I have a new installation of Windows XP Professional + all current service updates loaded on a new laptop

I am trying to setup a Dial Up setting for use with Compuserve. When I follow the basic setup and enter my required username and password I get an error 691 from Compuserve when it is dialed. Compuserve indicates that my username or password are incorrect. After many attempts at reentry of the username and password information into XP, including entry for a manual dial up, I noticed that in Windows XP, when I go back and check my settings for my Compuserve heading under the "Internet Properties" window, I find that the password window, that should have a total of xxxxxxxxx characters (9 in my case) is represented in the Password window as 16 character positions (black "bullets" as represented). Unless this string is arbitrary in some way, it suggests that my 9-character password has had 7 characters padded to it. This could then be why my Compuserve ISP is rejecting my password. I have delated this Internet definition several times and rebooted before entering a new setting. So far no luck.

So far I have not detected this problem in your knowledge base but I may not be using the right search key to find it

Thank you

The extra characters are not a source of the problem.
For added security, the actual length of the password is masked by
displaying 16 characters thus making a password harder to guess.
Of course the whole world (at least this newsgroup) now knows your
password is 9 characters long.

--
Jupiter Jones [MVP]
http://www3.telus.net/dandemar/


"Dave001" <(E-Mail Removed)> wrote in message
news:FFBF9B18-6C11-4DF5-A3AB-(E-Mail Removed)...
> I have a new installation of Windows XP Professional + all current
service updates loaded on a new laptop.
>
> I am trying to setup a Dial Up setting for use with Compuserve.
When I follow the basic setup and enter my required username and
password I get an error 691 from Compuserve when it is dialed.
Compuserve indicates that my username or password are incorrect.
After many attempts at reentry of the username and password
information into XP, including entry for a manual dial up, I noticed
that in Windows XP, when I go back and check my settings for my
Compuserve heading under the "Internet Properties" window, I find that
the password window, that should have a total of xxxxxxxxx characters
(9 in my case) is represented in the Password window as 16 character
positions (black "bullets" as represented). Unless this string is
arbitrary in some way, it suggests that my 9-character password has
had 7 characters padded to it. This could then be why my Compuserve
ISP is rejecting my password. I have delated this Internet
definition several times and rebooted before entering a new setting.
So far no luck.
>
> So far I have not detected this problem in your knowledge base but I
may not be using the right search key to find it.
>
> Thank you.