Do They Really Have A Clue?

[PattayaParent]

I have 2 internet accounts at 2 different 'phone numbers in 2 different parts of Thailand which I switch between weekly.

Now the settings in TOT webite administration have selections for

Username: which is 'phone number@bestcyber

Password: which is the 'phone number

I use the same modem and modem password whenever I move between the 2 locations but I never change the TOT username and password to the current location.

It all works fine and mostly I never have a problem but when there is a problem this is the first thing that the 'technician' on the other end of the 'phone wants me to change. It confuses them when I tell them changing it doesn't make any difference but I go along with the instructions and it invariably doesn't solve the problem.

Then after deleting all caches, cookies and Internet files and there still being no internet connection restored the 'technician' finally comes up with the answer 'there's an internet problem in your area'.

Well surely they must have known that in the first place when I called up without going through all this uneccessary BS?

It leads me to the conclusion that these 'technical' staff are just anyone who can answer a 'phone and read a set of meaningless instructions off a piece of paper. Instructions that are not a technical solution and will not fix the problem and the stock answer 'there's an internet problem in your area' is just a way to get you off the 'phone when they have no clue as to what the problem really is.

Anyone else out there encountered the same?

Edit:fonts

Edited December 25, 2009 by PattayaParent

[thunder30101]

Yeah it sucks but honestly name me a country anywhere that doesnt hire the lowest paid person they can for customer service, then train them on using a flow chart to solve customer problems. hel_l in my home country most if not all customer services are contracted out to third world countries where wages are cheap and english is a second language.

[Pib]

Over the years I have found most of the tech support representatives you initially talk to operate from a company script and don't really seem to have any detailed technical knowledge. Then, after going through the script and it still don't fix the problem they refer your problem to a higher level of technical support which usually has a fancy title like Level 3 Technical Support and you are promised a phone call back. If you are a tech savvy person it can get very frustrating in doing all the low level tests/resets the initial tech support walks you through; tests/resets that you just know probably won't fix the problem because you may have already done these tests/resets before calling. But you gotta remember, until you walked through their script you can't get that higher level of support.

[PattayaParent]

^that's about what I figured Pib.

So what usually happens is I move from the location that has a problem and I get a call mid week from the real techies to ask me if the problem is fixed. Well how do I know if I'm not there?

[Pib]

"If" I remember right, when I had TOT interent service one of the DSL modem settings included the phone number...since you are at two different locations with two different phone numbers, maybe you need to change the phone number setting in the DSL modem when hooking up at each location.

[noahvail]

Yeah it sucks but honestly name me a country anywhere that doesnt hire the lowest paid person they can for customer service, then train them on using a flow chart to solve customer problems. hel_l in my home country most if not all customer services are contracted out to third world countries where wages are cheap and english is a second language.

Sad but true: you get very few Rhodes scholars for ฿283 per day.

[Cuban]

I think it is fairly safe to say that the average call center operator is not an IT expert. Even if they do work for the company with which you have a contract/service and not a third party company as part of a sub-contract arrangement, they will almost surely be working from a screen of the top 20 reported faults/cures. They are programed to walk you through; Is the computer turned on? Is the ADSL cable plugged in? etc. as the average user might still try to put sliced bread into the DVD burner to make toast.

The only solution is to learn from forums such as this and in the case that you are talking about find out about your ADSL router's diagnosis page (You can typically access it by typing in http://192.168.1.1 into your web brower's address bar) and the information it can tell you. I have been in internet cafes where the connection has been lost, and within a few seconds looked at the routing information and trace route results to confirm that the shop and it's computers are fine but the problem lies with the ISP within their infrastructure. But still people like to reboot their computers because that is what they think they should do to 'solve' the problem. It is also a common solution offered by Helpdesks - as the time taken to reboot gets you off their phone line for at least five minutes (improves their performance stats) and if the real cause is an upstream server/router fault - three minutes is often enough for the fault to clear.

If you can reach a person with a functioning brain within an ISP they can 'reach through' from their side to 'see' your router directly - if they can not do that the fault is either the router (or it's cable within your house) or between the ISP equipment at the exchange and your house.

HTH