I hate technology...

[Stash]

Today was my day off. I did a bit of shooting in the morning , but had the whole afternoon to kill.

I'm one of those unfortunate people who has this magical negative effect on electronics. Even the most basic things often just refuse to work when I get near them. Only after things have settled down and I don't try to make any changes, do they eventually stop acting up and operate as they should.

Today (Thursday) I made a mistake. I tried to "improve" something.

I finally decided to get hi-speed cable internet service after living with dial-up, and never being able to see all those wonderful You-tubes people keep posting links to.

So I stopped by my friendly neighborhood Rogers store (A Canadian thing - they do everything internet/phone related) and signed up for hi-speed and, while I was at it, home phone service which was advertised as a lot cheaper than old Ma Bell. The nice young lady explained everything to me, gave me an internet modem and package of instructions and cables, with all the information I needed to set things up right away. She also made an appointment for a tech to come in and install the phone/cable modem next Tuesday.

A little warning light should have gone off in my head when she started to have trouble with an error message on her computer screen saying there was some problem in getting all my accounts linmked together on one bill (there's supposed to be a discount). But I failed to heed the warning and went on my merry way.

I got home, wired things up, and...nothing. No link to the Rogers website, where I was supposed to register and get started.

OK, technical support, then. My call was important to them, but apparently not important enough for a person to talk to me right away. Eventually I got through to "Jason", who could have been anywhere in the world, and Jason tied to help me out. He eventually concluded that that I wasn't getting a cable signal through, and there was some problem with my cable service. I disagreed, as a TV was on right next to me, and the signal looked OK. But just as he was arranging for someone to help out, my cellphone battery decided to give out. (Rogers cellphone, of course).

So I called back on the land line. My call was important to them, but apparently not important enough for a person to talk to me right away. Eventually I got through to "Jeremy", who, like Jason before him, could have been anywhere in the world. I re-explained the situation. Jeremy went through the same procedure, and concluded that I wasn't getting a cable signal through and there was some problem with my cable service. I again disagreed, as a TV was on right next to me, and the signal looked OK. So he made the next available appointment (next Tuesday) for someone to come by and have a look.

So I go upstars, make myself a snack, and turn on the other TV, and - guess what - crappy signal. Static, noise. But not on all channels - just the lower numbers.

Aha! So it WAS the cable signal. I just didn't notice because the TV next to my computer was on one of the few channels that were receiving a good signal.

So I call Rogers back, this time for cable repairs. My call was important to them, but apparently not important enough for a person to talk to me right away. Eventually I got through to "Lisa", who informed me that there was nothing they could do at their end, and they would have to send a technician, and the next available appointment would be next Tuesday.



OK, so I confirmed that next Tuesday, between 11 and 2, I will have a visit from a technician who can install my home phone modem, a technician who can repair the cable signal, and a technician who can set up the hi-speed modem. Hopefully, between the 3 of them, the technicians should be able to sort things out for something that is supposed to be idiot-proof. Maybe they'll all end up being just one person, maybe not.

So, that being as much as I could do with Rogers, I came downstairs to check my e-mail and log on to AT with the old reliable but slow dial-up.

Error message 543 - unable to connect to remote server

After several failed attempts, I call my ISP technical help (by this time my cellphone is recharged - I obviously can't call tech support for help on dialup on the same phone line as the dialup!).

My call was important to them, but apparently not important enough for a person to talk to me right away. Eventually I got through to "Rick". While Rick was looking into it, I kept trying the connection and eventually it did correct itself before he could actually do anything. I thanked him anyways.

I open my one e-mail, and it's from my dialup ISP informing me they have automatically billed my credit card for the next full year's internet services.

And that was my afternoon!

[Hutnicks]

Ouch. If you have splitters in the mix there and are getting a weak signal it is important that the cable modem be part of a two way split from the initial line only. If it is downstream anywhere you can get this kind of grief.

But other than that Mrs Lincoln, how'd you like the show

[SIR SHOOTS ALOT]

that sucks.........i got nothing else......

[Stash]

I have a splitter at the main line, one cable going upstairs and the other downstairs to a TV and now my computer.

The downstairs line was just to the TV - I added the supplied splitter to go to my computer - I did also try it direct off the TV line without improvement. And the upstairs TV is getting bad reception as well, even with all the new stuff removed and everything back to the way it was yesterday.

And the downstairs line from the main splitter is a new quality cable, installed by a Rogers tech the last time they were by the house. That's another story, involving our next-door neighbors' father-in-law who, I kid you not, tried aerating their front lawn last summer with an axe.

So, this is just a nasty coincidence that the cable went to crap the same day I tried the new hi-speed service.

It's just another reincarnation of the "Stash Effect".
This is not just a joke - this is a well documented (well, well-anecdoted ) occurrance, which has lain dormant for some years now, but has resurrected. I have many such stories to tell, including the time I had a geek programmer from Symantec come by the house to look at my computer problem - I think the quote was "Huh? I've never seen it do THAT before..."

[Hutnicks]

Originally Posted by Stash

I have a splitter at the main line, one cable going upstairs and the other downstairs to a TV and now my computer.

The downstairs line was just to the TV - I added the supplied splitter to go to my computer - I did also try it direct off the TV line without improvement. And the upstairs TV is getting bad reception as well, even with all the new stuff removed and everything back to the way it was yesterday.

And the downstairs line from the main splitter is a new quality cable, installed by a Rogers tech the last time they were by the house. That's another story, involving our next-door neighbors' father-in-law who, I kid you not, tried aerating their front lawn last summer with an axe.

So, this is just a nasty coincidence that the cable went to crap the same day I tried the new hi-speed service.

It's just another reincarnation of the "Stash Effect".
This is not just a joke - this is a well documented (well, well-anecdoted ) occurrance, which has lain dormant for some years now, but has resurrected. I have many such stories to tell, including the time I had a geek programmer from Symantec come by the house to look at my computer problem - I think the quote was "Huh? I've never seen it do THAT before..."

Yeah if you went direct its the main feed. We had a critter here eat through the line a month ago and it slowly got more and more fuzzy till he hit the centre conductor, then it was lights out

But god I hate waiting around for cable guys!

[DiamondQueen]

Anything with the name of "Rogers" is bound to let you down. BTDT.

[Unk Bond]

Hello
Been in the same boat. I have Verizon.[ CALLED] And the call goes to the Philippines, talked for 6 hours one day with 5 people before they said.We will now connect you with the US. And i don't know how many times i removed the wires from the Modem. [ Later

[Stash]

Well, it's finally working (for now at least)...

The fuzzy cable signal seemed to fix itself tonight. The "Stash Effect" does sometimes just go away by itself.

Then I had to spend another half hour with another nice fellow from tech support who decided that my ethernet connection wasn't working, so it got switched to a USB connection, and now I have hi-speed!

Now all I have to do is figure out this e-mail system, change my e-mail address, let everyone know about it, and cancel my dialup.

What could be simpler?

[Hutnicks]

Originally Posted by Stash

Well, it's finally working (for now at least)...

The fuzzy cable signal seemed to fix itself tonight. The "Stash Effect" does sometimes just go away by itself.

Then I had to spend another half hour with another nice fellow from tech support who decided that my ethernet connection wasn't working, so it got switched to a USB connection, and now I have hi-speed!

Now all I have to do is figure out this e-mail system, change my e-mail address, let everyone know about it, and cancel my dialup.

What could be simpler?

Look on the upside. With high speed you can have all these problems FASTER

[danesdad]

Your post is important to me. But not important enough for me to reply right away.

That was a good story!

[zmax hunter]

imo...if this is a dsl system, you should have filters installed on all of your phone lines, without the filters, ringing phones, satellite modems, computer modems, they are all cross talking to each other, also can be bad coax terminations to F connectors, splitters should never be used from a dish source to a reciever, makes for weak signals, however, one can usually use a splitter on the tv side of the sat. reciever, not sure what high speed service you are using, phone wires to the modem could also be bad/old, recommend min. cat5e cables from source thru out entire house for all phones and modems. helps eliminate cross-talk
sounds like a typ. day at the office.

if you want to talk to a human this is how. Not sure if this will help you, however, it has lots of US companies
http://gethuman.com/

actually, it will help
go to gethuman, select "R" then appropriate Rodgers phone service

Your welcome,

[Unk Bond]

Originally Posted by Stash

Well, it's finally working (for now at least)...

The fuzzy cable signal seemed to fix itself tonight. The "Stash Effect" does sometimes just go away by itself.

Then I had to spend another half hour with another nice fellow from tech support who decided that my ethernet connection wasn't working, so it got switched to a USB connection, and now I have hi-speed!

Now all I have to do is figure out this e-mail system, change my e-mail address, let everyone know about it, and cancel my dialup.

What could be simpler?

---------------------
U might burn a disk or 2 of your email addies and some you recieved.

[Oxford]

::: sliding OX's Severe Internet Signal Blocker back under sofa::::




ox

[rembrandt]

I hate anything mechanical! Not my cup of tea. I guess thats why I like art so well......alot of freedom to do what ever I want and make it into something no one else has done.