How do I change my access number?
•To change your access number in Windows 95, 98, ME, double-click on "My Computer." Double-click on "Dial-Up Networking." Right-click on the "Nittany Link" Icon, and Left-click on Properties. Note: If you accidentally left-click
and open the connection window, just click cancel, and try again. Change the Telephone number to your local access number (447-0004 for Lewistown),
and click on "OK." Close any windows you have open.
•In Windows XP, Click on the Start Menu. If you have a "Connect To" menu, select it. Right-Click on "Nittany Link" and Left-Click on "Properties." Change the phone number to your local access number (447-0004 for Lewistown),
and click "OK." Close any windows that you have opened.
•If you do not have a "Connect To" menu, click on the "Control Panel." Click on Network Connections. Right-Click on "Nittany Link" and Left-Click on "Properties." In "Nittany Link Properties," change the phone number to your local access number (447-0004 for Lewistown), and click "OK." Close any windows that you have opened

How do I view my account settings?
•Select "Login to your account" on our homepage and login to your account with your username and password. Click on "View Account Information" to
see your Nittany Link account settings.

My Username or password is being rejected when logging on
•Check your username to make sure that it is all lowercase and is Username@nittanylink.com with no spaces. Make sure the first letter of your password is capitalized.
•Your account may be past due. Give us a call and we can check to see if
your payment was due. We usually try to contact you by telephone whenever your payment is overdue.
•Check your local access number. In the local Lewistown area your access number is 447-0004.

Why do I get slow connection speeds?
•A typical 56K modem will connect to the Internet at 42-48Kbps. Factors that affect the connection speed are your modem, the quality of the phone lines, the distance from the telephone company's central office, and weather conditions.
•Make sure you have a 56K modem.
•Make sure you have updated drivers. Check your modem manufacturer's website for updated drivers. If you don't feel comfortable updating your modem driver, please don't try it.
•Try removing an answering machine or fax machine connected to the same line. Sometimes these devices can cause signals that can affect your connection.

Why do I often get disconnected?
•This problem can be caused by bad phone lines, especially in bad weather, and call waiting. To disable call waiting in Windows 98 go to "My Computer" and then go to "Control Panel." Double-click on "Telephony" and select the option that says "To disable call waiting, dial" and select "*70" or whatever you dial to disable call waiting. Click on "OK."

I can get connected, but I can't view web pages or the internet is very slow
•Your computer may have been on too long. Try rebooting your computer
and reconnecting to the Internet.
•The website you are trying to reach may have heavy traffic or may be experiencing difficulties.
•If you cannot view any web pages at all, you can try editing the registry and then reinstalling Dial-Up Networking. Note: If you aren't comfortable editing the registry you probably shouldn't try it. Go to the Start menu and click on "Run." In the box that opens, type regedit. Click on "OK." The registry editor will open. Navigate to H_key_local_machine\System\Current Control Set\Services. Delete the winsock2 folder and then exit the registry editor by going to "File" and then "Exit." Reinstall Dial Up Networking. See the article "How to reinstall dial-up networking in Windows 95/98/ME."

Internet explorer will not automatically dial
•Make sure that "Always dial my default connection" is selected in your Internet Options. To do this, go to "My Computer" and then go to "Control Panel." Double-click on "Internet Options" and click on the "Connections"
tab. Select the option that says "Always dial my default connection" and click on "OK." How to change the default homepage
•In Internet Explorer, click on the "Tools" menu and select "Internet
Options." In the "General" tab, under the homepage section, there is an "address" field. Type the address of the website you want Internet Explorer
to use as the default homepage. This will be the page that Internet Explorer opens whenever you first start it.

How to reinstall dial-up networking in Windows 95/98/ME.
•Note: You may need your Windows CD to reinstall Dial-Up Networking. If you don't have or can't find your Windows CD, don't try to reinstall Dial-Up Networking
•Double-click on "My Computer" and double-click on "Control Panel."
Double-click on "Add/Remove Programs." Click on the "Windows Setup" tab. Double-click on "Communications" and then unselect "Dial-Up Networking." Click on "OK." Then click on "OK" again and your computer will ask you if you want it to restart now. Click on "Yes."
•Once your computer restarts, double-click on "My Computer" and double-
click on "Control Panel." Double-click on "Add/Remove Programs." Click on
the "Windows Setup" tab. Double-click on "Communications" and then select the check box beside "Dial-Up Networking." Click on "OK." Then Click on "OK" again. Windows may ask for your Windows CD. Once Dial-Up Networking is reinstalled, Windows will ask if you want to reboot now. Click on "Yes."

How to reinstall the TCP/IP protocol in Windows 95/98/ME.
•Note: Reinstalling TCP/IP may require your windows CD. If you don't have or can't find your Windows CD, don't try to reinstall TCP/IP.
•Double-click on "My Computer" and double-click on "Control Panel." Double-click on "Network."
•In the white box, find "TCP/IP" or "TCP/IP -> Dial-Up Adapter" and click on
it once to highlight it. Click on "Remove." If Windows asks for the Windows CD, insert the CD. It may also ask you if you want to restart your computer.
If it does, click on "Yes." Restart your computer.
•Once your computer has restarted, double-click on "My Computer" and double-click on "Control Panel." Double-click on "Network."
•Click on the "Add" button. A new window will open. Select "Protocol" from
the list and click on the "Add" button.
•In the next window select "Microsoft" in the left box and then "TCP/IP" in
the right box. Click on "OK."
•Windows may ask for the Windows CD. If it does insert the CD. It will ask
to reboot. Click on "Yes" and allow it to reboot.

How do I use Nittany Link's Webmail
•If you can't receive your mail through Outlook Express or prefer webmail,
you can go to mail.nittanylink.com or click on the "Email" button on our webpage. Login using your username and password for your email address and it will show a Main mailbox. Click on "Main" to view your messages. To write an email, click on "Compose" in the top-left corner. Once your write
your email, click on the send button to send it. A small menu will appear with three options. You can compose another message, read your mail, or see a summary of your messages. You can also click on "MENU" to return to the main menu.

How to set up email
•To add an e-mail account in Outlook Express, click on the "Tools" menu,
and choose "Accounts."
•In the "Internet Accounts" window, click the "Add" button, and choose "Mail."
•The Internet Connection Wizard will open and ask for your display name.
The display name can be anything you want people to see to identify you when you e-mail them (i.e. Johnny, John Smith, The Smiths, Smith Family.) Once you have entered the display name click the "Next" button.
•Enter the e-mail address you chose in the blank, as displayed in your
Account Information. Click the "Next" button.
•Be sure the first line reads, "My incoming mail server is a POP3 server."
Enter mail.nittanylink.com into the Incoming mail (POP3) server, and Outgoing mail (SMTP) server blanks as displayed in your Account
Information. Click the "Next" button.
•Enter the Account name and Password as shown in your Account Information for this e-mail account. If you would like to, you can check the "Remember password" box, so you will not have to type your password in every time you want to check e-mail. Be sure the "Log on using Secure Password Authentication (SPA)" box is NOT checked, and then click the "Next" button.
•Click on "Finish."
•Note: If you cannot send email to some addresses check the "Why can I receive email, but can't send any" article to help you change the "My server requires authentication" option.

How to block an email sender
•Select the email from the sender you wish to block. Then go to the "Message" menu and select "Block Sender…" A message will come up asking you if you would like to delete all messages from that sender in the folder that you are in. Select yes to remove all messages from the sender in the current folder.
•To remove the sender from the blocked senders list, go to the "Tools"
menu and select "Message Rules" and then "Blocked Senders List" in the menu that extends from "Message Rules." Choose the sender from the list that you want to stop blocking. Click on "Remove," and then click on "OK."
Setting up message rules in Outlook Express.
•To set up message rules, go to the "Tools" menu and click on "Message Rules." A menu will pop out. Select "Mail…" from the menu pop-out menu.
•Note: If you have not set up any message rules in the past, the "New Message Rule" window will open. If you have already set up message rules before, the "Message Rules" window will open.
•Click on the "New" button to open the "New Message Rule" window. This window allows you to copy, delete, forward, or move messages automatically when they are received based on different parts of the message containing certain words.
•Choose the options you want and click on the highlighted text to change the attributes for the options you chose. Name the message rule at the bottom and click on "OK."
•In the "Message Rules" window click on "Apply Now." A new window will open. Choose the rule you just created from the list. Click on the "Apply Now" button and then on "OK." Close the "Apply Mail Rules Now" window.
•If you want to create another message rule click on the "Add" button. If you want to remove a rule, choose the message rule to be removed and click on "Remove." If you want to shut off a rule without removing it, you can uncheck the box beside the rule.
•Click on "OK" to close the "Message Rules" window.

Why I get disconnected after sending and receiving email
•The "Hang up after sending and receiving" option is selected in Outlook Express. To stop Outlook Express from disconnecting, go to the "Tools" menu and select "Options." In the Options window select the "Connection" tab. Unselect the "Hang up after sending and receiving" option. Click on "OK."
Why email hangs while sending and receiving email
•This problem is often caused by large messages or attachments. Someone may have sent you an email with a corrupted attachment. Click here and
login to Nittany Link webmail. There you can view your messages and delete any large messages that you don't want. You can see the size of each message when you enter the "Main" mail box. A message that is 1000000 bytes or more in size is considered a large message. You can view the message and then delete it.
•Another cause of this problem is that your computer may have been on too long. If you are running windows and are in the habit of just letting it run day after day without shutting down or rebooting, then try rebooting your system first.
•You may have a virus. Make sure you have an antivirus program installed and up to date and make sure that your antivirus program is configured to scan all incoming messages.

Why can I receive email but can't send any?
•Check to make sure that the "My server requires authentication" option is selected in your account settings. To do this, go to the "Tools" menu and click on "Accounts". Click on the "Mail" tab and double click on your account. Select the "Servers" tab and check the "My server requires authentication" option at the bottom so that a check mark is in the box beside it. Click on "OK."  

::back to top