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**LrngToFly** · 29 July 2001, 15:28

uhhhh???

If you know it's the cable modem, can't you just go to their local facility on your own schedule and ask for them to swap it????

**spazm_1999** · 29 July 2001, 15:39

I had the same prob here except that it was the signal that was too high. To modem seemed dead.... it took about 2 week before the guy came and fix it.

I would'nt even cosider changing my modem for an other 'cuz this one does'nt have any quota and by changing i'll probably have one, but in your area u might not have that prob.

Spazm

**Pneumatic** · 29 July 2001, 15:57

Trust me, I asked that. I got some story about "provisioning" the modem. I asked why I was able to use my neighbors modem? She said that it was provisioned for @Home. I asked "aren't ALL of your modems provisioned for @HOME" to which she replied "yes". I then asked if that was true why I couldn't just come and make the switch. She said that they are provisioned on site and not on the shelf. I guess they are all blank slates untill they are installed.

I even asked if I could go buy one and she said that a tech would still have to come out and set it up.

Unfortunately I don't know enough about it to do it myself.

My neighbor just called and said that they are home so I have to take their modem back. I guess I am blacked out till Friday (what time I don't know

)

**Rags** · 29 July 2001, 16:19

Oh, that is total BS. Get your own modem and be done with it.

You may need to call in the Serial number the mac address and stuff, but that can all be done over the phone.

I just moved and I have been an @home customer for over a year now. When I moved to my new place cable was still connected and I connected my cable modem and I was up and running. I debated about even calling to change my address because I knew they were going to insist on coming to my home, installing, and charging me the install fee. I waited a month then called to tell them I had moved and my internet works fine at my new place. They told me they still had to come out. I told them they didn't, but if they wanted they could just come to my pole and make sure all the proper filters are installed. They said they would have to come over and do all the work over again. MY INTERNET WAS WORKING BETTER THAN EVER!!??? How in the heck could they justify coming over? Why not do a change of address and be done with it? But no. So I set an appointment and I omitted waiting for them to show up. When I got home that night they had left a friendly note on my door saying they had missed me. The next couple of days, I got a bill to my new address so I thought "Well, to heck with it. I am going to leave it as is. Ain't broke don't fix it." A couple of weeks later my internet wasn't working. My cable TV was fine so I know they had changed something on my account to disable my internet. I called their stupid 800 number and remained on hold for the standard two weeks (it seemed like), and asked why my internet service had been interupted. They looked at my account and they didn't have my modem information up. My old modem had been bulleted to be disabled. I believe they did that so I would call for service and they would sit in their service truck and reinstate the modem or get me a newer one. I asked them to reinstate it and they did. I was up and running for exactly another day and my internet wasn't working again. This time I knew what they had done. My modem was getting block sync for sure so I called and waited on hold again. When I got the person on the phone I told them my internet wasn't working, my modem was getting sync just fine, and that I believe my computer name had been changed on my account, please give me my computer name. They tried to get me to powercycle my modem and all the other BS they always try when I have problems, and I told him in a firm but nice manner I don't want to, just tell me my computer name and I will be a happy man. They told me, it had in fact changed, I changed it on my computer and I was up and running again.

I just got my bill for this month and they charged me an installation fee. I am NOT going to pay an install fee when there was no install done.

Rags

**Joel** · 29 July 2001, 16:38

I even asked if I could go buy one and she said that a tech would still have to come out and set it up.

Boy are they giving Kindness the run around. I own my modem and when my first one went, lightning strike, I just went to the local Circuit City, bought one, hooked it up, called @home and gave them the mac address for the new modem and was back in business about two hours later. @home's tech support are a bunch of idiots, just ask Greebe, you have to, for the most part, just tell them what you want them to do. And when they start asking you questions about whether you have tried this or that just answer yes.

I called them one time because I could not connect and the girl that I was talking to kept trying to say it was my windows registry and that they do not support that. I finally switch my TCP/IP from get from DHCP to static and manually coded all the IP info, all the time the girl kept saying this will not work, and I was back in business. Seems their DHCP server was having a problem and not doling out the IP information right.

Joel

PS: Make sure they do a credit to your account for the time you are off-line.

**Dilitante1** · 29 July 2001, 20:38

Best Buy had a deal on a D-Link cable/DSL router for $50 .....I installed one on a friends account and it was a slick install.....if someone can give him a call he would be up in no time..

-pickle

**Pneumatic** · 4 August 2001, 07:43

Update

Well, here's the latest.

I did, in fact go and buy a cable modem the next day from Best Buy. I called the jerk offs at Tech support and told them that I had a new modem and that I needed to get it provisioned. After a moment of silence the guy said "Um. I'm sorry but only the techs can call that in". I said "WHAT? I have a new modem right here , hooked up and ready to go. All you have to do is enter the MAC and I am in business". The guy proceeded to tell me that it wasn't possible. I finally got to his supervisor and he gave me the same story. I finally (after about 3 hours on the phone) accepted the fact that I would hvae to wait untill FRIDAY to get it back (this was on Sat.).

Skip ahead.. Friday rolls around and I have that stupid 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. appointment. I make arrangememnts for someone to be there ALL DAY LONG! At about 5:30 we still had no call, no anything. I called them up and said "Is the guy comming or what? I have $100.00 worth of Circus tickets and 2 kids that are ready to go". They guy gave me the line that has become the all too common answ.... "I don't know, and there is nothing I can do" I had a friend come over and baby sit my house untill 8 p.m. (A full 2 hours past the appointment time) and still, nothing.

I called them on the way to the Circus and was about to pop a gasket. I have been without internet for a week, and then been tied to the house for an entire day, and then I get stiffed! All for a problem that requires some nerd plugging in a few numbers and hitting enter. The guy said the only thing he can do is reschedule. Guess what? The next appointment is not untill AUGUST 15TH! Yep, 2 more weeks. By now I have come completely unglued inside, but I can't explode all over the guy so I try to contain myself. I go to the manager, and the managers manager, but I can get absolutely nothing done.

I have had to resort to installing the free trial of AOL that we get in the mail every 2 day. I am about as sick of this situation as a person can be, but they have me by the short and curlies. No other broad band services my area.

So here I sit on AO freakin' L litterally STEAMING. What would you do?

**CHHAS** · 4 August 2001, 08:56

That sounds a lot like what I went through with my ADSL.
I even chose Denmark's largest supplier of telephone and internet services just to be safe.

About 3 weeks after getting my ADSL the modem went dead.
I called their tech support and after taking to one of their 'support staff' got the message that a technician would call me the next day.
The next day I tell the exact same things to the technician who then sets up an appointment for a week later, the earliest they could do. When I asked for a timeslot they said between 8-18

Great, had to take the day off from work, costing me about the same as the modem.

I get home from work a few days later and find a nice note saying that the company had been there and I wasn't home, no sh1t, they weren't supposed to come for another 4 days.
I called them to complain and make sure that the original appointment was still registred.
I then had to explain the problem a third time, as they obviously hadn't written anything down the first two times I explained it.

The day arrives and I wait all day for a technician, but noone shows

I call to complain again and nothing is registered for me

They could make a new appointment for me a week later, but as I was going on a holiday it would have to wait a week more.

The next day I come home from work and find that they've been the again

Now I'm really p1ssed off, but they say that there's nothing they can do.

When I get home from my vacation the modem gets replaced and is working properly still.

All in all I was without my ADSL connection for about 1 month, one week of which were because I was away, and it cost me more than getting the connection (modem, ATM card etc.) did

**Dilitante1** · 4 August 2001, 11:07

Kindness, where you have to wait I would take the MODEM back to Best Buy, if thier equipment fails, THEY replace it, if yours does you have the fun of sending it for repairs and waiting....weeks for its return....

I misread the post and figured a router would take care of your issue...(my bad) but it would allow for sharing the internet among multiple PCs...nuff said......

they are jerking you around quite a bit and I send my condolences for having to deal with IDIOTS....

-pickle

**Pneumatic** · 4 August 2001, 11:49

Dilitante1:

We have to rent the modems for $10 per month. I figured that I would just save the money and get my own. I got a Toshiba PCX1100U which has a 5 year replacement warratnty. If it breaks I can get a new one faster than I can get a tech out here!

Another reason is that I don't want to send those nuckle heads at @Home a dime more than I have to!

**Snake-Eyes** · 4 August 2001, 12:43

You go, Kindness! Once you get this thing sorted with them, you'll be good to go if the new modem gives out.

As a side note, it sucks that the cable ISPs use blatant fraud as an excuse to charge you (and me) a 'service fee' when it's their @#$%ed equipment that failed it the first place. To me, that's all it is- fraud. Especially when you consider that the charge is for a tech having to visit your house, just so he can check the signal on your line (which you ALREADY know is good), then get the specific info on the modem you're using (MAC addy, etc.), and call the same frickin' folks that you've been calling all along, and giving them the same frickin' information you've been trying to give them all along, just to have them flip a switch at the office, enabling your access using the new hardware. That's provisioning in a nutshell, and it sucks that the cable companies get by with such tactics!

Sorry, I hate to get so pissed off about this, but this same thing happens to all of us when we're getting service, whether it's cable or telephone, at some time or another, and I sure wish there was something we could do. Don't these companies realize that these sorts of experiences are what makes their users jump ship the first time anything even relatively close to competing with their products comes along? Nah, they just don't care. Right now they have the market locked up, and they know it. Buncha %/bleep/%ards, anyway.

*Phew*. Glad to get that out. And sorry to hear you're still getting the big shaft from them.

**Greebe** · 4 August 2001, 13:30

I just private messaged you... call the # provided... that should get this ball rolling much faster!

BTW I feel your grief... been their myself... just absolutely refused to take the abuse and did get many many months service free for their failed shit and shenanigans... btw if their email fails typically they'll tell you since it's free serice provided they won't credit... well I personally know that's BS... they will credit if you push hard enough.

Yes Ace, it is fraud IMHO too

**Wombat** · 4 August 2001, 13:51

Kindness, how is that modem working out? I just ordered the same one Wednesday for $150. I'm not looking forward to fighting with ATT@Home though.

Are you using it with a NIC or as USB? Or both (you're supposed to be able to have two computers use it, one on each connection, but I'm sure there's all sorts of caveats)?

**Pneumatic** · 4 August 2001, 13:58

Are you trying to set me off again?

If I knew how the modem was working I wouldn't be so upset! The whole problem is that they will not provision it. Do youself a favor and call @Home now and make the appointment. The modem that you ordered will definately be there before the tech is.

I am on a crappy dial up modem using the free trial version of AOL on a 7 year old computer.
This has to be what Hell is like!

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