Would you believe it took Bell 4 weeks to conclude that my intermittent connection to their high-speed DSL service was due to the faulty new modem that they shipped me?
The whole time I had to endure thinly veiled accusations from their technical support that it was a user error (e.g., filtering the modem line, or not entering the right user ID), or my computer not having the right drivers (even though I've been with them for 6 years and know that no software is required because it was working fine before switching local phone companies), after which they resorted to claiming it must be an internal wiring problem (even after I told them i isolated that line and installed a whole new jack directly at the demarc).
After escalating my calls three times to a Level 2 Technician, somebody (whose mother tongue actually is English) from the Test Centre finally called me back and confirmed the complete line test checked out ok, and we scheduled a service call to my house. After 45 minutes of testing my wiring (which was perfect, no signal loss, cross-over or bleedthrough), the lineman finally had enough of the manager (who had "come along for the ride") insisting it must be the wiring somewhere, went to the truck and got me a new modem. I hooked it up, and voila, connected instantly. They were even surprised I was getting the speeds I could get given I had done my own wiring and had no Access Manager or drivers. They stuck around to make sure I could re-establish the connection through my router, and of course it picked up right away.
What a bunch of (expletives deleted). As soon as I get cable internet up and running reliably, they're history. At least they've confirmed that my wiring was irreproachable. The lineman even asked me what high-tech company I worked for, which brings me to another pet peeve of mine: Why is it people generally arrogantly extend credibility only to someone who has specialized in the subject at hand, whatever it may be? But I'll keep that discussion of educational prejudice for another day.
Anyway, I'm glad to be back online, even if it is with Sympatico.
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