JimB, Sometimes when I first hit the box that reads NET ZERO on the monitor screen a new phone number comes up and it tell me to decide if I want to add that to my ‘list’ of phone numbers to be ‘used’ to dial from. Does that mean I would have MORE than one IP number?
techchick, that would scare me half to death to go back to the black screen, I’ve seen my son do it in a heartbeat, but I’m scared I’d kill my computer for sure. I’m going to just cut and paste your directions and ask him to show me how to do it, when he comes home for the summer.
{{{Sometimes when I first hit the box that reads NET ZERO on the monitor screen a new phone number comes up and it tell me to decide if I want to add that to my ‘list’ of phone numbers to be ‘used’ to dial from. Does that mean I would have MORE than one IP number?}}}—Anti Pro
Just more possibilities for a different number to be assigned to your computer once you are connected. You’ll only have one number while you are actually connected though–normally.
TheHungerSite.com “If our lives are indeed the sum-total of the choices we’ve made, then we cannot change who we are; but with every new choice we’re given, we can change who we’re going to be.”
Ed I’m surprised that y’all didn’t log IP addresses from the start, but I’m glad that you’re doing it now.
If you do have problems in the future, ISP log files can track trouble down to a specific computer at a specific time–within limits, of course.
TheHungerSite.com “If our lives are indeed the sum-total of the choices we’ve made, then we cannot change who we are; but with every new choice we’re given, we can change who we’re going to be.”
I think this is a brilliant idea. With a bit of luck, i’ll be able to check out with admin exactly where I posted from in the small hours of sunday morning.
Anti Pro,
First, for most dial-up connections, knowing your IP address isn’t much benefit. It changes with each connection. But, if you want to know what it is, you can click the Startbutton, click Run, type in winipcfg. You should end up with a window named IP Configuration. There will be a selection box at the top. If you are connected to your ISP, one of the selections will have an IP address other than 0.0.0.0. That’s your IP address. It’ll probably be different the next time you dial-in, though.
As far as different phone numbers goes, each phone number is actually a group of phone lines that each connect to a modem that is connected to a port with an IP address. When too many customers call into one phone number they start getting busy signals. The ISP adds another Phone line/modem/port/IP address group. So when you call the alternate number, you are getting a different IP address from a separate group of addresses.
Confused enough yet? Anyway, hope that helps a little.
Correction: “Notthemama” spelled backwords is “anathema” “someone to be cursed, reviled, or shunned”.
Id est, by reversing, “dennuhs ro ,deliver ,desruc eb ot enoemos”.
This explains a lot about his postings, I thinkso.
Just in case some of the lurkers aren’t aware of it…
Your dial-in ISP (probably) gives you a different IP address every time you dial in. However, unless you’re accessing the Internet via a proxy server, you’re the only person in the world who’s using that particular IP address >>at that particular time<< - and most ISPs maintain logs recording which userID (and, if the caller isn’t blocking caller ID, which calling phone number) was using each of their IP addresses at any given time.
I do consulting work for a government organization that maintains a dial-up service for its employees. The dialup service is there to give its employees access to the organization’s computers - but, given that anyone on their organization’s LAN is also on the Internet, it works as an ISP as well. The purchased software they use maintains logfiles containing the start time, stop time, userID, IP address assigned, and (if available) calling number of every dialin session. Anyone who signs up for that (free) service has to sign an agreement that they will only be using it within certain guidelines. Everyone using the service is aware of those callin logfiles.
Every once in awhile, they get a request from authorities who are tracking down cases of fraud or criminal/threatening behavior coming from one of their IP addresses. When that happens the ISP administrator goes through those callin logs to find out just who was responsible and hands that information over to the proper authorities. The ISP administrator told me that he’s had to go to court several times to testify that yes, those are accurate logfiles.
JimB, I think I’m getting closer to understanding, and then this:
<<<<First, for most dial-up connections, knowing your IP address isn’t much benefit. It changes with each connection. But, if you want to know what it is, you can click the Startbutton, click Run, type in winipcfg. You should end up with a window named IP Configuration. There will be a selection box at the top. If you are connected to your ISP, one of the selections will have an IP address other than 0.0.0.0. That’s your IP address. It’ll probably be different the next time you dial-in, though. >>>>>>>
If the IP changes each time it’s dialed, then how does it help track down the loonies?
I just bought a book called “Idiot’s PC’s”, I’m hoping that it is going to help my computer-deficient brain to grasp all of this. So that I don’t have to look like such a goofball.
Though I certainly appreciate your admiration, Notthemama so that I can take the brunt of everyone’s certain opinion that I’m the only learning impaired present and accounted for here at the SDMB.
Judy
P.S. And while YOU were flummoxed on ‘jerkoff’, I had a fellow student that actually coaxed me into asking my sixth grade MALE teacher, what ‘horNmones’ were. I couldn’t even find it in the dictionary thanks to Stephanie’s pronounciation.
First, I didn’t say it did. This is Ed’s idea.
Second, some IP addresses don’t change that much. I’m on a DSL line and even though it is a Dynamic IP address, it only changes every couple of months. People using cable modems may use fixed IP addresses, so they would not change. People posting from work may have a fixed IP address. Of course, it may be the corporation’s firewall’s IP address.
Third, dial-up customer’s IP addresses will vary within a given range.
Therefore, if a troublemaker is banned and the IP address range is known, a second troublemaker, suspected of being the same as the first, has IP addresses varying in the same range, it would give some added proof that they were one and the same.
Also, if a troublemaker and it’s sock puppet are posting without reconnecting in between, they will be using the same IP address. This isn’t conclusive since 2 people behind the same firewall would also be posting with the same IP address, but it would add evidence that they were the same person.
I would say that it gives the administration another tool to try to eliminate troublemakers, but the IP address by itself shouldn’t be used to ban someone.
Yes, you must have quite a gift to be able to reach the terminally undeft in computers!
And, my apologies for making it sound as though I meant ** you ** said it would stop the loonies. It was a general question to do with the posting of the IP numbers, and the reason for doing so.
Anti Pro,
I was just joking about the stopping the loonies thing.
And don’t feel inept because you don’t know what goes on behind the scenes of the internet. There is much more to it than this and normal people have know need to understand it. Subjects like this make it sound like there is a lot of important stuff going on the you should know, but really, it isn’t very important.
A nice source of information is at How Stuff Works. It’s not too technical.
Thanks for the link, Jim, that was not only helpful, but as you mentioned, it was in MY kind of language!
Wally, no one is after ** your ** sock puppets or trollish parrots, just everyone else’s!! So, you can save your illuminati call for the really big stuff!
I’m on a static IP here at school, but back home on my dial up, I noticed that the ranges didn’t change much.
Basically, your ISP only has a certain number of IP addresses to give you when you log on, so you’ll notice a pattern when you start paying attention to your own.
And only one computer at a time can have a certain IP address, in response to something way up there which spoke of a bunch of people having the same address.
You may also be interested to know that for most message boards I’ve been too, they display a user’s IP address right under their name. A lot of boards aren’t sophisticated enough to have user names and passwords, so IP addys are the best way to combat imping (pretending to be someone else on the board). Just compare the suspect post to a bona-fide post from the person the suspect post is supposed to be, and if the addys are extremely different, you they’re not who they claim to be.
Back to the IP for a moment. Considering the REAL reason you want to track the IP’s, I cannot imagine anyone objecting. I’m AOL, and so it’s slippery anyway. But, hell- track it all you want. Now and then a truly heinous prick gets ahold of too much info…
My hubby and I will have the same IP address, even posting at the same time. Two pcs - but we are behind a router doing NAT.
I’m just throwing this in to confuse everyone who can be confused further.
NAT is Network Address Translation. We have one IP address assigned by our ISP - but its assigned to our router and all the pcs in the house use it. The router keeps track of which data goes where. This is one of the reasons IP logging isn’t very accurate. If your 2,000 person company does NAT, you all look like you have the same IP address to the outside world.
So Ed - my hubby is not my sock puppet (well, at least not the way you mean.)
certainly appreciate your admiration, Notthemama so that I can take the brunt of everyone’s certain opinion that I’m the only learning impaired present and accounted for here at the SDMB.