Reminiscing

Ok Network down for a few days, but a new D-Link Router and a couple of hours configuring everything solved the problem. Out of the box functionality my eye. Just kidding, I am just very particular about my security, wireless is fun but dangerous. I can see at least 2 other wireless networks near by, neither one appears to have security up. Been tempted to access their printers to show them how vulnerable they are. But I won't, they will learn the dangers of no security from someone else.

Having my network down made me think about how much we have come to be dependent on the PC. My wife hates it when she can't get her e-mail and most of our banking is done online, and nearly all of our shopping - at least the research part of it. Strange it wasn't too many years ago I had to convince my wife that this Internet thing was going to be around and that we should get online. Our first computer was a a used 386, with Windows 3.11 back in 1994. If I remember right it cost us over $1000.00 used. We fired up AOL on our 14.4 Modem and we knew we were on the cutting edge. AOL was slow on a 14.4 with all the graphics, so soon we got a 486 DL100, with a 28.8 Modem now we were cooking. We got tired of AOL and jump around to other providers until we finally landed at Flashnet, A local provider that cost us 199.99 a year.

By this time we had move up to an HP Pentium 100, with a 56.6 Modem and Windows 95 and had second Kit built computer sharing a dial up connection through a cross over cable. We were sailing, also had a second phone line just for Internet and faxing, though I think I can count on my left hand the number of times we faxed things over a 2 year period, and have fingers left. Well any way I kept hearing these rumors about something called "Broadband" it was super fast, and the coming thing, I went to the local mall and saw a Demo of @home. I was hooked, I wanted it, drove the wife crazy talking about how stuff would load so much fast and how I could get more done, not having to put up with the World Wide Wait.

But they had not yet upgraded the cable in my neighborhood, what a cruel thing, like giving you your first sip of water after being in the desert for days, then telling you you can't have any more for a long time. Well I waited, and Waited, and WAITED, checking the local cable company's Web site to see if my neighborhood was upgraded yet. The blue area on the map got bigger and bigger each week, and finally MY BLOCK WAS BLUE. Oh Joy-- oh yeah one major hurdle-- convincing the wife that it was worth the expense. Not as big a problem as I thought it might be, after we figured in the cost of the phone line, and the cost of the ISP, it was only a few dollars more then we were already paying. There was a bonus too- If you got cable TV with it it was $10.00 cheaper a month. Limited Basic was 6.99 a month so we saved 3 bucks a month and I got Broadband, and cable. What more could a guy want?

The week it took for the cable guys to get out there and install my Modem seemed like an eternity. But soon we had broadband and never looked back. My mom even has Broadband and plays Scrabble with me online everyday. Now that is saying something for a Woman who wouldn't let us have "Pong" when I was a teenager, because she was afraid it would burn an image on the TV screen.

Just think in the last 10 years, how far we have come. I am now typing this on a Pentium 4 Laptop, with CPU speeds not dreamed of in 94, and I am wirelessly connected to my Cable Modem, From a far flung part of my house. Ain't Technology Wonderful?

Later.

My Opening Rant

What is it with costumer service these days, it seems that no-one cares if they serve you. I go to Braum's drive through, always order the Bacon Cheese burger WITHOUT ONIONS is that so hard? But they give me onions any way, this has happened not one but 3 out of the last 4 times I have been there, and not just one location, but at several here in the area. The worst thing about is if you point out their mistake they act like you are an idiot for questioning them. This is one of my major pet peeves. I don't know if it is that the economy is so good that it is hard to find people who will take minimum wage to work at counters, or if there are just stupid people in all walks of life.

This is not an indictment of Braum's Restaurant chain, it happens everywhere. And what do we do as consumers? We accept it, we keep going back to Braum's or Wal-mart, because it is convenient and we put up with the rude checkout person, or the sudden disappearance of an Item that has always been there in the past, such as the Wal-mart Store near where I live, they used to have those little blue "hand baskets". Being in a wheelchair these were very useful for me - I put one on my lap and could get in and out if I had just a few things to get. Now I have to go to the customer service desk and ask for someone to help me shop. This is a waste of both my time and theirs, especially when I need just a few items. When I asked about the absence of the baskets, I was told the area manager had decided that it was not cost effective to replace them as they wore out. Now I remember a time when Wal-mart would bend over backward to meet customer needs, and while I appreciated the shopping help it is often over kill.

I don't know the solution to this. I have tried complaining, but nothing changes. The world has become more rude and no one seems to care, so many just accept it and go on. The stores and restaurants know that we there are enough of us that will put up with it that they don't care to change.

I wish I could boycott all of the places I have had bad service, but then I would stay at home and never go anywhere or do anything.

Well that,s it for today.

The Beginning

Soon I will be up and running, it is a big wide world out there, what do we talk about?........