This is the question I was asking a few days ago. Right before I bought one of Kasapa Expresso’s modems for myself. The answers I got from my colleagues was not too encouraging… The worst was: “U relax. Make you come see me afta u buy am, I go configa am giv u” so thats exactly what happened. After I bought my modem, I obediently sent it to my sage friend who did a lot of complex magic on my computer(that I’m not allowed to disclose on the net), and it worked. I wasn’t too satisfied with the fact that he had robbed me of the learning experience. So I set out to find out how to make the cliq modem’s software work on ubuntu.

This is what I found out: 

The expresso cliq ZTE USB modem comes with a 32-bit debian file 

(CrossPlatformUI-V2.1.1-Kasapa-i386-ubuntu.deb) 

which can be easily installed on 32-bit linux and not 64-bit. If you have a 32-bit version of linux you can basically google “how to install a debian file in ubuntu” and follow the instructions.

I have a 64-bit Ubuntu Maverick Meerkat and this is where the trick is. My 64-bit ubuntu will not let me install a 32-bit debian file. 

This is the workaround:

1. copy the debian file(CrossPlatformUI-V2.1.1-Kasapa-i386-ubuntu.deb) to the desktop.

2. Ctrl+Alt+T (open the bash)

3. cd ~/Desktop (change directory to the desktop)

4. chmod +x (grant the debian file executable permission)

5. sudo dpkg -i —force-architecture CrossPlatformUI-V2.1.1-Kasapa-i386-ubuntu.deb (force install it with administrator level permission)*

6. Now any time you insert the modem you can run it with Expresso’s own software from Menu—>Internet—>Expresso

Was this helpful to you? Let me hear from you in the comments.

*Expresso workers vehemently deny the existence of Kasapa but funny enough they still have Kasapa in the name of their software. The devil is in the details.