Missing my 'Network Connection Icon' in taskbar, in Win 98 - Ideas?

[thatsright]

am missing my DUN connection/ Or Network Connection Icon in Windows 98.

I have Windows 98 (Ver 4.10.1998), and I just got a new DSL line. After installing a new Network Card, and then attaching a cable to the NIC, and then the DSL modem, in the lower right hand corner of the WIN98 taskbar, two little 'TV like windows' appeared showing my Network Connection, and status. I'm not sure if this is also referred to as a DUN connection ICON (but its not a dial-up connection in the traditional sense)? I guess this Icon is the same as my machine at work, one with XP Pro, where it ALWAYS appears whenever you plug in a ethernet cable into the Network Card to show you have a network connection.

Anyway, my question is this: After a few days of using the DSL, I installed a Netgear RP614 Router, to share the DSL connection here at home. What happened was that once I did this, my little 'Network Connection Icon' in the lower right hand corner of the Taskbar is now gone in Windows 98. I called Netgear tech support, and they told me I would loose that Icon once I install the router between my PC and the Router. But theres gotta be some workarround?

I'd really like to get this back, as it was just a very simple, but VERY useful tool to monitor incoming, and outgoing Internet data on my PC. I already searched in the Knowledge base for any articles but couldn't find anything, but maybe I didn't look hard enough? Is there a patch?

Thanks a lot for any and all help.

 

[Joemonkey]

I don't have a machine w/ win98 handy right now, so i'm not really sure what icon you are talking about... if you only have 1 network connection, only one little "TV" icon will appear IIRC. You could try this:

"right-click My Network Places, and choose Properties. Double-click Local Area Connection, then click the Properties button. Near the bottom of the Local Area Connection Properties window, you should see a checkbox next to "Show Icon in taskbar when connected." Check that, click OK, and you're done. Now the little lights will blink with network traffic"

but for some reason i think that is the icon you still have in the tray

and did you mean "<FONT size=1>once I install the router between my PC and the modem" rather than "once I install the router between my PC and the Router"???</FONT>

 

[loup garou]

The reason this happened is because the router took over the PPPOE duties from your computer, and the only connection your computer "sees" is a connection to a LAN (and I believe win98 won't display a systray icon for LAN connections). You can monitor incoming/outgoing packets on your router, probably under the status page of the router's config, and be happy there's one less icon in your systray.

 

[thatsright]

Sorry Joe if any confusion. I dont have a icon on my desktop labeled 'My Network Places' But I do have Network Neighborhood icon on the desktop. I don't know if this makes any diffrence, but I use Windows Logon, instead of Microsoft Networking when I startup my pc; does this make a diffrence?


And yes, I guess It is PC>Router>WANport>DSLmodem

 

[stevewm]

Before you had the router you where using PPPoE software to connect to your DSL service. In such a situation Win98 sees this as a dialup connection and displays the customary status icons on your taskbar.

When you installed the router it took over PPPoE duties. thus your PPPoE software was no longer used, windows views this as a standard LAN connection, which it is. Windows 98 does not display those status icons for standard LAN connections. No way around this.


Windows 2000 and XP can be set to show the status icons regardless of the connection type.