5.10.1999
Dial-up connections are notorious for dropping you after a period of inactivity. To a certain degree, you have control over this. The first thing I'd check is your DUN account settings. Open up your Dial-up Networking folder (in 'My Computer'), then pull up your DUN account's properties. On the 'General' tab, press the 'Configure' button. Then, on the 'Connection' tab, look under the 'Call preferences' section. You should see the 'Disconnect a call if idle for more than' option. Either clear the checkmark, or set your desired time. If this doesn't work for you, consider keeping your e-mail program open and having it automatically check for mail every 10 minutes or so. Another easy option is to use an FTP client which sends 'keep alive' requests; connect to an account and keep the program open. These are just a few ways to avoid dropped connections.