Thuraya and Mac

i’ve done it using OS 9 on the Mac. you need a Serial-to-USB adapter, the one i have is a Belkin, i had to download a driver for it. Then you need the MacPPP or FreePPP dialer program, which you can also download. You dial the special Thuraya data number. Then, connection speed is 9600 bps which means a 500k jpg will take 8 or 9 minutes to send. At $1.00 a minute or whatever you pay for data on thuraya, it’s not that cheap.

I hope by now there is a way to use it on OS 10. But I don’t know.

BGAN is still the way to go in a crisis.

Yo Jehadi,
there is a special cable you need to get. I’m sure you can get it in Joburg. But yes, you can mos def do it. Just make sure you got a stable connection/clear view if the sky. Tim Fadek is the man – he apparently did it a lot back in 2003.
But yeah, basically by following Mr. Chin’s directions you should be able to do it, it’s just slow and expensive.
What do you need it for and for how long? Got a bgan here I haven’t used yet.

Hi there

I’ve done a bit of Thuraya + Mac transmission all on OS9 though…….

Below is how I (with a lot of help thanks Dermot) set it up

Good luck

Findlay

THURAYA SATPHONE SET-UP FOR MACINTOSH POWERBOOK

I have been sending pix out jpeged 10 inch width, at 200 dpi
File size around 250-350k in 6-8 minutes a pix.

Phone transmits at 9600bps, (it may say connect at 19200bps but that is a fiction

Keep it away from other sat phones when transmitting, min 3m better
10m as the signals can get in each others way and slow transmission down.
Keep batteries warm as well for best transmisson. Also as the
Thuraya satellite hovers over Dubai if you have an internet dialup in the
UAE best to use that as, again for reasons beyond my understanding, the
data flow is smoother and faster.

Make sure to get a post-paid account as the pre-paid accounts do not
handle data transmission .

Data calls cost US$1.44 a minute, talk is 88 cents.

Seemingly no real difference between Hughes and Ascom models, only keypad slightly different, specs the same.

The phones are like slightly over sized GSM phones with a extendable
antenna, need extra battery and if on the road, get the car charger and
get the ear piece. Earpiece is useful as you need to point the phone at
satellite so if you are driving, that invariably means sticking handset
out the window for a good signal.

For Mac, dialup: need to use: Free PPP. (Not Remote Access.)

I use Free PPP 2.6.2

Hardware: Need serial adapter (Keyspan or Belkin).

The Thuraya data cable connects into the satphone handset and out as a female 9-pin communications adapter. You need to have a male 9-pin to USB serial adapter to connect the thuraya data cable to your Mac USB port.

Install the Keyspan or Belkin serial adapter drive software on computer
and choose it as the Modem connection port.

Data cable to Thuraya handset is a bit delicate, so watch it,
anecdotally quite a few data cable connection pins have snapped, worth having a backup if away from home for a while.

Then set up the Free PPP, fill in all the relevant boxes with your ISP
details and it should work.
For Mac users, No need to use the Thuraya software which comes with the data cable.

Free PPP will connect and then just use your Netscape or
whatever.

FREE PPP: 2.6.2
Modem:
Modem Config Name: Thuraya
Connected to: P# 2USA28x11 (Keyspan serial adapter driver)
Port Speed: 19200
Flow Control: CTS&RTS (DTR)
Dial Type: Tone
Modem init string settings: Use: AT&F (THIS IS CRUCIAL!!!) type it in

Account: thuraya satphone
Connect: Directly
User name: XXXXXX your ISP
password: xxxxxx you ISP

Accounts : fill in Domain names and DNS numbers of ISP
Options: IP address: Assigned by PPP server: enable

Mac Control Panels: MODEM:
Connect via: P# 2USA28x11 (Keyspan serial adapter driver)
Modem: Apple Internal 56k Modem
Sound: On
Dialing: Tone
Ignore Dial Tone: Off

Mac Control Panels: TCP/IP:
Connect Via: Free PPP
Configure: Using PPP Server