Subj : Support And Scams To : Daryl Stout From : Barry Martin Date : Mon Jul 13 2020 09:18:00 Hi Daryl! DS> T-Mobile acquired Sprint. BM> That's right - now I remember. My Mother's cell phone is on T-Mobile BM> and I sent her an article and notes because I could see her getting BM> confused and thinking T-Mobile was closing. DS> Sprint did me dirty years ago. When the job I was with was DS> pay the last months bill, or the disconnect fee, but not both. I DS> even went to their west Little Rock office, and talked to one of DS> the higher ups. A few weeks later, I got a nasty note from them, DS> saying I had to pay the other one, when told I didn't have to. Sounds like the usual one hand not knowing when the other had is doing scenario. Unfortunately probably also a case of hindsight being 20/20 as you probably didn't get any documentation where they said one or the other and you're clear. DS> I then went to Cingular, which got bought out by AT&T. I then DS> went to Straight Talk for a good while. But, when the phone I had DS> was dying, and neither the employees at Wal-Mart (who didn't have DS> a clue) or those at Straight Talk (calling, put on hold forever), DS> were able to help. LIS in a message some time back, retail stores are fine for some things. We sold cell phones at the store -- we started when bag phones were common. We did get some training from GTE (the provider) but pretty much told any problems to have the customer go to the GTE office -- good news was it was up the street about 15-20 blocks. DS> A fellow ham radio operator, and a fellow BBS Sysop, DS> recommended T-Mobile to me. So, I went to them, and got a free DS> phone...but I think the model is defective. Upon startup, it'd be DS> locked into the "Emergency Calls Only" mode, and so I exchanged DS> it, but another copy of the same model is still quirky. Plus, the DS> signal is dropping calls like mad. So, I switched it to "an DS> answering machine" and text only, turning off the internet DS> surfing (unless it works off the home Wi-Fi). Seems there is either something wrong or the passcode is set. I'd be going a bit of DuckDuckGo-ing ("Googling" for that search engines ) and see if there is a default passcode. Dropping calls is not a good thing (sort of reminding me of my notebook which drops WiFi). I'd be checking for others reporting similar problems. DS> I went to Verizon to purchase a Mi-Fi, and decided to go ahead DS> and get a Moto phone. I originally couldn't do it, because after DS> I filed for Chapter 13 bankruptcy 11 years ago, I turned in my DS> credit cards, and never applied for them again. I use a debit DS> card only, but with my payments, I'm getting a bit of a "credit" DS> with Verizon and T-Mobile. Reminds me of when I sold a cell phone to an 'older' farm couple. Big problem for the automated paperwork was they had no credit history. Zip, zilch, so got turned down by the automated system. In reality they had beaucoup bucks: paid for everything in cash,: their car, their house.... Turned the app over to GTE (the provider up the street), they got a letter from their bank, overrode the automated system, we finished selling them their phone. DS> While I'm paying more for the Verizon phone and Mi-Fi, than the DS> T-Mobile phone and a LineLink device (which is being used with DS> the US Robotics External Modem and the Classic Phone Tools DS> program, as a fax line on the BBS computer), I have a way to get DS> out, phone wise. I do very little surfing on the Verizon, and DS> mainly use it for a quick email check and weather check. Having two different communication connects isn't a bad thing: if one goes out because of tower failure hopefully have the other. BM> Several years ago I put a note inside the kitchen cabinet by the phone BM> with a few area codes to ignore. The ignore wasn't so much when the BM> call came in but more if the message gave a callback number. DS> Here are area codes to BLOCK: DS> 268 -- Antigua DS> 473 -- Grenada DS> 375 -- Afghanistan DS> 371 -- Latvia DS> 876 -- Jamaica DS> If you redial, you're hit with a $9 per minute, and $20 DS> international call charge. Though of course there are legitimate calls to and from all of those countries. BM> Speaking of Miracle Whip, just might have to boil a few eggs: toast, a BM> bit of butter, sliced egg, slather of Miracle Whip or mayonnaise, a BM> little salt and pepper..... DS> Better than a steady diet of black forest ham sandwiches and DS> green tea. I prefer switching things up as I get tired of the same thing. The ham sandwich is good, the egg sandwich is good, peanut butter and jelly is good, just to me a constant lunch of sandwiches drives me up the wall. DS> The software, BVRP Classic Phone Tools, came with the US DS> Robotics External 56K v.92 fax modem, on a DVD. There used to be DS> a program that would put "modem lights for transmit and receive" DS> in ones taskbar...which was cool for dial-up BBS's. BM> Wow! How'd they squish the modem to fit in the DVD?! DS> The DVD had the drivers and that other software. Ooooo!!! BM> We had "severe thunderstorms" last night starting around 6:45. Most of BM> the system or at least the severe part went around us. Did pour for a BM> while but got just under an inch; Galesburg (IL - 45 miles south) got BM> almost 4". DS> Considering the storms have a half million tons of water, that DS> sounds about right. Saturday night we had a small but severe storm: mostly wind and around a half-inch of rain but what wind!! Had heard there were wind gusts around 80 MPH. Sunday morning saw a huge section of shigles had been ripped off a neighbour's roof on the next block. BM> We had half-watched the 5 p.m. weather, decided it would probably rain BM> but not too much so I did water the flowers, but 'lightly' ==> instead BM> of a count of five only to three. It had been hot and sunny (in the BM> 90;s), so they were happy to have water; didn't want to give them too BM> much water in case rained (which it did). DS> There was a large complex of severe storms from Fort Smith DS> southward overnight...but lightning was out ahead of it. So, I DS> shut the BBS down about 9pm last night. I had to take an DS> Ibuprofen for leg pain, and it grogged me out. I didn't bring the DS> BBS back up until 11am today. BM> This morning's news did state there was a spike in the area (both sides BM> of the River). The Scott County (IA - my county) Board of Supervisors BM> did have a meeting last night and decided on a resolution (?) to highly BM> suggest the wearing of masks in public as opposed to the original BM> consideration of required. The requirement option would have been BM> against the State of Iowa's -- something: if the State phrases and BM> designates a ruling/regulation one way it the local cities and towns BM> can't alter but if phrased, etc., another they can. The State health BM> directive (or whatever the proper term is) is currently masks are BM> optional in general public so the cities/towns can't override. DS> Well, apparently, the zoo opened again, but I have no desire to DS> go. Especially considering you have to book visits in advance, DS> wear masks, practice social distancing, etc. BM> (Sorry about the sloppiness -- I sort of understand but no where enough BM> to properly explain.) DS> 35,000 laws trying to enforce The Ten Commandments. BM> I saw a Far Side cartoon where the male lab technician is sitting next BM> to the female lab tech. Over his head is the thought balloon with a BM> reasonalably anatomically correct picture of a heart. (Instead of the BM> usual icon.) DS> I miss Gary Larson. BM> ... May your mug shot be featured in a proctology textbook! DS> Sounds like something from the curse exchange. :P BM> There are some interesting medical ones! DS> I'm sure there are. BM> ... I went to San Francisco. I found someone's heart. DS> Was it Tony Bennett's?? DS> Daryl DS> ... Is It OK to yell 'MOVIE' in a crowded Fire Station?? DS> === MultiMail/Win v0.52 DS> --- SBBSecho 3.11-Win32 DS> * Origin: The Thunderbolt BBS - tbolt.synchro.net (454:1/33) DS> þ RNET 2.10U: ILink: Christian Fellowship þ cfbbs.no-ip.com þ DS> 856 933-7096 ¯ ® ¯ BarryMartin3@ ® ¯ @MyMetronet.NET ® ¯ ® ¯ (Humans know what ® ¯ to remove.) ® .... Blonde wanted to sign up as organ donor but all she had was a guitar! --- MultiMail/Win32 v0.47 þ wcECHO 4.2 ÷ ILink: The Safe BBS þ Bettendorf, IA --- QScan/PCB v1.20a / 01-0462 * Origin: ILink: CFBBS | cfbbs.no-ip.com | 856-933-7096 (454:1/1) .