If a large company really cared about their customers, they wouldn't make it so hard to get proper service.
Last May I cancelled all of my AT&T services except the basic landline telephone when we moved to a temporary residence in Durham, NC. AT&T didn't provide telephone service there, so I couldn't just transfer my account. I returned to my home in late July, and called AT&T to re-establish my services, including Internet.
I had had High Speed DSL when I left in May, and thought I would be able to get the same service when I returned three months later. But, no, I was evidently considered to be a brand new customer, in spite of the fact that I already had an account. After the usual rigamarole of "listen to the following choices" I got to a live human with a very thick accent that sounded asian to me. I ended up restarting my Internet service after about an hour on the telephone.
Over the next couple of months I was very disappointed with the so-called high speed Internet service, and eventually got another provider, the cable people, to provide me with a better service. Then, I tried repeatedly to cancel the AT&T service online. Turns out you can't do that. You have to telephone.
I finally decided that I had paid for services I wasn't receiving long enough and called the AT&T number. After another string of "listen to the following..." I got a human and explained that I wanted to drop my Internet service. The rep told me that she was not able to do that but would have to have me speak to a different person who would handle the service termination. Would I mind holding while she got that person on the line. Of course I wouldn't mind. That was the reason I had called.
So, I waited. Waited. Waited. She came back to me several times telling me that SHE couldn't get hold of the appropriate rep, and would I mind waiting a little longer? Finally, after something approaching a half hour, she said that SHE was unable to get the appropriate representative. She asked if it would be convenient for her to call me later in the day, and she would have a rep available at that time and would transfer me then. I agreed that she could call me around 2 pm.
Promptly at 2 pm the same person called me. She then asked me to wait while she contacted the appropriate person. I waited some more, and someone else finally came on the line. I now regret that I didn't keep a record of the people with whom I spoke. I explained again that I wanted to drop the Internet service. I was asked numerous questions about why I wanted to drop the service, and told the rep that I was unhappy with AT&T's Internet service and that I had gotten another provider. It took at least another half hour to finish the transaction. I was certain that I had dropped the AT&T service, and that my bill would now be much lower, as I had only basic Landline service.
Several days later I received a letter from AT&T congratulating me on being an AT&T High Speed Internet Member. I was advised in bold type to review the order summary to "ensure that it accurately reflects your account with the new changes." Turning the letter over, I discover that I am signed up for AT&T High Speed Internet Xtreme at a cost of $41.00 per month, but I'm not being charged for Self Installation, Connection Charge, or an Early Termination fee. How lucky I am.
Today (Sunday), I got an email telling me that my bill was ready. It was higher than it has been in the past, by more than $20.00. I went online and checked the bill, afraid that perhaps I had forgotten to pay last month. Nope, there it was. I was paid up and this was a new bill, including a charge for Internet service.
I went back to the welcoming letter to make sure I had read it correctly. Yes, it was welcoming me to High speed Internet service. On the letter it says that I can check my order status anytime online at att.com/orderstatus. I tried that, and was informed that either my username or my password do not match their records. It's funny, because I had just successfully logged in to another URL to check my bill. Of course, AT&T has lots of URLs and IP addresses available to them, so I suppose I could have two different accounts, and not realize it. After a couple of tries, I clicked on the "forgot password" button and was taken to another screen where I was expected to enter my telephone number, my service area zipcode, and a password! I tried. God knows I tried, but again I am told that my entries do not match their records. They expect me to enter a password in order to reset my password! And, there's a note telling me that if I can't do what they are asking, I should contact them at a telephone number.
So I called the telephone number. After listening to the unhuman voice asking me questions and telling me she didn't understand what I was saying, I drilled down to what I think was be the correct area. I was informed that they are closed, as it is Sunday.
I admit to being elderly. I don't hear everything correctly, especially when presented to me in a heavy accent and through the low pass filter of a telephone. Perhaps I misunderstood somehow in dealing with what I thought was the person who was going to help me cancel my Internet service portion of my account. But, to ask me for a password to access the ability to reset a password? Cumon!
I'm about ready to drop all services from AT&T. The only reasons that I continue with the landline is that my telephone number is well known to the people I care about (and an awful lot of advertisers, in spite of the Do Not Call registry) and my alarm system uses it. I also consider it to be a backup to the cell system in case of an emergency. I believe the cell system has the potential to become overloaded and unusable in an emergency. The landline system is battery operated, and doesn't rely on the power grid. But, maybe I am approaching the point where I just don't give a damn.
Sunday, April 27, 2014
Saturday, July 6, 2013
When not to email
I have to remind myself that there are two times of the day when I should never read my email or do anything else that requires me to think or interact with other people.
One is when I first get up in the morning. I find that I am worthless before breakfast. This morning I got up, got a bowl out of the cupboard, and started to pour a nice bowlful of dog food for myself. I realized what I was doing before I'd put much into the bowl, but it clearly illustrates the problem.
The other time is just before going to bed. By late evening I am tired and very, very grumpy. Beware ye who would ask a favor of me. "Who the hell does he think he is? What can I do about that at 11PM?" The fact that the request was sent at 2 in the afternoon escapes me. I fire off an angry response, only to regret it immediately after clicking the SEND button. Then I lie awake for hours, stewing over the stupid request, and regretting my hasty response.
There are two solutions, of course. One is to never, never, ever read email before going to bed. I can't count the number of times I have read something just before going to bed that annoyed me so that I couldn't sleep, even though I knew that the email was really of no importance.
The other solution, and more important, is to never respond to any email without letting it "sit" for a while. If it was really urgent, the person sending it would probably have called me on the telephone.
I actually have a signature in my email client that says:
One is when I first get up in the morning. I find that I am worthless before breakfast. This morning I got up, got a bowl out of the cupboard, and started to pour a nice bowlful of dog food for myself. I realized what I was doing before I'd put much into the bowl, but it clearly illustrates the problem.
The other time is just before going to bed. By late evening I am tired and very, very grumpy. Beware ye who would ask a favor of me. "Who the hell does he think he is? What can I do about that at 11PM?" The fact that the request was sent at 2 in the afternoon escapes me. I fire off an angry response, only to regret it immediately after clicking the SEND button. Then I lie awake for hours, stewing over the stupid request, and regretting my hasty response.
There are two solutions, of course. One is to never, never, ever read email before going to bed. I can't count the number of times I have read something just before going to bed that annoyed me so that I couldn't sleep, even though I knew that the email was really of no importance.
The other solution, and more important, is to never respond to any email without letting it "sit" for a while. If it was really urgent, the person sending it would probably have called me on the telephone.
I actually have a signature in my email client that says:
Please be advised that I try very hard to read my email twice a day, at 11 AM and again about 4 PM. That's not always possible, so please realize that I'll get to your message as soon as I can. Thanks for your patience.The problem is that I forget about that simple solution.
Monday, June 3, 2013
OEC AUXCOMM course
This past weekend (1/2 June 2013), I took the Office of Emergency Communications (OEC - part of Homeland Security) AUXCOMM course at the Raleigh Emergency Operations Center. It was an excellent course. It was well taught and a lot of good information was passed out. I would recommend the course to any amateur radio operator with an interest in assisting during emergency situations.
It was pointed out during this course that the Amateur in amateur radio means that a person does it for the love of it and not to be compensated in any way. "Doing it" is its' own compensation. But it is also important to realize that amateur shouldn't mean un-professional.
The instructors stressed that we should leave our amateur radio organizations/positions/awards/badges/hats/t-shirts/etc. at the door when we report for an AUXCOMM assignment. We become Auxiliary Communications personnel who have some special skills and knowledge which is appreciated by the emergency responders, but is not of any interest to them beyond how we perform the jobs they assign to us. In other words, do our assigned tasks, and don't try to impress the people for whom we are working with our knowledge about radios, etc. That makes a lot of sense to me. If you are very knowledgeable, it should be obvious by how you perform your assigned duties.
I've always found some of discussions among hams to be very tiring. Flaunting equipment capabilities/hour of net participation/awards won/digital modes used/size of antenna/power supply model number/___________ (fill in the blank) seems to me to be similar to bumping chests or elk or moose or ram horn locking. The same thing occurs among computer users - computer model number/size of hard drive/size of RAM/CPU speed/monitor size/______ (fill in the blanks). And the most insufferable of all is the amateur radio computer user. It's ok to tell me if I ask, but not gratuitously.
Sorry. I got off track there. But those are the kinds of things we do to try to impress the unenlightened with our prowess. And those are the kinds of things that keep us out of EOCs and other emergency situations.
It occurred to me that I enjoyed this course more than the COML course I took last November, probably because it was pointed at amateur radio operators, and the jargon used was more understandable than that spoken by emergency people. Not being immersed in the emergency responder environment caused me during the COML course to have to think about "what did he just say?" That detracted from the course for me because I missed important points. But that's why we take these courses - so that when we are in the environment, we won't be in a total fog. This past weekend's course was a good "bridge" between the two environments.
A photo of the class is at http://goo.gl/Zhd7D or http://auxcomm.us/main/2013/06/oec-auxcomm-training-class-held-at-n-c-state-eoc-2/
The final note in the course was: "Train as you operate, operate as you train"
It was pointed out during this course that the Amateur in amateur radio means that a person does it for the love of it and not to be compensated in any way. "Doing it" is its' own compensation. But it is also important to realize that amateur shouldn't mean un-professional.
The instructors stressed that we should leave our amateur radio organizations/positions/awards/badges/hats/t-shirts/etc. at the door when we report for an AUXCOMM assignment. We become Auxiliary Communications personnel who have some special skills and knowledge which is appreciated by the emergency responders, but is not of any interest to them beyond how we perform the jobs they assign to us. In other words, do our assigned tasks, and don't try to impress the people for whom we are working with our knowledge about radios, etc. That makes a lot of sense to me. If you are very knowledgeable, it should be obvious by how you perform your assigned duties.
I've always found some of discussions among hams to be very tiring. Flaunting equipment capabilities/hour of net participation/awards won/digital modes used/size of antenna/power supply model number/___________ (fill in the blank) seems to me to be similar to bumping chests or elk or moose or ram horn locking. The same thing occurs among computer users - computer model number/size of hard drive/size of RAM/CPU speed/monitor size/______ (fill in the blanks). And the most insufferable of all is the amateur radio computer user. It's ok to tell me if I ask, but not gratuitously.
Sorry. I got off track there. But those are the kinds of things we do to try to impress the unenlightened with our prowess. And those are the kinds of things that keep us out of EOCs and other emergency situations.
It occurred to me that I enjoyed this course more than the COML course I took last November, probably because it was pointed at amateur radio operators, and the jargon used was more understandable than that spoken by emergency people. Not being immersed in the emergency responder environment caused me during the COML course to have to think about "what did he just say?" That detracted from the course for me because I missed important points. But that's why we take these courses - so that when we are in the environment, we won't be in a total fog. This past weekend's course was a good "bridge" between the two environments.
A photo of the class is at http://goo.gl/Zhd7D or http://auxcomm.us/main/2013/06/oec-auxcomm-training-class-held-at-n-c-state-eoc-2/
The final note in the course was: "Train as you operate, operate as you train"
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
A walk in the woods, ticks, and some antenna thoughts.
For the last few days while we've been at our temporary residence, I've been walking with Sam after lunch. We didn't walk yesterday, but did about 1.47 miles Monday. Today we walked 1.42 miles. It was pretty hot, and Sam got overheated, so I had to carry him for at least a quarter-mile.
I picked up some other hitchhikers along the way. I found three tiny ticks on my legs. One was large enough to feel it walking on my leg. The other two were just tiny black spots, hardly larger than kiwi fruit seeds. I quickly took a shower. I hope the Front Line flea and tick meds work on Sam. I hate those things.
I measured the distance walked with a GPS device. I had ordered a FitBit One WIRELESS ACTIVITY & SLEEP TRACKER but didn't have it when we walked. In fact, it arrived just before we got back to the apartment. The UPS truck was just pulling away, and there was an Amazon box waiting outside our door.
So now we'll keep even closer tabs on our personal statistics.
In the meantime, I am investigating using a magnetic loop antenna to try to get on the radio while we are here. The primary difficulty here is that the frequencies that we use for MARS require very large antennas - usually a long wire. The "beam" antennas that many people associate with hams won't work for the frequencies we use for our MARS frequencies; at least not any one that the average person can afford. I have not checked to see if there are antenna restriction in this apartment complex, and have decided that there probably are restrictions.
I've used a mag loop at home, but that one was too small to use on the MARS frequencies. However, it was/is a very effective antenna at the frequencies for which it was designed. But it's too small for the lower frequencies generally used for MARS.
I picked up some other hitchhikers along the way. I found three tiny ticks on my legs. One was large enough to feel it walking on my leg. The other two were just tiny black spots, hardly larger than kiwi fruit seeds. I quickly took a shower. I hope the Front Line flea and tick meds work on Sam. I hate those things.
I measured the distance walked with a GPS device. I had ordered a FitBit One WIRELESS ACTIVITY & SLEEP TRACKER but didn't have it when we walked. In fact, it arrived just before we got back to the apartment. The UPS truck was just pulling away, and there was an Amazon box waiting outside our door.
So now we'll keep even closer tabs on our personal statistics.
In the meantime, I am investigating using a magnetic loop antenna to try to get on the radio while we are here. The primary difficulty here is that the frequencies that we use for MARS require very large antennas - usually a long wire. The "beam" antennas that many people associate with hams won't work for the frequencies we use for our MARS frequencies; at least not any one that the average person can afford. I have not checked to see if there are antenna restriction in this apartment complex, and have decided that there probably are restrictions.
I've used a mag loop at home, but that one was too small to use on the MARS frequencies. However, it was/is a very effective antenna at the frequencies for which it was designed. But it's too small for the lower frequencies generally used for MARS.
Friday, April 26, 2013
My workshop
Obviously I've been neglecting this blog. It's been THREE YEARS since the last entry. I'll try to make more entries, but don't expect me to do anything to catch up with all the stuff that's happened since my last entry.
When the previous entries were made, my garage was my workshop, and I was doing a lot of my woodworking at AB Tech (Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College). That gave me access to lots of wonderful power tools, but it meant a 60 mile round trip to the college, and I could only work on their schedule, usually certain evenings.
I've wanted to have a "real" workshop for years. I built a small workshop under the back porch when we lived in Glen Burnie, MD, in the late 70's, early 80's. But then I got posted to England for five years, then here to Western North Carolina. Other things, such as the death of my wife, and my subsequent remarriage, and two more moves got in the way of building a shop.
Finally, Linda and I decided that I should build a shop. I figured out how to shoe-horn a 16 X 20 two-story building into a corner of our hilly lot, and cleared the spot. Then it sat for several years waiting for me to put up the building.
The building was erected in the winter of 2010-2011, but it's not finished yet. It's got air conditioning and insulation, but I haven't finished the inside walls. A lot of stuff has been moved in, and I am occasionally doing work in there, but not the way I want to. It seems that life continues to get in the way.
When the previous entries were made, my garage was my workshop, and I was doing a lot of my woodworking at AB Tech (Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College). That gave me access to lots of wonderful power tools, but it meant a 60 mile round trip to the college, and I could only work on their schedule, usually certain evenings.
I've wanted to have a "real" workshop for years. I built a small workshop under the back porch when we lived in Glen Burnie, MD, in the late 70's, early 80's. But then I got posted to England for five years, then here to Western North Carolina. Other things, such as the death of my wife, and my subsequent remarriage, and two more moves got in the way of building a shop.
Finally, Linda and I decided that I should build a shop. I figured out how to shoe-horn a 16 X 20 two-story building into a corner of our hilly lot, and cleared the spot. Then it sat for several years waiting for me to put up the building.
The building was erected in the winter of 2010-2011, but it's not finished yet. It's got air conditioning and insulation, but I haven't finished the inside walls. A lot of stuff has been moved in, and I am occasionally doing work in there, but not the way I want to. It seems that life continues to get in the way.
Have we found an apartment?
We returned home from Durham this afternoon. Linda's resting from the 4-hour trip and I'm catching up on email, etc.
We looked at several apartments in the Durham area yesterday, and decided that we liked the Colonial Village at Deerfield. The apartments are a bit old, but the setting, next to Duke Forest, is really pretty. The apartments are within 3 miles of the Duke Hospital, a real benefit. Linda's doctor has made it very clear that she will have a better chance if we are a lot closer than we are now.
We were shown a one bedroom apartment yesterday afternoon. It was a bit small, but I really liked that it was on a cul-de-sac with the forest behind it, and a copse of bamboo in front. But, it was pretty cramped. Add the dog into the mix and include my junk collection (no, not ALL of it), and it would be really cramped.
This morning, as we were getting ready to leave the area, and had just stopped for gas, I got a telephone call. A two bedroom unit on the ground floor had become available. Were we interested? Yes! So we drove back to the apartment complex. We couldn't see the apartment in question, as it was not "ready." But they had another one that was empty that we could look at. Unfortunately, it was on the third floor. Linda can hardly step up one step. Three floors was beyond her. So I looked at it, and told her about it afterwards. I think it will do, although it doesn't have as nice a setting as the smaller one did. Here's a picture of the floor plan.
MARS is going to be difficult. I've already had to ask my Deputy to cover for me for the Region Four net next Saturday morning. I think we may be in the middle of moving then.
We looked at several apartments in the Durham area yesterday, and decided that we liked the Colonial Village at Deerfield. The apartments are a bit old, but the setting, next to Duke Forest, is really pretty. The apartments are within 3 miles of the Duke Hospital, a real benefit. Linda's doctor has made it very clear that she will have a better chance if we are a lot closer than we are now.
We were shown a one bedroom apartment yesterday afternoon. It was a bit small, but I really liked that it was on a cul-de-sac with the forest behind it, and a copse of bamboo in front. But, it was pretty cramped. Add the dog into the mix and include my junk collection (no, not ALL of it), and it would be really cramped.
This morning, as we were getting ready to leave the area, and had just stopped for gas, I got a telephone call. A two bedroom unit on the ground floor had become available. Were we interested? Yes! So we drove back to the apartment complex. We couldn't see the apartment in question, as it was not "ready." But they had another one that was empty that we could look at. Unfortunately, it was on the third floor. Linda can hardly step up one step. Three floors was beyond her. So I looked at it, and told her about it afterwards. I think it will do, although it doesn't have as nice a setting as the smaller one did. Here's a picture of the floor plan.
MARS is going to be difficult. I've already had to ask my Deputy to cover for me for the Region Four net next Saturday morning. I think we may be in the middle of moving then.
Monday, October 22, 2012
Uncompleted stuff
I think I originally intended this to be a collection of my thoughts and projects over time, but after the three entries in 2009 I guess life got in the way. Now, there's my other blog, "Liver Worst" which is discussing a different part of my life - being a caregiver for my wife, who is now a candidate for a liver transplant.
I've started a lot of projects over the past few years, which haven't been completed. Usually, I get really excited about something, go and gather a bunch of materials, and then run up against a speed bump. Direction changes. Other things get more attention. Eventually, I forget about the project that had me so excited earlier.
For a while I was going up to Asheville-Buncombe Community College and working in the woodworking shop. I built a work table for Linda, an "air engine", and started several other projects - a sofa table and a bookshelf. Those two are still in my workshop waiting completion.
I have a really nice small table that I made at the John C. Campbell Folk School. It's almost finished - just needs to have the top secured, a knob added to the drawer, and a finish applied.
I also started two different computer numerical controlled router projects at AB Tech. They both got just so far and then set aside for something else. The tables are completed, one has all the shafting and stepper motors installed, and much of the electronics has been completed.
I don't even know how many electronics projects I've started and haven't finished. Antennas. Electronic things to do stuff in my Ham "shack." Microcomputer experiments. I can hardly move in the ham shack for all the boxes of projects. The ham shack itself needs an overhaul - new operating position, new wiring, equipment rearrangement and upgrading.
Two years ago I had a workshop built next to our house. It's beautiful. It is completely insulated and has a heating/air conditioning system. But the insulation is exposed and needs to be covered. I decided I could do that myself. Bought a bunch of wallboard, and proceded to put it up. It didn't take me very long to realize that it was more work than I could handle by myself. So the job is about 1/3 finished. Until I get it done, I can't hang my tools on the walls. So everything remains in boxes on temporary shelves. Tasks always take longer because I have to hunt for this tool or that fixture.
I've started a lot of projects over the past few years, which haven't been completed. Usually, I get really excited about something, go and gather a bunch of materials, and then run up against a speed bump. Direction changes. Other things get more attention. Eventually, I forget about the project that had me so excited earlier.
For a while I was going up to Asheville-Buncombe Community College and working in the woodworking shop. I built a work table for Linda, an "air engine", and started several other projects - a sofa table and a bookshelf. Those two are still in my workshop waiting completion.
I have a really nice small table that I made at the John C. Campbell Folk School. It's almost finished - just needs to have the top secured, a knob added to the drawer, and a finish applied.
I also started two different computer numerical controlled router projects at AB Tech. They both got just so far and then set aside for something else. The tables are completed, one has all the shafting and stepper motors installed, and much of the electronics has been completed.
I don't even know how many electronics projects I've started and haven't finished. Antennas. Electronic things to do stuff in my Ham "shack." Microcomputer experiments. I can hardly move in the ham shack for all the boxes of projects. The ham shack itself needs an overhaul - new operating position, new wiring, equipment rearrangement and upgrading.
Two years ago I had a workshop built next to our house. It's beautiful. It is completely insulated and has a heating/air conditioning system. But the insulation is exposed and needs to be covered. I decided I could do that myself. Bought a bunch of wallboard, and proceded to put it up. It didn't take me very long to realize that it was more work than I could handle by myself. So the job is about 1/3 finished. Until I get it done, I can't hang my tools on the walls. So everything remains in boxes on temporary shelves. Tasks always take longer because I have to hunt for this tool or that fixture.
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