Archive for January, 2008

        On Day 19th of January, I went to timothy’s home and had dinner with them over there. After dinner, I was working on his Comcast installation. He just had a new internet service that ordered from Comcast. I put in all necessary cables and accessory kits for that cable internet needs. During the step that created the user name and password, I stuck. Whatever how many time I tried to sent out the “Get_services” message signal to the Comcast server, nothing response to the computer. Later, the program even hanged up. I couldn’t do anything to take the program back on from that freeze.
       I recorded down the error message and the phone number provided by the program. I started calling Comcast customer service. After button clicks and conversation with the computer lady. Finally, there is a human answer my call. I describe that I need to active my new Comcast service. That time I already knew that I need to activate the MAC address of the cable modem to the Comcast cable network in order to get the permission to connect to the Comcast internet. I told the gentleman to have my Mac address activated. He responded, he needs my information to be verified so we can move on to the next step and have all the service activated. I followed, and have all my information to be provided that time. (Of course, the information that I provided was my uncle’s.) We have a hard time to being communicated. He wouldn’t understand my English as well the environment was noise around me. (The small family party hasn’t done yet.) I provided him the MAC address and even the serial number for the modem, model and the manufactory as well. I was kind of piss of that time after one hour talking and still not get the issue done. I have a Comcast high speed internet service before. By the time I had my internet service activated, it didn’t take that long to have thing done.
       After silent and silent, the customer service guy seems like setting up the customer information on the database for me. I was kind of patient in waiting, because I was reading the news paper and holding the cell phone. It was one hour, I think. And the guy in another side of the phone finally tells me that their computer system is down and he couldn’t set up the internet service for me.  He told me to call back an hour later to see if the system will come back on.
      I hang up the call but with a very politely farewell. 
      I reboot the system and did a power cycle to all network devices and started to work on my own. I first re-run the program that I had got from Comcast. Everything pretty the same like the time I first runt this program. But this time, I can go all the way down to the User information create window. And I set up all the information and click”sent out” button. The program showing a time clock which indicated that the program is processing the information. A while after I sent out the information, the program received the respond from the server and showed”Done”.  So I had created customer information and usefully registered myself to the network already.
      I tried to log on to the internet to check if the internet is really activated on my uncle’s system. After I made sure everything is okay and the webpage is loaded successfully. On that time, I knew the network is okay and everything is done to the internet service without the help from the customer service.
      Until now, I just don’t get it why the customer service wouldn’t be able to set up the internet for me, the customer. And it finally had done by me. Comcast Inc really needs to re-consider how the technical support people they have are and the training to be re-educated.