You are trying to connect to your designated mainframe or server or Unix box, but you just get a black terminal screen. It is very uncommon for Inet to cause such an error. So let’s first look at the common causes.

1) Network or IP address problems:
Before you try to connect using Inet, try to ping the server. If you can’t ping it then it is no use trying Inet. The problem must be located in a network, router or server that is down. Or perhaps typing or logic problems with the IP addresses or names.

2) Port or access rights problems:
You can ping the server, but not make a connection (The title bar always says “Connection Closed”). Check that you are trying the correct TCP/IP port at the server. Some servers use non-standard (not 23) ports. A firewall with improper settings might also cause failures by locking the port out.

3) Setup in Inet terminal emulator:
You do get the “Connected” message on the title bar but the screen stays black, static or accepts no input. Settings like font, color, local mode or telnet options might trigger such a problem. Or perhaps even a messed-up keyboard mapping. See Setup menus.