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.