My Subcontinent Odyssey
We’ll see how quickly and calmly I can whip this out.
I realized today that an exchange of Emails was not going to work to make my computer not go to the Netgear site about 80% of the time when I clicked to go to a URL. So I called Netgear customer service. I spent about forty-five minutes with a “level one support engineer.” She didn’t have a clue what I was saying. I had to ask her to repeat about every third response. For the entire time, she did not understand that I connected to the internet on an aircard. Not DSL. Not cable. When she asked me how I connected for the fifth time. I tried to politely ask her that I be connected with someone else. She ignored me. She went back to another theme of her half of our conversation: if I could not find a Netgear Icon, I had no Netgear software on my computer.
I used my “big boy” voice and told her that I didn’t care if there was an icon, could she explain why my browser went to one of your blogs and then redirected to the Netgear welcome page if I didn’t have any of its software on my computer? She had no answer and said she couldn’t help me. She would transfer me to her supervisor. Alvin came on the line and solved the problem, I thought, in about five minutes.
When I went on the internet this evening the problem was back. I called again. After an hour of back and forth with a “level two support engineer” I said, “I don’t care if the router ever works, tell me how to make the browser go to the site I send it to.” He insisted that I’d been given bad advice from the others and that he would fix it. I said no. He said if I unplugged the router, I wouldn’t have the problem. I did so and tried some sites while I was online with him. They all went were I planned to go to. After I hung up, I tried a bunch more. So far so good.
Oh, and while this problem was going on, my start page on Google that was customized to give me various news sources had gone back to the generic page that invited me to customize it. Router on its way to the trash and the customized start page is back. Makes no sense; but, facts are facts I guess.
Now I have to figure out, again, how to let the satellite receiver talk to the computer.
I’ll keep you updated, unless I get a significant number of comments telling me not to bother you with this boring garbage. Pandering I know, but Pos says that people are reading but not commenting.
8 comments:
They should make sympathy cards for people who get lousy tech support from half way around the planet. "My deepest sympathy on your loss of time and patience. Wishing you comfort and peace until your sh*t's working right again." :)
This makes me glad I just have cable for internet and TV, even though it is expensive. Sure is easy, compared to your experience.
Computer hijacking. Shouldn't they have to pay a fine?
Okay, if I am reading correctly what is happening, it sounds like the wireless part of your wireless router is interfering with your internet connection... yes?
So, you want to be able to use the router part of your router without using the wireless part. Right?
There should be a way to turn off the wireless function, but you have to log into the admin interface and specifically disable wireless on the router.
It may be that you have already tried that. If so, then it sounds like you need to buy just a router, without the wireless functionality.
Oh, God, this kind of thing drives me CRAZY.
The quick answer to your questions Pos is, yes. I'm going to solve the problem (I hope) by getting a cheap wireless router and putting it between the receiver and the laptop.
I hate the technical side of computers! I just want to turn them on and bingo, they do the job. As far as technical support, the last time I tried it, the voice on the other end had such a heavy accent I couldn't make out a word she said. That's when I went out and replaced my computer!
MB, you may have discovered their dastardly plan. "Help" is incomprehensible so we have to go buy another one, whatever it is. Brilliant!
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