Ordering DSL - A day from Hell

XyphusXyphus South Bend, Indiana
edited July 2003 in Science & Tech
Ugh.. I am totally exhausted... I've spent the last two days *trying* to order DSL service. You would think it would be fairly easy. Call the toll free number, choose your package, wait for the hardware, hook it up and be done...

Oh, silly viewer... It's never that simple... :)

My problem is that I currently have ISDN service. ISDN is considered a "business class" line. So, first things first, I must have my line re-classed from business to residential. Simple enough you would think.. Well, no it seems.. It's not quite that simple. It seems no matter what number I called, I would end up with the same "Menu-Go-Round".. Please press this number, please press that number, etc. Well, after patiently pressing the various numbers, and choosing the various options from the menu, I *finally* think I am getting somewhere...

Alas.. it was not meant to be. I *always* got the same message... "Our office is now closed. Our normal business hours are from 7am to 6pm Eastern Standard Time. Your call is important to us. Please leave a voice mail message and a representative will return your call in 24 to 48 Hours..."

Hmmm... Strange because it was only 4:45pm... Okay, I think.. I will try again tomorrow...

So, I call back at 10:30am (even in another time zone, that would *still* be within the 7am to 6pm span of time), and what do I hear... The same message as before saying the office was closed, call back between..... blah blah blah....

Okay.. Getting a bit pissed by this time... So I now call the "Customer Care" line and after a bit of Menu-Go-Round I am offered the choice to speak to a real human. I of course jump at this offer as one would cling to a flotation device on sinking ship...

After a wait of about 5 minutes, a real person picks up the line and asks how they may help me. I explain my situation.. Have ISDN, need re-classed before ordering DSL, etc. blah blah.. etc..

They say that they will transfer me to someone who can help.... A click, a bit of music... and then the same damn message... Our normal hours are... blah blah... AIEEGH!!

Okay.. REALLY getting pissed at this point... Again I call the customer care line... Again Menu-Go-Round... Again a wait of 5 minutes on hold with country music in the background... And and another human on the other end...

Again... explain my story... explain my issues with the non-existant people who work from 7am-6pm in some alien world where time is different than on Earth... This person is helpful and understanding... She tries to contact a real person for me so she can transfer me... Sounds good to me... I start to hope once again...

*BLAMMO* No such luck... Her computer has frozen and she can't seem to get the information she needs... She asks for a number I can be reached at, and she will get back to me within 30 minutes... I believe her, offer my info, and hang up...

3 hours later and *still* no call back...

Once again I call the Customer Care line... Quite a bit perterbed at this time...

Menu-Go-Round... hold music.. wash, rinse, repeat... You know the drill... :)

Another human... This one seems chipper and quite happy to help.. I explain my problem... Need the re-class, can't reach anyone to help..

She says that I need not worry, she can help me... She calls the number for ISDN and is greeted with the same problem as I was... They are there only in some alien time frame, much different than on Earth.. She tries another number... Still no luck.. Finally she says she needs to put me on hold and will be right back... (I feel dread wash over me but accept the inevitable... I say okay... more country and western music...)

Suddenly, the chipper voice is back, she has tracked down a direct line, she calls... A real person picks up... They chitter about needing a re-class... They need to put me back on hold... More C&W music...

She comes back... She says that They can schedule a re-class for the 16th, but it could be up to 3 weeks from that day that they actually disconnect the ISDN... (sigh) I accept... (hey, this is the furthest I have gotten so far...)

She then goes on to take my order information for DSL... We find out I am approx 8,070 feet from the CO... Well within range (and should get pretty good speed...)

I order the "Standard Plus Package" which is 384Kbps-1.5Mbps down and 128Kbps up for $29.95. I order the standard phone service which comes to $34.95. (includes caller ID, call waiting, etc..)

All info taken, all orders placed... Of course, the rub.. They can't install the DSL until *after* the ISDN is disconnected. (which *could* be as early as the 16th, or up to 3 weeks after that...) and I have my line re-classed back to residential...

So, here I sit... Biding my time.... I *could* have the DSL installed as early as the 30th, or possibly sometime next month.. LOL!

But it shall be mine... Oh yes... It shall be mine.... Eventually...

:aol:
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Comments

  • panzerkwpanzerkw New York City
    edited June 2003
    suckin
  • Bad_KarmaBad_Karma The Great White North
    edited June 2003
    Dear God, what a bunch of crap from that phone company. Then again they sound like every fricken phone company in existence. You should phone back and try to get a deal like the first 3 months free or at half price. At least installation if any should be free for the bs you've put up with.
  • ClutchClutch North Carolina New
    edited June 2003
    Man I feel sorry for you m8. I went around with my telephone company for 2 weeks before they got my dsl up and running. They changed my password 3 different times and didn't inform me of even one change, so the whole time I could have it up, but they changed my password, so I couldn't log in. Boy I tell ya, customer support just isn't what it used to be. That's why I'm glad my business offers nice friendly customer support, mainly because I'm the only one to talk for cs, haha
  • Red-DawnRed-Dawn Been kidnapped and being held hostage in Edinburgh
    edited June 2003
    I feel ur pain, finally got the Phone company to say they'll upgrade our exchange to DSL after we tracked down 350 people in our area who were willing to sign up. thought then that maybe juat maybe they'd upgrade the exchange and all would be well.

    Well its been 2 weeks now and still no set date for when the work will be carried out, phoned up today to try and get an answer. Spent 25 min listining to the same 3 tone music only to be told by a guy that doesn't fully understand or speak english that that information is not available:(
  • danball1976danball1976 Wichita Falls, TX
    edited June 2003
    Thats why you go cable service. Buy the modem, go to the Cable company store/office, set up the account, and they record the MAC address, and its all done. Once you get home, your connection is on.
  • profdlpprofdlp The Holy City Of Westlake, Ohio
    edited June 2003
    I don't know why it is, but nearly everyone I know who has gone the DSL route has had major problems getting things hooked up.

    Don't the phone companies want our money?


    Prof
    (Hoping the situation improves for you:cool: )
  • panzerkwpanzerkw New York City
    edited June 2003
    I guess I'm lucky. On most military installations, DSL isn't available. You're stuck with using cable. Given the close proximity of all the soldiers on line in the barracks complex, the connection ain't all that great.
  • danball1976danball1976 Wichita Falls, TX
    edited June 2003
    panzerkw said
    I guess I'm lucky. On most military installations, DSL isn't available. You're stuck with using cable. Given the close proximity of all the soldiers on line in the barracks complex, the connection ain't all that great.

    Where are you at? Here at Barksdale AFB in Shreveport, LA, there may be a lot of people who have cable TV, but not many with Cable internet.
  • primesuspectprimesuspect Beepin n' Boopin Detroit, MI Icrontian
    edited June 2003
    Xyphus:

    The Worst DSL Experience Ever™:

    When I opened my new office in 2000, it took six months for our DSL to be installed and working.

    The End.
  • KwitkoKwitko Sheriff of Banning (Retired) By the thing near the stuff Icrontian
    edited June 2003
    More people with DSL horror stories. Prime, at least yours worked after installation. My installation delay was only 2 weeks, but I had DSL for 7 months, of which I was down a cumulative total of 5 of those 7 months, including a whopping 21 day outage, followed by an 18 day outage.

    Then when I tried to switch from Verizon DSL to Earthlink DSL, Verizon would find every excuse in the book to break appointments and find reasons why they couldn't hook up the local loop and get things ready for Covad to come in and make the connection.

    My cable hookup to all of 4 days from first phone call to up and running.
  • profdlpprofdlp The Holy City Of Westlake, Ohio
    edited June 2003
    primesuspect said
    Xyphus:

    The Worst DSL Experience Ever™:

    When I opened my new office in 2000, it took six months for our DSL to be installed and working.

    The End.

    You should've opened your new office in XP!


    Prof
    (Don't bother, I've already smacked myself):D
  • leishi85leishi85 Grand Rapids, MI Icrontian
    edited June 2003
    woo, that must have sucked,

    my ordering for DSL went really smooth, package arrived exactly at the time they told me, and line was activated exactly that day too, sweet time for my Phone company, by the way it's SBC
  • primesuspectprimesuspect Beepin n' Boopin Detroit, MI Icrontian
    edited June 2003
    profdlp said
    primesuspect said
    Xyphus:

    The Worst DSL Experience Ever™:

    When I opened my new office in 2000, it took six months for our DSL to be installed and working.

    The End.

    You should've opened your new office in XP!


    Prof
    (Don't bother, I've already smacked myself):D

    Profldp wins the official "Worst joke EVER" award for the Month of June on Short-Media!
  • muddocktormuddocktor
    edited June 2003
    I feel your pain, Xyphus.:) Reading this brings back flashbacks of me trying to get DSL from Bellsouth(those a-holes:mad: ) last year. I got a mailer in saying that they were coming into my area with DSL and that I was qualified for service, so I eagerly called them up and signed up for it. I live 3.0 miles from the telco and the wire follows the road, so I figured I should be kind of far away but still in range of DSL service. They said that it would be 2 months before they installed the equipment at the telco and then would be getting me going. So 2 months pass with no word on progress, so I call them. They say that they are running behind schedule but that the equipment will be installed by the end of the month. OK, I wait and a month passes and still nothing from these idiots. So I call up and try to find out what is going on and the fun really began then. These a-holes gave me the royal runaround until I filed a complaint against them with the LA Public Service Commission and finally talked to some higher a-hole that said my lines were loaded(whatever that is:rolleyes: ) and that they couldn't provide service. Cable was also out as the cable company that has the exclusive rights to my area is owned by some jackleg redneck Mississippi company that has some kind of Fred Flinstone type analog cable crap with no plans to upgrade. I ended up getting 2 way satelite broadband for significantly more money, but it at least has fast download speeds.

    If they continue to give you crap, file a complaint against them with the public service commission in your state. They are the ones who OK rate increases for these a-holes and if they get enough customer complaints for poor service then maybe they will think twice about giving these a-holes any rate increases.
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    edited June 2003
    I've had DSL equipment installed twice here by Ameritech. Both days the equipment was delivered ahead of schedule, the people came out to drop the line about two hours early, and the DSL was turned on three days before schedule.
  • KwitkoKwitko Sheriff of Banning (Retired) By the thing near the stuff Icrontian
    edited June 2003
    And then you woke up? You're putting us on. Come on, I've never met anyone who had such a painless DSL installation! Tell me you're lying. Please?
  • XyphusXyphus South Bend, Indiana
    edited June 2003
    Well, I hope the actual DSL install goes smoothly... I've been having all sorts of trouble with my ISDN connection for the past week or so... Keep loosing the D-channel. And I don't know if you know how ISDN works compared to DSL, but there are 2 B-Channels, and then the D-Channel. (the B-channels are what you transfer voice/data over, and the D-channel is what keeps you in synch, and actually controls the line...)

    So, it's been quite a pain... Talking to someone on the phone and suddenly the D-channel goes down, and of course that means you no longer have phone service...

    Good thing we invested in a couple of Cell phones... At least we can get out if we need to...

    Today I've been up and down more times than a yo-yo... Who knows how long I'll be able to stay connected and actually post a message...

    *sigh* And the Tech Support for ISDN is basically non-existant as well... We called them a couple times and of course they say, "Yes, there is an error showing on the line, but we can't tell if it's on our end or yours... We'll have to send a tech out to check your line..." And at $75 per 15 minutes we say hell no... We know it's not on our end... We've checked the equipment over and over, replaced the cables and cords.. I even checked to see if something chewed on the line outside... Everything is exactly how it has been for the past two years...

    Ah well... I have high hopes for DSL.. Keeping my fingers crossed... :)
  • ClutchClutch North Carolina New
    edited June 2003
    profdlp said





    You should've opened your new office in XP!


    haha, omg I still don't know why I'm laughing at that.
  • ThraxThrax 🐌 Austin, TX Icrontian
    edited June 2003
    TD_Isles said
    And then you woke up? You're putting us on. Come on, I've never met anyone who had such a painless DSL installation! Tell me you're lying. Please?

    Wish I could honor that request. :ninja:
  • mmonninmmonnin Centreville, VA
    edited June 2003
    I cant believe a company like that survives.
  • TropicalTropical
    edited June 2003
    supply and demand! I can't believe you get that DSL for so cheap, in our town the only company is adelphia which is bankrupt and don't update anything and it's only 39.99. You think you get a static IP for that price or something but no, you don't get anything. well at least is better than dial up!
  • leishi85leishi85 Grand Rapids, MI Icrontian
    edited June 2003
    same here thrax, my installation was like butter
  • CammanCamman NEW! England Icrontian
    edited June 2003
    primesuspect said
    profdlp said
    primesuspect said
    Xyphus:

    The Worst DSL Experience Ever™:

    When I opened my new office in 2000, it took six months for our DSL to be installed and working.

    The End.

    You should've opened your new office in XP!


    Prof
    (Don't bother, I've already smacked myself):D

    Profldp wins the official "Worst joke EVER" award for the Month of June on Short-Media!


    AHAHAHAH I agree, just terrible man.
  • Red-DawnRed-Dawn Been kidnapped and being held hostage in Edinburgh
    edited June 2003
    i got some good news today, i phoned several isps instead of teh telephone company and got an answer outta them. from what i've been told the upgarde work on my exchange is due to be finihsed on the 16th of july. thats the date they've been given so i hope the telco keeps its end of the bargin with then otherwise i gotta wait even longer:(
  • XyphusXyphus South Bend, Indiana
    edited June 2003
    Well, here's an update... We got a call from SBC's tech. Looks like he'll be out to disconnect our ISDN tomorrow (the 18th).

    Now, if they worked this right, we should also have our "new" line installed the same day. Then of course, DSL should hopefully follow within the following week...

    So, keep your fingers crossed for me... :)

    (And my internet access will be spotty until that time... I have a dial-up modem handy, but I really don't feel like installing the thing... so, my access may be only from work (T1! w00t!) for the next week or so until my DSL hardware arrives and my line is configured...

    Here's hoping.. :)
  • CycloniteCyclonite
    crosses his fingers...

    Good luck, buddy!
     Tampa, Florida Icrontian
    edited June 2003
    crosses his fingers...

    Good luck, buddy!
  • XyphusXyphus South Bend, Indiana
    edited June 2003
    Well, here it is the 19th... Our phone service has been off since midnight on the 16th... *Supposedly* the tech will be out tomorrow morning to get our phone service installed... *sigh*

    It was orignally set up that ISDN would be disconnected the 16th, and regular phone service would be installed the same day...

    After not hearing anything from the phone company by 5pm last night I called them on my cell phone.. spend a good half hour on hold.. And found out that even though the ISDN was disconnected at midnight on the 16th, the paperwork didn't cross the desk of the installation department until yesterday at 4:10pm... And that the first opening they had would be on the 20th at 8am...

    Who knows how long it will be until I get DSL.. if ever... If the phone company keeps up anctics like this...


    :banghead:
  • TheLostSwedeTheLostSwede Trondheim, Norway Icrontian
    edited June 2003
    I feel your pain Xyphus. My connection was down for almost 6 days recently and it took a verbal threat from me to my isp to get them to fix it. They knocked 20 bucks off my bill and gave me a 3 month upgrade to 8mb/s down and 800kb/s up for free. Thats pretty good service but i hope i will never have anymore downtime as long as 5-6 days.
  • profdlpprofdlp The Holy City Of Westlake, Ohio
    edited June 2003
    You are better men than I.

    If I lost my cable modem service for nearly a week I would probably drive over to the local office and do something horrible. And I would have a fair chance of being acquited on the grounds of temporary insanity.:wow2:

    Hope things come out alright for you.


    Prof
  • panzerkwpanzerkw New York City
    edited June 2003
    Amazing how reliant we've become on internet connections in the just the past 5-7 years.
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