A friend's lovely AT&T story...

The following is a story from a friend of mine who also works in the IT sector: R*** = him K*** = at&t rep

I hate tech support......

Please wait while we find an agent to assist you...
All agents are currently busy. Please stand by.
You are currently at position number 1 in the queue.
Thank you for contacting AT&T Internet Services, my name is K***. One moment while I review your information.

R***: I'm having issues connecting to my POP3 server using AT&T DSL. If I connect to a remote site via RDP (thus using another provider) I can access mail fine. I also noticed that my IP changed from a 75.x.x.x to a 70.x.x.x IP today. Is AT&T having routing issues or making any major changes? If so, when will they be resolved/finished?

R***: FYI - My POP3 mail is hosted elsewhere.
R***: www.***.com, which I can't even ping it on AT&T.

K***: I am sorry you are experiencing this issue. I will be more than happy to assist you.
K***: Are you using Outlook, R***?

R***: The problem is email client independent.

K***: I see that your account is DSL Dynamic so it's normal that your IP is changing.

R***: It's not normal for an ISP's entire IP scheme to change. Is AT&T having any routing issues or making changes?

K***: No.

R***: So why do you think I can't connect to a website (www.hansonconsultinginc.c

om - My website) when on AT&T DSL, but I can connect to it without issue using Charter or Clearwire at this moment.

K***: Please call Webhosting on these numbers: 888-932-4678 or 888-WEB-HOST and 866-SBC-Y-WEB or 866-722-9932 during business hours at 8:00AM-5:00PM on Mondays-Fridays.

R***: Is this an automated system, or are do you not understand that I can't access a specific website when on AT&T DSL, but I can access it using other providers...

K***: This is live chat. What browser are you using?
K***: Is it Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox or the AT&T Yahoo Browser?

R***: I'm using Lynx...

K***: Based on our experience, this issue is best resolved when working together with one of our support agents over a telephone line because it requires multiple troubleshooting steps. Please call us at 1-877-722-3755. We look forward to speaking with you to resolve this issue.

R***: thanks

Your session has ended. You may now close this window.


It turns out that there were issues in Virginia with the Verizon network which is near my hosting provider.

http://ping.fm/ahAay

Prince becomes a complete hyprocrite

I hate Prince :


Seven years ago, he became a Jehovah’s Witness. He said that he had
moved to L.A. so that he could understand the hearts and minds of the
music moguls. “I wanted to be around people, connected to people, for
work,” he said. “You know, it’s all about religion. That’s what unites
people here. They all have the same religion, so I wanted to sit down
with them, to understand the way they see things, how they read
Scripture.”
When asked about his perspective on social issues—gay marriage,
abortion—Prince tapped his Bible and said, “God came to earth and saw
people sticking it wherever and doing it with whatever, and he just
cleared it all out. He was, like, ‘Enough.’ ”

"I'm single, celibate and sexy," he says with a laugh. "I feel free."

Banks, what do you really need them for?

Recently I found this comment on an article over at prisonplanet.com...

Just a thought Says:



November 14th, 2008 at 11:53 am

Anyone really think about what a bank is really for. For me it is
was place where I could cash my paycheck, and then create a method of
payment to pay my bills.

About 10 years ago I wrote a few bad checks. I did it because I was
living on the street and had no money and was hungry. I did pay it all
back with double NSF charges and interest.

Regardless of my reasoning, I got put on the bad list, and could not open a bank account anywhere.

I then had to find a way to cash my paycheck and pay my bills. For
the next ten years (and even now), I have not used a bank for anything.

I have been able to live a perfectly normal life with out a bank. I
cash my paycheck at a check cashing agency. I have one Mastercard that
is a debit card that is pre-paid. I load money on this card at lots of
different places. The fee is 5.00, and I can load as much as $10,000 on
it. To pay my bills I buy money orders. I have piled up a small bit of
money (30K) which I have in gold coins. I have these stored at a
private agency which charges me $2 per month to store it.

When people told me that they were worried about the banks going
under, I thought it was pretty funny because I did not have a dime
invested in any bank. Most folks know that when paper money is no good,
gold is king. Most of the gold I bought over the last ten years costs
me about $500 an oz, where its worth over $700 now.

Two years ago I took my first vacation ever. I deposited 5K on my
pre-paid Mastercard over a period of a few years when money was good
for me. I then took a fantastic vacation, all of which was already paid
for.

I admit I do not own a house, but those that do are complaining right now and wished they had not anyways.

We really do not need banks. Banks need us. And it is just amazing
to me that our approach to fix our financial problems is to help the
banks, not the customer.

More protecting and serving right at home in Eau Claire

A letter to the editor from a local paper :


Don't detain cardiac staffer

On Tuesday, April 29, at about midnight, my husband woke me up saying he was not feeling well. He was very dizzy, had chest pain and numbness in his left hand. I told him we are going to the hospital. We went to Sacred Heart Hospital. They took his vital signs; he was having a heart attack. They needed to act fast to save his life. The ER staff called the cardiac team at home to respond to this emergency. One of the team members on her way to save my husband's life was pulled over by an Eau Claire city police officer for speeding. She showed her hospital I.D. and told the officer she was on her way to a cardiac emergency at the hospital (every second counts). The police officer made her sit there and wait, then gave her a speeding ticket. What if that person lying in that emergency room was someone you loved. I think there are exceptions to every rule! What do you think? My 41-year-old husband is doing much better now, and I am grateful to the staff at Sacred Heart Hospital. TRACEY JOHNSON Eau Claire

Drivermax.com dosen't suck

In fact you should check it out

Scans your PC for drivers
Uploads your drivers to their central server (who knows what legal issues that entails)
Shows you the latest version of all your drivers, which ones are out of date, and where to get new ones at their site
Then it will even download and install the drivers for you.

LONG HAIRED HARE

LONG HAIRED HARE
(Jones-1949)

(Bugs is playing a banjo)
What do they do on a rainy night in Rio
Rinky dinky dink
What do they do when there is no starry sky
Oh a starry sky
Where do they go when they can't go for a walk
Do they stay home and talk
Or do they sit and sigh, igh-de-igh
(interrupted by Giovanni Jones practicing his opera singing)
(Jones) What do they do in Mississippi
When skies are drippy
(Bugs) And what do they do in Tiajuana
When they want to snuggle tight
Well....

(Bugs has a harp this time)
She's a fancy stepper when she dances
Go and see her as she kippers and prances
My gal don't do much talking
Dances even when she's walking
(Jones ad libs) One and two and three and four she dances all day long
(Bugs) Oh my gal is a high part stepper
Ginger with salt and pepper
She's a fancy stepper when she dances
Go and see her as she kippers and prances

Don't worry, they will still hate us. (nogodblog.com)

By Douglas Todd, Religion News Service
Religious people are more helpful and generous than others — but only on two conditions, according to a new study published in the prestigious journal Science.

University of British Columbia psychology researchers Ara Norenzayan and Azim Shariff concluded that religious people act more kindly than atheists on condition they believe their acts will enhance their reputations among their peers. The second condition is being freshly reminded, in a subconscious way, of the existence of a morally tinged God or supernatural being, the researchers said.

Religious people are inclined, under these conditions, to be more giving and honest than others because their belief in God assumes the existence of an all-knowing "supernatural police" force that monitors their behavior, Norenzayan said in an interview.

But once researchers remove the two conditions, Norenzayan said, "all of a sudden you don't find any differences between the moral behavior of religious people and non-religious."
http://www.usatoday.com/news/religion/2008-10-07-morality-giving_N.htm