Ethernet interface monitor

[Dennis Fazio]

Does anyone know of any software tool that can look at the ethernet port and detect if it's functioning OK and how it's working? Often I plug into foreign networks and it may take a long while for a DHCP address to come up, or it doesn't come up at all.

Many of the Windows notebooks have little green lights that tell you if incoming ethernet frames are live on the wire, but that's not available in PowerBooks. I'd just like something to tell me if it's cabling or problems with the DHCP server as a start.
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Dennis Fazio
dfz at mac.com