I am looking for a solution to have the AirPort WiFi or other icon in the menu bar show when an active Internet connection is established.
I live in a funky WiFi connection area and connect true a router and extender. The router requires a password to connect. I use a WiFi extender to boost the signal from router.
The WiFi icon shows full connection in menu bar but that is only to the Extender.
The detail view for WiFi shows the following (left: active, right: not active):
The WiFi shows happy connection but it does not show missing internet connection.
Sometimes I lose the active Internet connection without knowing it and it is not been displayed in WiFi icon, but the Skype shows that, easy to see with a glance.
As a fix for that I use Skype that displays only when actually connected to Internet.
Can I modify the AirPort WiFi in menu bar to blink or something when it has lost the actual Internet connection?
I do not want to have Skype running to quickly see if I still have Internet.
And I do not want to have to use Terminal or System Preferences to just to see if I am still connected. Eventually in my browser I will get the notification that the site is not available, or check your internet, or something like it.
Best Answer
I made an AppleScript program that checks the internet using ping, and if it finds that your internet is down, it will alert you. You can get it here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/j4i9keisp8r79sm/Internet%20Test.app.zip
If you want to make it yourself, then here is the code:
Set the application as a start up item. If your internet breaks, it will alert you. You can get a notification center alert instead of a dialog by changing the line after on error to read
Added bonus: if you have a Router that will automatically disconnect you after certain time of inactivity, this will prevent that, since you are always showing as active.