the software installation starts I get this error message

BT CAUSED AN INVALID PAGE FAULT IN MODULE DIRAPI.DLL

And the installation fails.

I`m thinking this is all linked to the video issue, but has anyone else had this problem?

This item was edited on Friday, 8th April 2005, 23:37

Fit a network card & buy a router, the router acts a "standalone PC\modem" does all the authentication, hardware firewall etc etc & is configured by use of a web browser..

Leaving the PC free of any resource hogging USB modems.

I know its not the solution you wanted, but its a far better idea & she can leave her PC the way she had it.

Dont forget software firewall & AV. ;)



I quite like the Helpdesk people in a benevolent (as opposed to malevolent) way as they do some valuable work in preventing us being inundated by every halfwit who can work a phone.

This item was edited on Saturday, 9th April 2005, 00:10

Thanks for that-but it seems a rather extreme solution, doesn`t it?

If I remember right, when you install the disk it does the usb modem first, then you install the software after that.(connection software)

1 does it install the modem driver ok - but then screws up during the software install ?

Here is a shot in the dark, no idea if it will work.

if the driver installs ok, try a manual set up, in internet explorer`s connection`s menu

when asked for phone number, set it as "0"

worth a try, if nothing else.

I wish I had done it first off, not done it second.

It may be extreme in your opinion, but the router does provide a very good first line of defence for not a lot more than the cost of a ADSL modem & enables other PC`s to be brought in & connected to the net with a minimum of fuss.

0,38 may work a bit better.



I quite like the Helpdesk people in a benevolent (as opposed to malevolent) way as they do some valuable work in preventing us being inundated by every halfwit who can work a phone.

This looks like it might be the problem, try the fix here: http://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=302396

Looks like it`s due to a broken Macromedia Flash plugin, i know that driver install disks like to use Flash enabled installers, both my sound card and monitor use it.

Hope that helps.

why haven`t you tried installing the correct video driver just to clear out at least one problem ? In fact update everything on it given you`ve installed a newer operating system.
As to network cards and routers as a solution this doesn`t sound like someone who spends a lot of money on their PC

This item was edited on Saturday, 9th April 2005, 13:26