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Home / I-Opener Areas / I-Opener General Posts Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener?

Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener? (modified 0 times) DickandJill Profile | Email How to belatedly start using an original, still in the Netpliance-sealed-box i-Opener? NOT modified. (Gasp!) What ISPs will initialize and support it in the traditional Netpliance manner? (We've got one or two left, and a buyer wants to set one up for his mother in the old manner.) Thanks, from --DickandJill 07-19-2004 13:35:53

RE:Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener? (modified 0 times) Tom61 Profile | Email Unless you have a V1, none. Only the V1, with some QNX hacking, can be used on other ISPs out-of-the-box. 07-19-2004 15:08:25

RE:Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener? (modified 0 times) DickandJill Profile | Email Thank you, tom61! Is there an easy way for me to determine whether the i-Opener is a V1 unit? Say, from its serial number? 07-20-2004 05:22:44

RE:Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener? (modified 0 times) vailr Profile As I remember it: during the time when Netpliance was transitioning all customers away from their own ISP to Earthlink ISP (or was it AT&T?), they supported any version of IOpener going to the newly designated ISP. But after a certain time period, the Netpliance dialup ISP was shut down completely. So, if there were some way to network via dial-up modem to another computer, which had the necessary code, then (theoretically) you could switch any version:1 thru :5 IOpener to Earthlink/ATT ISP. You'd also need a way to "convince" the unmodified machine, that it was connecting to the genuine Netpliance ISP. That said: There's probably no EASY way to enable newer ISP's, other than opening the case, temporarily attaching a hard drive (which may also require flashing, or else swapping out, the bios chip), and re-writing the SanDisk contents. Or if you could do it, NetZero would make an ideal "no cost" email & light web surfing ISP (no cost, for 10 hours per month). NetZero ISP could be set up on a notebook hard drive (probably not possible using only the SanDisk), running the free downloadable "Linspire" operating system. You'd attach the notebook hard drive, via adapter, to a desktop machine; boot from the Linspire CD; install the O.S.; then attach the HD to the IOpener. Linspire 4.5 has built-in support for NetZero, as well as several other ISP's.. 07-20-2004 11:23:16

RE:Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener? (modified 0 times) DickandJill Profile | Email Thank you, valir, for that good information. But we are looking for a non-project, just an easy solution. I gather that there is no easy solution, unless we have a V1 unit. Can someone please provide an easy way to identify this mint i-Opener's version number, perhaps from its serial number? 07-23-2004 11:35:23

RE:Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener? (modified 0 times) Tom61 Profile | Email The V1's (no corolation to the serial number or model no.) were ones that you could get into the BIOS during boot up if you plugged in a regular keyboard and hit Esc I believe. It's still going to be a project to get it going, just a small one, though, no need to open if it's a V1. There should be instructions on changing the IO to dial a non-Netpliance ISP somewhere in the forums using QNX (which you can't get into in higher versions). 07-23-2004 14:32:06

RE:Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener? (modified 0 times) Spike Profile DickandJill, I think that the easiest way to detect an unmolested v1 machine is to simply turn it on and watch the splash screen. If the screen is white with the I-Opener logo and the words "Out of the box, on the counter, nothin' but net", then you most likely have a v1. To the best of my knowledge, every other version had a simple black screen by default, unless they've been modified. If your machine is truly cherry, and has the whimsical white screen, then you probably have a v1. -Spike 07-23-2004 22:51:12

RE:Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener? (modified 0 times) DickandJill Profile | Email Thanks, Tom61 and Spike! The i-Opener in question is now a few states away from me, so I'll ask the buyer to make that V1 test. Here's hoping... 07-24-2004 15:26:41

RE:Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener? (modified 0 times) cadetpc_is_back Profile Hi, Spike, I remember you from years ago! Michael in Alabama hacked my original iOpener in (1999?)and I used it for years. A bunch of you later walked me back from the black screen of death. It died for good last year. Now I want to buy an unopened iOpener on ebay and give it to a friend who lost her job (and access to the Internet.) It sounds like unless I am reasonably competent with instructions, which I am not, that I won't be able to pull this off. Are there any commercial sites you can point me to where I can get this done so that I don't have to fall on the mercy of anyone here? Several of my friends and I are going in on this, so affordability isn't a big issue. She lives in a one-BR apt. so this would be perfect, size-wise. Thanks. 09-01-2004 17:56:22

RE:Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener? (modified 0 times) Spike Profile CadetPC, Sorry for the delay getting back to you--I don't check these pages as often as I used to. I still use my I-Opener almost daily, though I've lost a few modems to storms over the years. Finally got broadband and I'm smiling once again. I know of no commercial outfits that hack I-Openers on-demand, though I believe that Badflash.com still supplies all the required chips and pieces. If I had a spare unit lying around that was already hacked, I'd sell it to you for cost. Unfortunately, that isn't the case right now. Sometimes, Ebay sports I-Openers that are already hacked, which might be the best way to go, in your case. Good Luck! -Spike 09-11-2004 20:02:59

RE:Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener? (modified 0 times) BadFlash Profile | Email We do hack IOPs on demand. I just don't de-glue them. 09-12-2004 14:47:37

RE:Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener? (modified 0 times) Spike Profile Jack, For the benefit of CadetPC, what bits and pieces do you require from the buyer when performing an I-Opener hack? Do you just need them to supply an unmolested I-opener and a notebook harddrive? Are you permitted to load an operating system on the completed unit? It sounds like CadetPC is seeking a turnkey system, not something that might require some tweaking. -Spike 09-12-2004 20:28:42

RE:Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener? (modified 0 times) BadFlash Profile | Email I have 4 gig drives, or the customer can supply. I can get the fans and may have a few in stock. I have all the rest of the parts & can do an upgrade to 400Mhz. I can load the OS, but it takes time and time is $$$. It would be possible to load the files on the drive and let the customer load the OS. I would need a Win98SE bootable CD and keycode to do that to stay legal. 09-13-2004 15:22:41

RE:Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener? (modified 0 times) Spike Profile Well, there you go, CadetPC. Jack can build you a new IO from scratch, but quality costs. If you're not comfortable installing Windows98 and the required drivers, then do yourself a favor and have Jack or a knowledgeable friend perform that, too. BTW, whatever happened to your old I-Opener? Depending on the damage, I'm sure it had all or most of the parts required to perform the hack on another machine (cable, fan, drive, etc). -Spike 09-13-2004 16:03:27

RE:Do ISPs still support a mint, unmodified i-Opener? (modified 0 times) Ragnar1 Profile CadetPC, This is the first time I have checked this board in over a year. If you are still in need, send me an email at thewitchcyridwen@yahoo.com Michael 10-22-2004 13:28:44

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