Monday, August 27, 2007

Comcast service - some things never change

A number of years ago I had Comcast for my cable TV and internet, and after numerous outages, bad experiences with repair folks who took 3 visits to fix a problem, and hours (literally) on hold with their customer support, I swore never again to do business with them.

But now they have a pretty good price on a package of HD cable, broadband, and VOIP phone service--saving me about $25 a month over the combination of Qwest, DirecTV, Tivo, and DSL NW. So I figured hey, it's been 10 years, they've probably got their act together--and gave them another chance.

My first clue should have been when I tried to sign up for the service on their website, and it crashed on what was probably the last page....every time.

My second clue should have been when I called customer service, and after spending about 10 minutes having them get everything typed in on their side, the phone call got cut off.

Third time was a charm, and when I called back I got us scheduled for an install--all is happy warm and fuzzy, right...

...until the installer showed up.

Late, of course.

After we picked up all of the clipped bits of wire and cable staples he'd dropped in our yard (presumably for our 10-month old son to pick up and put in his mouth), I discovered that in fact we weren't getting a high-def picture. And the HD portion of the onscreen guide didn't work.

Checking the wiring, I found that the installer had not hooked up the new Comcast box to the high-def connection on the back of the TV. Luckily, everything on the Comcast DVR and the TV was well-labelled, so that an amateur like me could connect it easily, and I didn't have to call in a professional like the Comcast installer.

Something tells me we're just getting started. Some people never learn (i.e., ME).

UPDATE: our ADT alarm system is beeping....why? Because the Comcast installer didn't hook it up to the new phone system like it said to in the work order. So they're sending out another installer to finish the job.

It's not Comcastic...it's Comcatastrophic.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

Motorcycle trip to BC, Idaho, Montana...


This picture is looking down on Osoyoos, B.C....after a fabulous twisty climbing road on the bikes!