There’s a good chance that the cable I was using would’ve been wired incorrectly. In all fairness now I can’t remember the configuration, but I do remember reading since that there are more than just a few ways to wire a serial cable.

I’ll bear your comments in mind for the future, however – thank you.

How are you dialing the modem? The post-dial window should only occur if you are using a dial-up networking connectoid, which is used for PPP, not terminal access.

Try using Hyperterminal “Direct to com x” connection mode and dial manually with ATDT xxxxx where xxxxx is the phone number. Or better yet, get a terminal program that doesn’t suck like Terterm pro or anything but Hyperterminal.