My problem is to figure out how to use a Motorola E680 cellphone, which runs Trolltech Linux, and can function as a dialup USB modem, using Windows, to provide wireless access to the Internet, can be used as a modem with a laptop running Linux (in this case Mepis Debian 3.3, but that doesn't seem to matter). I have tried kppp and wvdial to no avail.
What does work is to boot the laptop under Windows, and run a Motorola-supplied program called GPRSManager which issues dialup commands to the phone creating what I presume is a ppp connection. That works fine. I can browse, send and receive email, etc. (However I haven't figured out yet how to send email from the phone or reply to messages received. I can receive email on the phone at snipped-for-privacy@tmomail.net, but want to set up a mailbox that can send and receive email.)
It was suggested that I send an initialization string
AT+cgdcont=1,"IP",:internet2.voicestream.com"
but this and variations on it using kppp or wvdial just return ERROR.
I can issue just the dialout number using
ATDT*99# but get NO DIALTONE and ATD*99# but get NO CARRIER
using either kppp or wvdial.
Incidentally, on wvdial I had to insert a line in the /etc/wvdial.conf file
Stupid mode = yes
and set the Username and Password to " " (blank) to get it to run.
I ran the strings command on the GPRSManager.exe file and examined the (ASCII text) driver files for the Windows programs, but none of them seem to contain anything that would issue anything resembling the above suggested initialization command. Apparently some initialization command is needed to set up the dialing of the number.
It would be nice to be able to get a computer running Linux to talk to a phone running Linux. Of course, it would be even better if the phone were a router rather than a dialup modem, but we can all join in urging the cellphone manufacturers to come out with a product like that.
If anyone has any solutions, or can suggest other groups to post this to, please email them to jroland at linux-migration.net.