broadband cell modem

[Homer]

Hi.  I have a Verizon cell modem that I use with a Dell Mini9 running
Ubuntu 8.04.  To establish a connection I open a terminal and run
gnome-ppp as sudo.  When I open firefox I always have to uncheck Work
Offline.  Ideally I would like to simply plug the modem in and have it
establish a connection without any action from me.  I'd also like to
configure firefox so it doesn't start in offline mode.  Note that with
a standard Wi-Fi connection (wireless G), firefox starts in normal
browsing mode, i.e., Work Offline is not selected.