In the four days since I've had it set up, my Wireless Minneapolis has been an unequivocable disaster. Our internet connection is usually there (but sometimes not), but the signal strength is too weak to support Vonage. We can make calls (except when we can't, and never from our handheld unit), but cannot receive them (except twice, and then only on the base unit).
We have a transmitter node a half block away and our antenna is about a foot from a window, angled right towards it. My steel siding should not be an issue, according to the most recent tech to whom I've spoken. According to all of them, my connection speed should just be "screaming," but - in fact - it is like a limp dick.
In my last couple of calls in, I've tried to impress upon them the difficulty of leading a normal life when unable to receive phone calls at home. And I have two more days until Comcast sends out some fucker to terminate our connection to them. In one last-ditch effort to try and keep me as a subscriber, Wireless Minneapolis is going to send out a tech Thursday morning to try and see if an externally-mounted antenna will do the trick. They claim a 98% success rate when such odd cases as mine are “escalated.”
I’ll still believe this one when I see it.
From doctors to tech service people to financial advisors, I have a long history of being told: “Now THAT’s a new one.” For me, in issues ranging from foot care to routing numbers to just plain expecting a CD-ROM to work, abnormality is the norm. At this point – and really since about age 16 – I’ve learned to expect the unexpected.
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12 comments:
that is too bad, and I can understand, in a way, the "now that's a new one"
interestingly - when it comes to technology issues I am somewhat impatient with THEIR use of "now that's a new one" - I really do not want to hear their musings, their dogma, or their theories - just fix it, be a hero for 75 seconds and get the hell away
I hope that the 98% success rate includes you - I hope they will fix it quickly with few words - I hope that you do not feel the need to treat them special in any way in order to achieve a desired result - and possibly above all - I sincerely hope that this does not turn into a bigger headache for you - requiring additonal phone calls with lengthy wait times, intentional wait times designed and forced upon you in an effort to slam their services and products deep within your ear
It IS too bad - there's no one that's been more excited about the coming over Wireless Minneapolis than me. It would be a shame for it to end so quickly and unceremoniously. And I really, REALLY don't want to have to go back to Comcast.
It is an enormous pain in the ass.
That said, our lives are filled with insanely complicated devices, to a degree unimaginable not too far back in time. Complicated shit is harder to make run correctly.
That said, I hate dealing with customer service.
And good luck.
If they pull up to your house wearing plain clothes and are in a horse and buggy don't bother answering the door. The Amish have invaded your technology service.
I have been dealing with those goofs for a long time now. I am always two steps back.
Good luck in getting this resolved!
It's no secret that I am no fan of Comcast. From the time that they took over for RoadRunner everything went to shit in an instant. They have cost me thousands of dollars (no joke), and the customer service was some of the worst I have ever encountered (Dell has been horrible, yet they are ranked 2nd among computer manufacturers for customer service, WTF? I'd hate to deal with #3). That said, the last time we were disconnected (again adding $110 to the total) I called irate, and I actually got someone local, and he was actually able to help. The problem seems to have been taken care of, and Comcast seems to have turned over a new leaf in the CS department.
I actually had considered the city plan as a way to get wireless to the patio, but it is too much to pay for that, and I refuse to believe that the signal will reach into the house (through our steal siding) until I see proof. Our WiFi stops dead at the doorstep. I have had the router sitting on the window sill three feet from the patio with the window open and I get no signal.
I'll definitely follow up as this resolves itself, one way or the other.
AJ - if the outdoor antenna works, they'll actually run a cable from there into the house, so there will be no need to transmit a signal through the walls of the house. In terms of what's going on in the interior of my house, it'll be wireless in name only.
My wireless router sends its signal willy nilly through my wood siding, over to the neighbors (it's encrypted) and out onto my deck (not in that order).
It's rare, however, that I sit outside and use the computer. It just seems wrong.
CFU puts the wireless transmitter in our house. The internet is run over a broadband cable that comes into the house. Sarah and I can use our laptops anywhere in our house. I have not tried to take it outside, but I can get the signal of others in the neigborhood. However, it is encrypted like Meth says.
I don't know if this is like your system or not, but I have a hard time visualizing a local signal going out that you have to pick up from within your house. Is it because you don't have cable? Just trying to better understand your situation.
Still wishing and hoping for good luck for your technology needs.
Have a cable already - that's how we got Comcast/Roadrunner for all those years.
The general theory is that we can have a modem or modem/antenna combo INSIDE the house that can pick up the signal. In my unusual (of course) case, the signal is not reaching my antenna with much oomph. What they're going to try is having a mounted antenna OUTSIDE the house. From then on, it'd be wired. Either a cable or ethernet cable going from that outdoor antenna through the wall and to my (formerly) wireless modem. From there to my Vonage modem and on to my computer.
Basically, "wireless" Minneapolis, for me, is going to mean extra wires.
That system sounds completely flipped up.
Yikes. I empathize. Over in Iowa City, Mediacom (could there be a more terrifying, monopolizing name?) runs the whole broadband cable show, and despite some attempts, there's no real competition. That said, my broadband signal has been solid the past year. Enough for me to finally get a Skype account and the requisite hardware. If anyone uses that service, let me know.
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