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Richard Haselgrove Project Donor
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Message 1533165 - Posted: 28 Jun 2014, 10:30:11 UTC - in response to Message 1533164.  

There were big problems earlier today with BT Internet in the UK, but they seem to have been fixed now. We will see .....

BT

I could reach UK websites, plus Arizona and Switzerland. Fault seems to have been in the Telehouse switching centre in London.

Likewise, all clearing now.
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Message 1533166 - Posted: 28 Jun 2014, 10:32:10 UTC - in response to Message 1533164.  

There were big problems earlier today with BT Internet in the UK, but they seem to have been fixed now. We will see .....

BT


Yes! I will be keeping TWO beady eyes on them Chris... though... that might wreak havoc with my posts :)

We're back we're back we're back!!! :)
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Message 1533182 - Posted: 28 Jun 2014, 11:49:38 UTC

I'm so sorry Richard, didn't spot you down there :) Nice to see you!
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Richard Haselgrove Project Donor
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Message 1533204 - Posted: 28 Jun 2014, 13:21:06 UTC - in response to Message 1533182.  

I'm so sorry Richard, didn't spot you down there :) Nice to see you!

That's all right - I'm usually to be found lurking in the corner, only emerging to make the occasional gnomic comment ;)
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Message 1533213 - Posted: 28 Jun 2014, 13:39:01 UTC

BT has nothing on ATT....LOL.
I spent many hours on the phone in foreign lands and languages trying to get my modem working last week.
"We want you to see internet. You have lights on modem, yes?"
It was quite cosmic.
"You push button on modem now...It work?"
It's a good thing I kept my sense of humour through it all..........
"Freedom is just Chaos, with better lighting." Alan Dean Foster

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Message 1533230 - Posted: 28 Jun 2014, 14:34:27 UTC - in response to Message 1533228.  
Last modified: 28 Jun 2014, 14:34:59 UTC

Corporate bean counters that outsource IT support to save a few dollars, (whilst peeing off the customers) should all be dropped of in mid Atlantic without a lifejacket. Closely followed in the ship behind, by the Directors that allowed them to get away with it, because the shareholders demanded their dividend from the dwindling profits.

Foreign lands means the Far East and nice but misguided people using "idiot scripts". All the while there is a worldwide recession and belt tightening, there will never be an end to it.

Without a lifejacket? No, Chris, with a lead jacket.
During the conversations, if you could call them that, I could virtually read their screens.
Customer say this, hit this button. Customer say that, hit this button.
All freaking scripted, not an intelligent thought involved.

"You see light now?"
Yeah, it's freakin' 9am here...I see sunlight. What planet are YOU on?
"Freedom is just Chaos, with better lighting." Alan Dean Foster

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Message 1533244 - Posted: 28 Jun 2014, 15:11:06 UTC - in response to Message 1533241.  

OK I'll play devils advocate. To be fair Mark, the script system does prove the concept, that you CAN run a remote call centre with basically non IT skilled people. Provided that they can be trained to follow a tested procedure. For most of the cases it works and costs in. Where it falls down badly is when people like you and me call in.

"Look, I've already tried that and tried this, and checked that, now what?" Unless they are allowed to follow the set out script letter for letter they can't help you. There should be a system where the call centre has a couple of real IT experts on hand that can deal with the likes of you and me. but they don't. Ask to speak to their supervisor and you can't.

I still say that corporate bean counters should be strung up, but you can't really blame these people in the Far east trying to scratch a living when English isn't their first language. What is wrong is the Western Corporations taking advantage of them.

Anyhow we digress. The UK is back online so yay!

That's the whole point, Chris.
I came from a point of being there, done that, rebooted everything twice including the kitties, and I could not get a person on the phone intelligent enough to listen to that fact.
Days later, I was actually able to somehow contact a living breathing tech at ATT directly. And she apologized more than once. She reiterated what you have expressed. They cannot afford to have real people on the line 24/7, so they have the telecenters where some sub level of support will work for some people.
And I suppose for some minor problems with passwords and such, it works.

In my position, I know darn well how everything works, or should work, and when I do make that call, I need somebody on the line with their brain attached and networking skills available.

In their defense, once I got through to the right person, as I said, she was VERY intelligent and cut through the bull very quickly.
"Freedom is just Chaos, with better lighting." Alan Dean Foster

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Message 1533449 - Posted: 28 Jun 2014, 22:28:26 UTC - in response to Message 1533296.  
Last modified: 28 Jun 2014, 22:28:56 UTC

BT apologises.

BT




Couldn't resist it... :)
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Message 1533467 - Posted: 28 Jun 2014, 22:54:43 UTC - in response to Message 1533449.  

BT apologises.

BT




Couldn't resist it... :)

That would have been the response I got...LOL.
"Freedom is just Chaos, with better lighting." Alan Dean Foster

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Message 1533639 - Posted: 29 Jun 2014, 12:03:45 UTC

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Message 1533964 - Posted: 30 Jun 2014, 10:02:05 UTC

I would pay for a copy of their call centre idiot script :-)


Never used a script in my life myself! It all comes from the heart over here:)
I wished I could see doctors or CEO's doing what we do. Multitasking as hell, the 'face' of the company which customers can piss against (and still remain friendly), we have to know the complete darn systems, yes more than one, the complete story and happenings on the energy market, we have to know a hell of a lot of psychology (so we can 'work' on the customer) etc... You need a darn University degree to be able to work in a call center I say!
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Message 1533969 - Posted: 30 Jun 2014, 10:24:39 UTC - in response to Message 1533968.  

You need a darn University degree to be able to work in a call center I say!

Well exactly, what do you think an MSc is?

Managing Stupid Customers !!!



LOL Chris:)) We do have some 'stupid' people working here as well, that's true, but they don't last long...
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Message 1534256 - Posted: 1 Jul 2014, 2:19:51 UTC

Several years ago, our phone line was bad. Static to the point of not being able to talk (conventional analog POTS service) and DSL nearly useless. Every time I called for service, they started me off with an automated computer script. One of the questions was "Are you having trouble with internet?" If I said yes, the computer would immediately send me off to the internet division. I had to say no to get connected to a telephone service rep. "Yes, computer, my telephone is practically unusable, but the internet on the line is just fine." Great logic there. Then to get the person on the phone to believe that it was their problem and not my house wiring or my phone, I had to go outside and plug a phone directly into the connection box on the back of the house and tell them "You hear all this static on the line? You think maybe I have a problem???"

It took two or three different service calls and replacement of the line from the pole to the house until a repair tech finally found a bad connection in a junction box a block away.
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Message 1534272 - Posted: 1 Jul 2014, 3:25:06 UTC - in response to Message 1534256.  

Several years ago, our phone line was bad. Static to the point of not being able to talk (conventional analog POTS service) and DSL nearly useless. Every time I called for service, they started me off with an automated computer script. One of the questions was "Are you having trouble with internet?" If I said yes, the computer would immediately send me off to the internet division. I had to say no to get connected to a telephone service rep. "Yes, computer, my telephone is practically unusable, but the internet on the line is just fine." Great logic there. Then to get the person on the phone to believe that it was their problem and not my house wiring or my phone, I had to go outside and plug a phone directly into the connection box on the back of the house and tell them "You hear all this static on the line? You think maybe I have a problem???"

It took two or three different service calls and replacement of the line from the pole to the house until a repair tech finally found a bad connection in a junction box a block away.


Y-e-e-s I know the feeling David... :/ I spent six months of denials and threats of massive call out charges with a mostly off but occasionally on broadband service...

The fault was eventually found... my service depended on which way the wind was blowing through the junction box.

I think things were complicated a tad by my phone provider thinking I, my family, two dogs, a rabbit and two guinea pigs lived in the phone box on the corner outside my house. I'd always thought my billing address started oddly... but as the bills arrived okay, I never queried it. Found out I should've done when they gave my details to the police so that I could be prosecuted for making prank emergency service calls from it. Must've been a slow crime night for them... or maybe news had got out I was dangerous :) because I got to meet six very nice policemen... :)
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Message 1534333 - Posted: 1 Jul 2014, 5:55:06 UTC - in response to Message 1534256.  

Several years ago, our phone line was bad. Static to the point of not being able to talk (conventional analog POTS service) and DSL nearly useless. Every time I called for service, they started me off with an automated computer script. One of the questions was "Are you having trouble with internet?" If I said yes, the computer would immediately send me off to the internet division. I had to say no to get connected to a telephone service rep. "Yes, computer, my telephone is practically unusable, but the internet on the line is just fine." Great logic there. Then to get the person on the phone to believe that it was their problem and not my house wiring or my phone, I had to go outside and plug a phone directly into the connection box on the back of the house and tell them "You hear all this static on the line? You think maybe I have a problem???"

It took two or three different service calls and replacement of the line from the pole to the house until a repair tech finally found a bad connection in a junction box a block away.

Oh, got lucky did you. Got flat told by the tech, we have no more pairs in the cable. I've got the best set I can for you. Live with it. Oh and they will not replace the cable, and they decided not to bring fiber into you area despite there being one on the pole 100 feet in the other direction. When you know the junction box number where your line goes .......

Well my neighbor a couple doors down finally cut down a cypress that was hiding the telephone pole. Things have been better since then. Wonder why?! Tree trimmers are expensive and linemen are cheap?

Oh, and if I was 3000 feet west of where I am, I have a different telco, one that has deployed fiber and their rates are 1/2 the one I'm stuck with.

I'd name that garbage telephone company but for two reasons. One being I own some of their stock via a spin off. IIRC someone here may work for them and I don't need billing errors on top of garbage telephone and internet.
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Message 1535108 - Posted: 2 Jul 2014, 22:34:55 UTC - in response to Message 1534333.  

Oh, got lucky did you. Got flat told by the tech, we have no more pairs in the cable. I've got the best set I can for you. Live with it. Oh and they will not replace the cable, and they decided not to bring fiber into you area despite there being one on the pole 100 feet in the other direction. When you know the junction box number where your line goes .......

I'd name that garbage telephone company but for two reasons. One being I own some of their stock via a spin off. IIRC someone here may work for them and I don't need billing errors on top of garbage telephone and internet.

A friend of mine is a retired repair tech. In his last few years, he worked exclusively on old-school high-quality lines, such as those used for lottery machines.

He told a story once of going out to fix a line. He found it had a bad pair, and there were no more pairs in the box. But there was a pair assigned to a non-existent pay phone. He contacted the pay phone owner to see if he would give it up. The guy flat refused. He was somehow making money on it, even thought it didn't exist. So what did my friend do? He used the pay phone pair to fix the line he was out there to fix. Never heard a word about the pay phone, even though it now not only didn't exist but didn't have a line either.

I inherited some AT&T stock from my grandmother, who inherited it from an old friend of hers. I can't remember if my landline at the time of my trouble was them or if it was Ameritech or SBC.
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Message 1549675 - Posted: 30 Jul 2014, 2:51:02 UTC
Last modified: 30 Jul 2014, 3:03:37 UTC

Not Telco - BT :(

Apparently our current hot weather is to blame for a recurring major broadband fault in our area... every time it's "fixed" within a few hours, it isn't :/

Oh - and while I'm here - just a warning to anyone who IS a BT customer...

Received a very disturbing call today from someone claiming to be from BT. They were not. They slipped up by assuming I shop online. I don't. They were very convincing and if I was an online shopper I would have been very very worried by what they were saying... and could have got badly burned. Be careful everyone... :(

Edit: The call may not have originated in the UK. With phone companies selling our data to marketing organisations worldwide - many of whom pay their call-centre staff poorly - the opportunity/incentive for our personal information to fall into the wrong hands is growing daily. Customers of other telephone and broadband service providers could potentially also be at risk. I'm not generally paranoid but... :/
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Message 1549677 - Posted: 30 Jul 2014, 2:59:15 UTC - in response to Message 1549675.  

Not Telco - BT :(

Apparently our current hot weather is to blame for a recurring major broadband fault in our area... every time it's "fixed" within a few hours, it isn't :/

Oh - and while I'm here - just a warning to anyone who IS a BT customer...

Received a very disturbing call today from someone claiming to be from BT. They were not. They slipped up by assuming I shop online. I don't. They were very convincing and if I was an online shopper I would have been very very worried by what they were saying... and could have got badly burned. Be careful everyone... :(

You need some better hardware. It was 109F here today and everything was fine. This summer we have been up to 115F without problems.
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Message 1549751 - Posted: 30 Jul 2014, 8:33:45 UTC - in response to Message 1549675.  

Not Telco - BT :(

Apparently our current hot weather is to blame for a recurring major broadband fault in our area... every time it's "fixed" within a few hours, it isn't :/

Oh - and while I'm here - just a warning to anyone who IS a BT customer...

Received a very disturbing call today from someone claiming to be from BT. They were not. They slipped up by assuming I shop online. I don't. They were very convincing and if I was an online shopper I would have been very very worried by what they were saying... and could have got badly burned. Be careful everyone... :(

Edit: The call may not have originated in the UK. With phone companies selling our data to marketing organisations worldwide - many of whom pay their call-centre staff poorly - the opportunity/incentive for our personal information to fall into the wrong hands is growing daily. Customers of other telephone and broadband service providers could potentially also be at risk. I'm not generally paranoid but... :/

Did you have this problem before you blew your monitor and the roadway up and singed your hair Annie? :-D

Cheers.
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Message 1549761 - Posted: 30 Jul 2014, 9:03:38 UTC - in response to Message 1533230.  

"You see light now?"
Yeah, it's freakin' 9am here...I see sunlight. What planet are YOU on?


lolololololololo

you got more patients than me soon as i hear the indian or phillino acsent i can't help myself

"oh F%^k a bloody Indian i can't understand "

"that not nice sir you swear again i will have to hang up "

"F^&king i'm a Australian we all ways swear so don't get ya F&^king knickers in a not."... click

ops i peed them off
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