sorry guys, this is now getting way over my head, thanks for the responses, I did try your suggestion ferreter but when I tried to edit /etc/network/intefaces. It said I didn't have permission to write to the file, (I'm working from the cd not the hard drive.) I could try installing knoppix to the hard drive but I can't see how that's gonna solve my connection problem. this is all about the TCP/IP settings, the numbers I input work in windows but not in Linux and it's not just knoppix, I tried the Demo Linux ISO earlier today, same result no internet connection. To add insult to injury, I e-mailed my ISP to get confirmation that these TCP/IP settings were correct, and they flat-out refused any help, saying that they
(Blueyonder.co.uk) did not support Linux, and that I use it at my own risk, time to call it a day methinks! (anyone know how to un-cap a blueyonder modem, thanks again to all who responded in this thread)