Re: figuring out what your chat script is actually doing to get PPP up:

Try putting "local2.debug root" in /etc/syslog.conf. Then either
reboot, or else 'ps -x | grep syslogd', find the process number, and
"kill -HUP <process>". Finally, I think you have to log in as root,
the 'Don't log in as root' message notwithstanding. If you do all
this, you should be able to see on your screen what chat is seeing 
when you run ppp-up.

The BSD FAQ, from newsgroup comp.unix.bsd.386bsd.announce, clued me in.

Caveat: Your login and password will be displayed on the screen
as part of what chat is seeing, so be careful who you let look
over your shoulder.

PS: I added in ppp-connect a line like 
   chat '' '+++\c' 'OK' 'ATH0' 'OK' '\c'
This hangs up the line between attempts, in case the script connects but
line noise or other malfunction keeps it from getting all the way
through the PPP connection process. And speaking of line noise,
I put a sequence in ppp-chat that, when the first prompt comes up,
sends nonsense in order to get another prompt. This is just in case 
the first one eats some line noise (and it frequently does).
-- 
Aaron Mansheim, MS exp '97, Computational Sciences, Radford University
<mailto:a-manshe@runet.edu> <http://www.runet.edu/~a-manshe/>