A funny thing happened on the way to the forum tonight. - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: G7PSK
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 07, 2012, 08:57:33 pm
content: So I got this phone call yet again today about miss-sold payment protection. As I am on the telephone preference service register and am paying for barring calls from with held numbers I rang BT to complain, the lady on the other end of the phone passed me onto faults due to the fact that the system showed that I was indeed on the held number barring service. Faults say that they will have to send an engineer to the exchange in order to "Re synchronize the equipment" 2 hours later there is an open reach engineer knocking on the door to fix the reported fault. What reported fault I asked I only complained about with held cold calls coming through I told him, he says that there is a reported fault from the exchange on the line some where between the house and the exchange and he needs to come in and check the phone, he tries the phone and of course it works no problem so he takes the master socket off and fits a new one just because we have had few thunder storms recently. He left within half an hour, so from the time when I complained about with held numbers getting through to the non existent fault being fixed was inside two and a half hours. Last time the phone went dead it was nearly a week from the time I reported the trouble to an engineer coming to fix it. Now to my mind that's funny.PS. I could not resist the tittle.

author: Bored@Work
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 07, 2012, 09:01:01 pm
content: You the paranoid type? Check if the government just planted a bug in the socket.

author: MikeK
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 07, 2012, 09:19:53 pm
content: Quote from: Bored@Work on September 07, 2012, 09:01:01 pmBut put on your tinfoil hat first.

author: JoannaK
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: September 07, 2012, 09:45:15 pm
content: Quote from: Bored@Work on September 07, 2012, 09:01:01 pm+1

author: Jon Chandler
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: September 07, 2012, 09:54:18 pm
content: I think it was when Skylab was expected to come crashing to earth that one of my coworkers of "unique intellect" can to work with an aluminum pie plate strapped to his head. My boss asked him what was going on and he listened patiently to the explanation. "Yes, I can see your point. Maybe your hard hat would offer better protection?" My boss thought it would be easier to explain a guy sitting at his desk in our office on the first floor of a nine story solid concrete building wearing a hard hat then a pie plate!

author: free_electron
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 07, 2012, 09:58:33 pm
content: Quote from: MikeK on September 07, 2012, 09:19:53 pm- tinfoil hat- asbestos underwear- welders goggles- gloves used to handly cryogenic material- wellington boots + attached waders- and a solid lead overcoat ...- add in an acid-splash full faceplate protectorand then look what is inside that new box ...

author: G7PSK
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 07, 2012, 09:59:38 pm
content: I don't think that It was case of getting bugged just odd that a complaint of not getting the service that I am paying for gets such a rapid response whereas an actual fault condition leaves one with the feeling that they don't give a damn.

author: MikeK
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 07, 2012, 10:06:27 pm
content: Chalk it up to The Umbrella Man..Sometimes unusual things happen?

author: notsob
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: September 07, 2012, 10:59:14 pm
content: What time of day did the technician arrive, being cynical, I would presume it was the afternoon and the technician lived in the area, so he was using the non call to knock off work early and close to his home.

author: vk6zgo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 08, 2012, 03:45:19 am
content: Back in the day,the Techie worked out of the local exchange,& your complaint would go to him via the system.Someone at the Test Desk would check your line if it was the appropriate thing,or if it was something associated with the exchange they would fix it there.Nowadays,everything has to be forced into a particular format,otherwise they don't know what to do!Some time ago,we lost the ADSL & reported it to the ISP,sat for about 30 minutes while they tested from their end,determined something was wrong,& passed it on.A couple of days later a contract tech working for Telstra turned up,tested the line from this end--no problem,went to theExchange.No more heard for a couple of days,then a real Telstra bloke appeared,checked the line--all OK,fault was fixed at the Exchange.Next time that ADSL croaked,the phone line was noisy as well.I rang Telstra faults directly,an older bloke came out,found that the fault was in a pit just up the road,swapped some wires.all OK.They'll have to sack him quick--he still has brains!

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 08, 2012, 06:01:32 am
content: Changing master socket is a quick way to clear the fault report from " No fault/Customer side equipment" to "Resolved, Line fault" so that he will not get any bounces.Here I know the local area well, so generally call, report the fault then tell the guy who shows ( if he is new and i do not know him) where to go, or to give me a replacement instrument ( work has a rental agreement for phones) or parts like handset cords.I have had the no line but ADSL working, mostly after heavy rain flooded a street box. I unplugged the phone because it kept on going "ting" every 3 seconds as the line went on and off hook from the water shorting it out.

author: G7PSK
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 08, 2012, 08:06:20 am
content: Quote from: SeanB on September 08, 2012, 06:01:32 amFunny you should say that, as when it rains here the ADSL often goes down but the phone works still but with a lot of noise, when I tol the open reach engineer that he said that it is usually the other way around with the phone going dow and the internet still working he reckoned the the internet would work if one of the wires was broken said it would run on one wire but slower. Cant see it myself unless there is an earth loop.

author: David_AVD
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 08, 2012, 08:52:25 am
content: Quote from: G7PSK on September 08, 2012, 08:06:20 amI'm pretty sure we had a fault once where there was no phone service, but the ADSL did work, although at a lower speed. Turned out to be one of the wires wasn't punched down properly in the MDF (disturbed when fixing another fault for a different unit).

author: AndyC_772
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 08, 2012, 09:18:42 am
content: ADSL doesn't rely on being able to pass dc loop current in order to work. If one wire is broken, it doesn't entirely surprise me that it's possible to maintain communication using just the other one - albeit with only half the signal amplitude and a whole lot more noise.

author: ErikTheNorwegian
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: September 08, 2012, 03:30:48 pm
content: The correct hat to wear to avoid being bugged..

author: Monkeh
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 08, 2012, 03:43:45 pm
content: Quote from: G7PSK on September 07, 2012, 09:59:38 pmYes, typical BT response. If you think or know there's a fault, they'll get around to you. Eventually. Unless you live in the sticks. If they think there's a fault, they'll be all over it like flies on dung.

author: madires
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 08, 2012, 04:08:32 pm
content: While working for an ISP there was a service contract with the major telco, demanding a status update for any outage every 4 hours and a final report about what caused the outage. The most frank and honest final report I've ever seen was that a drunken tech tripped over the wrong wire in the exchange. Most final reports claimed something like "the problem suddenly vanished while debugging". We took that as "somebody messed it up so badly that we're too ashamed to tell you the truth" :-)

author: ivan747
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 09, 2012, 12:19:04 am
content: Quote from: MikeK on September 07, 2012, 09:19:53 pmAnd don't forget to ground it

author: vk6zgo
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 09, 2012, 04:20:21 am
content: Quote from: madires on September 08, 2012, 04:08:32 pmA bit like when I worked at a Broadcast transmitter.The ABC Studio wouldveryoccasionally, send low line up tone levels in the morning.We would call up & report the problem,only to be told "They're alright leaving here",as we watched the tones magically increase to the correct level.I guess it was their policy to not admit anything to another organisation.Another good one was the Fax I saw when I was with Telecom Aust,warning of a "Plannedoutrage!"

author: SeanB
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 09, 2012, 05:34:36 am
content: Most common outage reason here is " Copper cable theft", works even with fibre, which gets stolen either by accident or because the thieves want the aramid reinforcement inside.

author: Neilm
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: September 09, 2012, 11:01:59 am
content: Same here in the UK. A village about 10 miles away from me was cut off for a week when the phone lines to it were taken for the copper.Neil

author: Simon
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: September 09, 2012, 07:06:00 pm
content: Just tell the caller they are commiting a criminal offence by contacting you. The call will be very short and you may not receive anymore. Bt can't stop them dialing random numbers but they are probably supposed to check before THEY call.