Snow Leopard: WWAN using Merlin XU870 ExpressCard

This is the same issue I’ve posted on a couple of forums. It’s seemed detailed enough to be a blog post, so here it is. Under 10.5.8 (Leopard) I was successfully using my Merlin XU870 ExpressCard (supplied by ISP) with Three Broadband (3) in Australia. I did not use the 3 drivers, but used the Leopard WWAN built-in to connect. There was never an issue as Leopard detected the card as a “Novatel Wireless HSDPA Modem”, and I configured the Network Advanced settings for 3 postpaid services as:

• Vendor: Novatel Wireless Inc.
• Model: GSM
• APN: 3netaccess
• CID: 1

I installed Snow Leopard as an Upgrade (not a fresh install) after having a CCC backup and a Time machine backup in place.

When I plugged in my 3 expresscard, 10.6 detects the card, initialises and populates the WWAN icon with “Telstra 3G: Not Configured”.

It detects the card as a “Novatel Wireless HSDPA Modem”, and automatically configures the Network Advanced settings of the card, as shown:

The question is: Why is the APN telstra.datapack setup as default?

I am able to change the APN to 3netaccess, which results in a successful connection to 3:
Wed Sep 2 15:38:25 2009 : Initializing phone: ATE0V1&F&D2&C1S0=0
Wed Sep 2 15:38:25 2009 : Initializing PDP context: AT+CGDCONT=1,"IP","3netaccess"
Wed Sep 2 15:38:25 2009 : Initializing with secondary command: AT$NWPDN=0
Wed Sep 2 15:38:25 2009 : Dialing: ATD*99***1#
Wed Sep 2 15:38:25 2009 : Waiting for connection
Wed Sep 2 15:38:25 2009 : Connection established
Wed Sep 2 15:38:28 2009 : Serial connection established.
Wed Sep 2 15:38:28 2009 : Using interface ppp0
Wed Sep 2 15:38:28 2009 : Connect: ppp0 <--> /dev/cu.wwan
Wed Sep 2 15:38:32 2009 : Could not determine remote IP address: defaulting to 10.64.***.***
Wed Sep 2 15:38:32 2009 : local IP address 115.130.***.***
Wed Sep 2 15:38:32 2009 : remote IP address 10.64.***.***
Wed Sep 2 15:38:32 2009 : primary DNS address 202.124.68.182
Wed Sep 2 15:38:32 2009 : secondary DNS address 202.124.65.22

The annoying thing is the WWAN menu still shows Telstra when connected.


Looking at the WWAN system file:
cd /System/Library/Extensions/IOSerialFamily.kext/\
Contents/PlugIns/AppleWWANSupport.kext/Contents/\
Resources/
less countryCodes.plist
it has only Telstra, Optus and Vodafone carriers listed. I think this could be the cause of the default APN being populated in the Advanced settings. I can’t find where the “Telstra 3G” in the WWAN menu item is coming from though.

I’d appreciate if anyone can give their thoughts on how to fix this.

Philips VOIP321 no longer works with Skype 3.8.0.188 or later

I’ve been having a conversation on a Skype bug reporting forum, and it came to a conclusion that the Philips VOIP321 Skype Phone is just not worth purchasing. I’m an owner of a Philips VOIP321 phone, and until December 2008 it worked fine. However the latest Skype update has put an end to product useability.

Since Skype Version 3.8.0.188 (Release date: November 19, 2008) and all later versions (including Skype 4 Betas as at Jan. 2009) the software Philips supply no longer works with Skype and the VOIP321 phone.

The latest VOIP321 driver from their website suffers the same issue, even though it states “The VOIP321 USB Phone Driver V 3.8.3 which can be downloaded from Philips web site is compatible with Skype software version from V2.0.0.x until V3.8.0.x”. This is plainly no longer correct with the latest stable release of Skype, V3.8.0.188.

Skype developers are unable to do anything about it as they see it being a Philips driver problem. Phillips wont update their driver (Quoting support staff “… no more development/fixes are being incorporated into the VOIP321.EXE file”).

The solution to getting this beast working again:

• Uninstall Skype 3.8.0.188 (or later non-working version)
• Visit the Old Apps website where you can (without support from Skype) download a previous version and use it.
• I found that Skype 3.8.0.154 3.8.0.139 worked fine for me with the VOIP321 hardware under Windows XP
• Reinstall the older version.
• Launch the newly installed older version of Skype
• Remove the VOIP321.exe application from the Skype menu: Tools > Options > Advanced > Advanced Settings > Manage other programs Access to Skype
• Reboot your Windows Computer

If you don’t own one of these yet, don’t waste your time on Philips Skype phone devices. Their driver support is lacking when Skype is updated and they EOL their product too soon. You buy a product for a few hundred dollars and it becomes useless 12 months later. Phillips would probably rather sell you a newer bit of hardware.

Should they update their driver at this point I will be the first to commend them. I forgot to mention: Phillips Skype phones (where your PC is required) are Windows Only. No Mac or Linux support or drivers are offered.

My next purchase will be a wifi or wired ethernet Skype phone, and not Philips.

Fix for loud clicking MacBookPro trackpad

I love the new MacBookPro, but the trackpad clicks so loud that people on public transport stare at me. I’m not the only one with the issue.

An enterprising user on the Apple Discussion forums remembers a similar problem and fix for the trackpad from earlier MacBook models. The fix in this case involves removing your battery and sticking a piece of paper between the pad and the chassis. It works, and here is my solution captured at the moment of repair:

Enjoy.