If you noticed I have not posted a blog since last Monday it’s not because I am lazy, it’s because I could not get to the site to post it. We are linked to the internet via Comcast and last Monday night the shut down their service from midnight to 6:00 AM to do a “equipment upgrade”. From Tuesday morning to Friday late afternoon we were basically offline and that includes the internet and phone service. Over the four days there were periods when we could use one of the P/C’s, but usually it would get shut down without any warning. We could never use both P/C’s at the same time.
Here is a guide to prepare you for this situation, especially if you use your home P/C for work and Comcast is your internet provider (ISP). If you have one P/C your odds go up for a successful upgrade. If you have more than one P/C and they go through a “hub” or “router”, be prepared, because every Comcast representative you talk to will blame the “hub” or “router” for your problem. Answer back with “The hub was working fine before you did the upgrade.” Follow that with “I disconnected the P/C from the hub and plugged it directly in to the Comcast modem and it still did not work.” (That will bring a short silence at the other end of the phone).
I am going to make an assumption that you have the complete Comcast package with internet, phone, and cable TV. If you don’t have the internet phone and have a “land line”, “Good for you!”, because that will save cell phone minutes. Also, again, if you have more than one P/C linked through a “hub” or “router” the problems will increase by a factor of 10.
It begins with an automated phone call stating “Your Comcast service is going to be shut down between midnight and 6:00 AM for an equipment upgrade”. When you get that message complete everything you need to do on your P/C that requires the internet and get it completed by midnight because at 12:01 AM you will be disconnected. Also charge all your cell phones, sharpen all your pencils, get fresh note pads, load up on stress relief medication, and tell your family “Over the next few days if you hear me yelling and using words that you did not know I knew, it has nothing to do with you and to please forgive me.”
The next morning after 6:00 AM first thing is to see if your phone is working. No dial tone means you are going to make a phone call to Comcast. You also can start your P/C’s, but they will not have internet access, in fact, just look at the Comcast modem lights for the status of your access.
If your phone is working, then check all the P/C’s for internet access. If everything working, don’t get “cocky”, because odds are your going to go down before noon.
Assuming nothing is working you call 1-800-comcast and go through the menu options. (Take note of the selections so that when you call again you can breeze right through to where you need to get to). When you finally get a human voice immediately write down their name, the time the call was made. They begin to tell them what’s going on. They will probably run a “test” on your link and then give you any one of about fifty possible excuses as to what the problem is. Then they will say “I will open a ticket and have a technician sent out to your location to check the access.” There will be a pause and then they will say “I can have someone there tomorrow between 9:00 AM and Noon.” You will then say “I need someone now, today! I depend on my access for work!” Actually you can say what ever you want, but it’s going to be tomorrow no matter what you say. Now be sure to get the ticket number and write it down then take a stress pill.
The next day when the technician arrives write down the time and the person’s name. Explain everything you went through on the phone and let him or her do their thing. If they complete their tests and they say “This is a problem for an I.T. technician, I can’t do anything. I will get one here later today.” Don’t you accept that, have them state it in writing on the ticket and Do NOT sign that ticket. In fact do not sign the ticket if they don’t fix your problem no matter what. If they leave and have not taken care of the problem they probably told you that someone else will be following up. Be sure to document everything and when the person does not show up later on, you will be making a phone call to 1-800-comcast. (Take another stress pill).
That’s it. More phone calls over several days and more open tickets because the technicians close the tickets as soon as they leave your home, even though nothing was resolved.
Finally know that eventually there will be a “hoop” that you jump through that will bring all this to a resolution.
All I can say now is “Have yourself a COMCASTIC day!”
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