h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Went to bed a bit earlier than usual Wednesday evening - there was a big thunderstorm, thought it would be safer to turn the computer off...

Got up Thursday, turned on the computer, scanned and coloured my comic, decided I'd check my mail - internet connection wasn't working. Went to Uni, came back - still no internet.

So I went down to the provider's shop to complain. They said they'd do a line reset, and if that didn't work, I was to call the hotline to complain.

Called the hotline - they told me a technician would be by the next day between noon and four to do something about it.

Friday came and went - no technician. I called the hotline around five, they told me to wait a bit, maybe he'd still show up...

He didn't. Called the hotline again, they did another reset and told me if it didn't work, the technician would come by Saturday between ten and three.

Waited around all of Saturday morning. No technician. Went back to the shop to complain, they said it was my problem, not theirs, and gave me another appointment for Monday - between eight am and eight pm sometime! Had my laptop with me, checked my mail and hootoo briefly at a friend's.

By this point, my dreams were featuring the helpline hold music. And I've heard such a variety of dialects and accents now at their call centre, it seems they hire them for their lack of ability to speak High German! Five internetless days just when I really needed it do research various papers...

Today, phoned them again to ask when the technician would show up - couldn't spend 12 hours sitting here. They told me between one and three.

*Two* technicians finally showed up around six - only 74 hours late . They fixed the line - it had been scrambled by storm damage, it seems - and then reconnected my router, and it *still* wouldn't work. Seems the router - or rather, the modem inside the router - was fried, too.

Went down to the provider's shop again, they said they couldn't sell me the hardware without switching to a different, more expensive package. Went to the electronics store. They had routers, but not with modems. Bought the router anyway, and they told me where to get a modem, the funny little computer pawn shop just up the road.

Went there, too - he didn't have any DSL modems, either, but at least he had a router *with* modem... The next generation of the model I had that was fried Bought that, must return the other one tomorrow.

Came home, set it all up, configured it...

And no internet! Turns out my firewall was blocking it, I had to reinstall that, too...



But I'm back Did anyone miss me?

Miss you? I was in Hull, attending a meet,
But I'm glad you're back

Seems this Internet problem is catching...

Looks like I picked the right weekend then, when it was quiet.

Oh, and the best bit: talk about hardware that does exactly what they want it to! The router broke Wednesday. The warranty expired the Monday before

Sometimes I suspect that they are programmed this way.

Yay!

Yep, most things go kaput just as the warrantee runs out

saying which, our router, and the cable modem (neither of which have been turned off in about five years or so), seem to keep going endlessly without trubble It is the second cable modem since I came back in... err... 2001 or something, the first one blew up
We were all lonley whilst you were gone and I lost my nose...

That same M$ patch and ZoneAlarm conjunction have bit a lot of folks lately.

you mean the problem could not be the router at all?

As I've read it, there's every possibility. Several folks here have been on about total loss of the net after allowing an update and then the next start-up of the PC. ZoneAlarm has a fix, but most folks had to either roll-back the update, or uninstall ZoneAlarm to get on line to seek help.

Hopefully that's not what it was. How sickening would that be?

Definitely!

But I doubt it. I had no connectivity, that's different... I'll try the old router tomorrow, just in case.

Trouble is, I can only get store credit back where I bought the one I'm using now.

You shouldn't need zone alarm or any other software firewall if your using a router anyhows, most I think have a hardware firewall built in to the router, which is better than any software firewall

>>> Did anyone miss me?

Dora did. I guess. She's up on my lap and trying to help type.

How sweet. Missed by a cat

The firewall is a relict of when I was living in a shared flat - they broke into my room often enough and tried to get into my computer through the shared network, too...

My knowledge of "hardware" firewalls is that they are only so good as the known preventions on the day it was assembled. They don't keep up with the times and ways hackers use. And the few that I have played with, the user had to manually make a list of specifically who and what to block, by ISP numbers. Software, on the other hand, is much more adaptive to changes and circumstances, and a definite must for any portable system. But to each their own preferences ...

I simply rely on my system not being terribly interesting.

I use a router, too, but don't rely on its firewall. It's six or seven years old.

But anyway, I'm glad you're back online. How frustrating.

ANd I can totally relate to things crapping out the minute the warranty has expired. That happens to everything electronic I own.

I'm sure you'll know what is best for you.

Haven't dared to test the old router with ZoneAlarm disabled. I doubt that's it, but you never know

Couldn't you just check your emails with the firewall disabled?