Fibre Optic Broadband

[Cyclezee]

Yesterday we had Plusnet Extra Fibre broadband installed.
BT Openreach did the installation and we had it up and running in around an hour

An hour later it died along with our landline

I contacted Plusnet who advised that it was a fault at the exchange and it woul be rectified soon.
6 hours later, I contacted them again to find out what was happening, the answer was it could be next Wednesday before we have service restored.

I am less than impressed, but despite several more calls and a couple of emails, I did not get anywhere.

Plusnet blame BT who don't seem to be in any hurry to do anything.

Plusnet are owned by BT and seems that once you are signed up to them, you are at their mercy

So for the time being it feels like I have gone back in time 20 years to a time before the internet, I'm begining to think it really wasn't so bad, my wife and I actually have conversations rather muttering to each other as we both stare at computer screens

 

[Cyclezee]

Yippe, I got a phone call on my landline yesterday morning to tell me that my phone service has now been restored

Apparently, a wire was not inserted correctly in the cabinet down the road and it popped out

But.............no broadband so now I have to wait for that to be restored

 

[muckymits]

Ive been with Plusnet about 10 years now, they have real people that speak english on the phone and they care. But like most of the ISPs they are at the mercy of Openreach, who are a law unto them selves.

BT bought out Plusnet to work out why they kept winning the awards for customer service and then stupidly moved the call centre to South Africa, there was hell on. They soon brought it back and then left us alone to get on with it.

 

[Deleted member 4366]

You would've thought that they could lend you one of those broadband dongles while they're sorting out the problem to keep you going.

 

[funkylyn]

Its wednesday tomorrow John......then maybe......IF you are very lucky......and IF you have been VERY good...... you might be able to come out from "the dark side "

Bet this is KILLING you.......

Lynda

 

[Cyclezee]

I don't know what you are on Lynda, apart from a Tonaro that is, but I think you need a tablet

 

[funkylyn]

I don't know what you are on Lynda, apart from a Tonaro that is, but I think you need a tablet

LOL.........And you obviously need to get re connected.........

Lynda

 

[Cyclezee]

It's back on and it only took 5 days

A genuine BT Openreach engineer turned up this afternoon and fixed the problem in the cabinet down the road.

He said the installers that came on Friday were sub contractors and he spends his life correcting their mistakes.

From my experience, there are lots of communication problems within communication companies.

It reminds me of when British Gas installed out solar panels last year, engineers turning up after having driven over a hundred miles to find that the panels had not arrived, and when the panels did arrive the next day, their were no brackets to fit them, then the electrician installed the wrong type of meter which took months to be replaced.

The installation should have taken 2 days, but actually took 4.

The scaffolding stayed in place for over 2 weeks before it was removed, but it did give me the opportunity to clean out the guttering safely.

I'm not blaming the actual 'workers', it just seems that the organisations behind them are poorly run and the bigger the organisation the worse it gets.

I could write a book about the shorcomings of NHS management, but I think I will leave it there.

 

[flecc]

The scaffolding stayed in place for over 2 weeks before it was removed

This is common practice in the industry for efficiency reasons John. Scaffolding is often left in-situ until it is needed on a following job, since this saves double handing of this heavy equipment. The alternative of clearing promptly means returning it all to base, unloading and racking, only to have to pull it all out again to reload for return to another job. That doubles labour and transport costs.
.

 

[Ptarmigan]

But like most of the ISPs they are at the mercy of Openreach, who are a law unto them selves.

Ah the famous LLU fiasco
In which the advocates of Local Loop Unbundling persuaded the Thatcher gov to support EU moves to disentangle the big telecoms monopolies (likeBT) from the provision of wires to houses, and then to promptly give exactly that monopoly to little monopolies like Openreach.
Oh gosh, guess what ! Openreach is another bit of BT ! What a surprise !

 

[carpetbagger]

Ah the famous LLU fiasco
In which the advocates of Local Loop Unbundling persuaded the Thatcher gov to support EU moves to disentangle the big telecoms monopolies (likeBT) from the provision of wires to houses, and then to promptly give exactly that monopoly to little monopolies like Openreach.
Oh gosh, guess what ! Openreach is another bit of BT ! What a surprise !

Technically correct,Openreach is part of BT.....but all work that comes to Openreach is dealt with in the sameway. BT work is not given priority, they are a service provider like all the others talktalk,plusnet whoever. Openreach works completely seperate from BT.....and the regulator makes sure of this.
Openreach contols the external network outside so all service providers are its customers,including BT !

 

[Ptarmigan]

Technically correct,Openreach is part of BT
,,,,
Openreach contols the external network

Well, rather more than "technically", actually "factually" !!
But that was my throw-away last line.
,,,
Exactly so.
My main point was that despite the aims of the unbundlers to free the market for competition they were not able to (did not see that they could not ) bring free competition to the provision of copper wires to the houses, that remained a monopoly of Openreach ( the name change from BT achieved nothing) all the client companies 'talktalk,plusnet whoever' still had to (have to) pay the charge that Openreach determines for provision and maintainance of the local loop.

The fibre optic part of the market is a subset being cherry-picked in areas of concentrated consumers.

However - ! - in my case it is academic, I have a 3G wireless dongle so I am free, FREE at last ! after years of fighting the GPO, BT, Openreach et al over noisy and intermittent lines I nolonger have a problem

 

[flecc]

However - ! - in my case it is academic, I have a 3G wireless dongle so I am free, FREE at last ! after years of fighting the GPO, BT, Openreach et al over noisy and intermittent lines I nolonger have a problem

A long as you don't visit me! I don't have any Gs, can't even make a mobile phone call at home on any network, and I'm in a London Borough!

 

[Cyclezee]

A long as you don't visit me! I don't have any Gs, can't even make a mobile phone call at home on any network, and I'm in a London Borough!

Ah, London village, how quaint, still at least you have gas street lighting

 

[flecc]

Ah, London village, how quaint, still at least you have gas street lighting

Not any more, but still no high intensity street lights!

The G problem is being on the side of a steep valley shaded from the powerful transmissions of the large masts on the top of the North Downs. A couple of hundred yards (we don't have metres either) walk onto the other valley flank and there's a full five bar signal.

 

[Cyclezee]

When my daughter moved into her flat in Peckham, I installed her Freeview box and plugged the aerial lead into the wall socket then set it up.

She wanted to move things around, so I unplugged the aerial from the wall socket whilst the TV and box were on, it made to difference to the reception, the picture was perfect with out it

The Freeview box was supplied the Home Office when she worked there as a Senior Press Officer.............spooky

 

[Ptarmigan]

A long as you don't visit me! I don't have any Gs,

Ah but if I did visit you then you could share my dongleGs !
It is a wee usb stick thingy wot plugs in to the usb port on any computer (just like a memory stick)

Means I dont have to stay within range of a wireless router attatched to a landline, nor do I have to find a WiFi hotspot (few and far between out here in the badlands )

(anecdote)
Just the other day I sat out in my garden watching my hen pen to find out how the birds were escaping, whilst doing what I needed on t'intnet with my laptop.
(/anecdote)

EDIT
"The G problem is being on the side of a steep valley"
Ah I see, we xxed !

 

[Ptarmigan]

A couple of hundred yards (we don't have metres either) walk onto the other valley flank and there's a full five bar signal.

Have you tried a few parasitic reflectors (re-radiators) hung in the trees hither and yon a couple of hundred yds away ?

 

[flecc]

Have you tried a few parasitic reflectors (re-radiators) hung in the trees hither and yon a couple of hundred yds away ?

In a much-loved nature reserve! I don't think I'd get away with that, and anyway, I wouldn't want to.

I drew the line against the excess of communications at the point of mobile online and social networking. My phone-only mobile phone is one that can make my phone calls such as emergency ones when away from home and is switched off at all other times!

 

[neptune]

I worked for Post Office Telephones, the forerunner of BT, as a young man. At that time, all Post Office Engineering Dept vehicles were painted a Dark olive green, similar to the khaki colour of army vehicles. An expensive study was undertaken to reduce road accidents, and it was decided to repaint the entire fleet in a bright yellow colour, to aid visibility.
A few years later, the GPO became BT. All the fleet was again repainted in a sort of dirty grey colour, carefully selected to blend with fog....