I was online the other night during a thunderstorm. The power went out, and ever since, I can't connect using my iBooks internal modem. I've run Apple's hardware test, which only told me that it recognizes the device. Apple system profiler also recognizes the modem, but it won't dial. When I try, the menu bar status says "connecting for a while, then changes to "disconnecting." It will stay that way for 2 hours or more, unless I reboot.

Also, just plugging the phone line into the iBook seems to take the phone "off hook" because eventually the dial tone is replaced with a phone company recording saying "please hang up & try again."

Is the problem the modem, or something else? Could it be the RJ-11 board rather than the modem? I'm ready to oder a modem & do the repair myself, but I want to be sure that the modem is the problem.

I've repaired permissions, reset the power management unit, zapped pram, etc. etc. --all to no avail.

Is there some way to test the modem, or to determine what the problem is? Apple "Hardware test" cd doesn't tell me much. It just says that it recognizes the device.

The problem is most likely the modem, especially if it died after the power went out. The only way to tell is to replace the component. Apple hardware test rarely detects anything.

-Bradley
Powerbook Medic