Glory: My cat Spot, showed back up at midnight pounding on the front door waking me up after going missing for a month when he got spooked by the roofing contractor work.
Welcome home!

Les from an economic sense the ccorrect way to set the tarrifs are
1: there should be a basic line service charge in order to pay for the infrastructure
2: the electricity should be sold at a fair retail price
3: The electricty the home generated the grid buys should be a wholesale price just as it pay for other sources.

Makes too much sense. But that robs the utility of the free energy they get off your home generation and doesn't pad their pockets.

That is good news Keith. A month is a long time for a cat.
They are a trial at times.

Yes, very good news. I thought he was gone permanently. I'm thinking he got into one of the worker vehicles and got locked in a garage somewhere when they went home or something.
He lost 4 lbs during the adventure, but otherwise in good shape.

If only you'd asked - I've got a pile of USB-C connectors sitting beside me that I ordered by mistake. I'd gladly have tossed one in your direction ;-)
(But my aim might be a bit off....)

Thanks, you know where I.. oh no I moved since and didn't say where. But I am not sticking any USB connectors into this thing again, not until I switched out motherboards. Which may be next week.

If only I had known in advance that the cable was coming a day later (if all goes according to plan). If it hadn't been another Fairphone, I doubtless would have gotten another plug in charger along with a cable included. As it is, they don't give you those things unless you order them and I only went for the cable as I have enough chargers to keep me going along with plenty of mains sockets with charging sockets built in in the house.

Glory: Bank has upped their security since last time I dealt with them on the phone.
Grumble:Sorting out banking app on mobile took far longer than last time.

Grumble: Ended up buying a USB a to C lead locally. I guess I will want one for use in car using phone as satnav as well as one in house and probably another as a spare so not a massive deal.

Glory upload and download on 4G at home is 10MB/s compared with 6 down and 100K up on bored band. (For some reason a lot faster on Fairphone3 than it was on Fairphone2. Except when I get low on data will be tethering phone rather than using broadband and if I really need more speed will set up both at once.

8-21-2021 at 10:50 AM - PDT

This is my first time Posting in this Thread... I never felt I had anything of great issue to Grumble or Glory about until now....

For the last 6 Months, my family and I have gone through TOTAL TV HELL!!!!

We had a TOTAL NIGHTMARE under AT&T U-Verse TV service, (Original U-Verse TV, NOT DirecTV Satellite service), due
to the fact that we HAD to connect TWO Bedrooms via COAX. This was due to the fact that our home, (built in 1978), DOES
NOT have Ethernet in the walls, ANYWHERE! U-Verse TV and COAX NEVER seemed to mix properly. So, after YEARS of
various issues that COULD NOT get resolved by U-Verse, we switched TV service to DISH Network, (satellite), BUT kept
U-Verse Internet service. (50Mb DEDICATED Internet service. Which I've tested and beats COMCAST XFINITY Business
200Mb service - NOT Dedicated....)

[GRUMBLE:]

Since February 24th, the day of Installation, we've had NOTHING BUT ISSUES with DISH Network! Due to the prior issues
with U-Verse TV, we INSISTED that DISH provide 4 Wireless Joey STBs, (Set Top Boxes), along with their latest Hopper 3
DVR. On February 25th a 2nd Installer had to come back to the house to install, (and first, sell us), a Linksys MESH Network
system solution. This consisted of ONE Linksys AC2200 Tri-Band Node as our new Router, (behind the U-Verse NVG-599 Gateway),
and TWO AC1300 'Child' Nodes elsewhere in the home. One Child Node was installed in the Master Bedroom to accommodate
one of two DISH Wireless Access Points to serve the Master Bedroom Wireless Joey Box, the other Child Node was placed in the
upstairs spare bedroom which is just outside of the reclaimed attic space nook where ALL our electronics reside. (Gateway, Hopper,
three Vonage Devices, my three computers.) I call this nook the 'Office'.

We had SUCH pixelation issues that I had to purchase two more AC1300 'Child' Nodes. I then stripped out the two DISH Wireless
Access Points. THEN, connected each 'Child' Node by Cat-5 Ethernet to EACH Wireless Joey Box.

[FIRST GLORY:]

By going Ethernet at each Joey Box to each 'Child' Node, the Joeys were DIRECTLY connected to the MESH Network. NO MORE
pixelations.

[GRUMBLE Continued:]

Next, we encountered CONSTANT drops of connectivity between the DISH Hopper 3 DVR and the U-Verse Network. (Both Wired
and Wireless to the U-Verse Gateway. (Feb 24, and 25th....) After the MESH Network was installed, I moved connectivity to the
MESH Router Node - AC2200.... I first connected by WiFi. STILL the Hopper dropped connectivity NIGHTLY AFTER completing
the TV Guide Update to itself AND the Joey Boxes. I then moved connectivity OFF WiFi and went wired by Cat-5 to the second
Netgear GS-108 Switch, (daisy chained to the first Netgear GS-108 Switch which holds connection to THREE Vonage Devices),
and from the 2nd GS-108, wired directly to the second Wired Port on the AC-2200. The first/Primary Port of the the AC2200
plugs directly to a free port on the U-Verse NVG-599 Gateway.

STILL, NIGHTLY, the DVR drops connectivity and ASSIGNS ITSELF an "Internal, Non-Routable IP Address of 169.x.y.z...." NOTE,
the AC-2200, NOR the U-Verse Gateway forward that address to the Hopper 3 DVR. Instead, (just like the old Win NT 4 days),
the Hopper 3 is failing to keep ANY Network Connectivity at all, and gives itself this address.

Time and time again, I'd go through this with Level 1 and Level 2 DISH Phone Tech Support. Time and time again, they'd send
a DISH Technician to the house. In April, the Technician that came to the house contacted his "Advanced Engineering Team"
which asked him to ask me what U-Verse Gateway we had. I told the Tech we have the NVG-599. (NOW, the 599, (per U-verse
Techs whom were at the home MANY times in the past), state that the 599 is IDENTICAL to the newer 5268AC Gateway, both
electronically and physically. ONLY firmware updates are different between the two Gateways....) The Advanced Engineering
Team told Geo, (the Tech), to turn 'Bridge Mode' on the Hopper "OFF" and reboot the Hopper.

This was done, and for six days, the issue 'seemed' resolved; however, we then started having the same connectivity issues
NIGHTLY! So, since April, I've been waking up between 4 and 4:30 AM to reboot the Hopper DVR to regain Network Connectivity
and provide TV Service to the Joeys and to the home.

FINALLY I got fed up with all of this, and did an Internet Search for "Why does DISH Hopper equipment have issues with U-Verse
Gateways?" or some wording close to that effect. My third search on this led me to some Website with ONE U-Verse Customer
whom also was on DISH and claimed the DISH HIC Device was the ONLY remedy to keep the Hopper 1 connected to the
Network and provide consistent and constant TV Services throughout the home.

I THEN contacted DISH Phone Tech Support ONE LAST TIME! I ACTUALLY got a Level 2 Tech, (Ethan, DISH Phone ID, "VHN"),
who stated my equipment and connections were ALMOST identical to his, and that "...YES, an HIC Device WILL resolve the
issues." A new Technician Service date was scheduled for us to FIRST replace the DVR, (in case it was defective), AND
install the HIC Device.

The Tech that came out was a Contractor, NOT a DISH Network Employee Tech. He had NO HIC Device available. He had
to go BACK to San Jose, (with traffic), which would take 2 Hours to do. THEN, he could search his Home Base for a HIC,
and come back to install the HIC and new Hopper 3. HOWEVER at 6 PM, a week ago Thursday, the Tech NEVER came
back! I called in to Phone Support AGAIN and got Violet who said that Tech Notes showed that Anthony, (the Tech who
went to get an HIC Device), states that his Home Base DID NOT have a HIC anywhere available. She insisted I speak
to her Supervisor whom just got out of a meeting. I was placed on HOLD for 20 Minutes. I hung up and called back
a week ago Friday morning. Got a NEW Tech scheduled for a week ago, today. THIS TIME the Tech WAS/IS a DISH
Network Employee Tech. (Will.) He replaced the DVR, set it up for Bridge Mode OFF, and installed the HIC Device.


[Second Glory:]

As of today, day of good service #7, we STILL have PROPER and GOOD Network Connectivity to and from the
MESH Network, to and from the Hopper 3 DVR! ALMOST 6 FULL MONTHS to the day that we started this
endeavor with DISH!

IF/SINCE DISH KNEW that they have COMPLETE AND TOTAL ISSUE(S) WITH U-Verse Gateways, ALL such
Installs SHOULD REQUIRE that an HIC Device be installed at the Hopper to resolve such issues IN THE
FIRST PLACE! We SHOULD NOT have had to endure this NIGHTMARE.

Should we have good TV Service tomorrow, I WILL consider the matter completely resolved and closed.


TL

---

Have TARDIS, will travel...
Come along K-9!
Join Calm Chaos
Pluto is still a planet

8-22-2021 at 8:51 AM - PDT

[Third Glory:]

+8 Days of good service on DISH. NO ISSUES!!!!! :-) :-D

I now consider the matter resolved and closed. :-) :-D

We finally have 21st Century TV, Internet, and MESH Networking! :-) :-D

I can FINALLY de-stress, unwind, relax, breathe better, and sleep better.
I can go on my trip in a month to my brother's place and NOT have to
worry about getting calls from my parents that the TV isn't working....

THANK GOD!!!!! :-) :-D


TL

---

Have TARDIS, will travel...
Come along K-9!
Join Calm Chaos
Pluto is still a planet

Grumble. Changed my motherboard. I wish someone would make a universal connector for the power LED, HDD LED and Reset button connectors as those things are way too small and the place they're in is almost impossible to reach in many cases. And when you finally got everything connected, three have sprung loose. That cost me most my time. For once connecting the cooler was easy, a 30 second job if you know how.

Now, only problem I have is that the system's Dr Debug shows C5 when I plug in a memory stick in the first slot. It doesn't say in the manual what that means.
Looking it up, on Reddit, there's a thread about it being a problem with the first RAM slot, as the person there did what I did, and that was change the RAM sticks around, which still yields C5.
So I have RAM in slots 2 and 4. Which also works.

If you buy ASUS mobos, you always get a Q-Connector which is a one piece header that you plug all your case I/O cable headers into away from the mobo where you can reach and see all the pin designations and then simply plug the Q-Connector into the mobo I/O header in one piece.

Solves your issue simply and easily.

I don't buy Asus, as I don't like them. Neither for Gigabyte, I always have something broken on them. Although maybe my bad streak has moved to these Asrock motherboards. By the way, the reach was exactly the problem as the small connectors come from a cable that sticks about 2 centimeters out of the bottom of the case, so not much leeway to move them around. Normally I stick them in when I have the motherboard outside the case, but I couldn't this time.

Showing that the Taichi did have its problems: at least now I have a working HDD LED. I've done more than a year without one.

For the RAM problem, I'll try to update my BIOS first, it's only 1.2 and the latest is 2.1

I'm off on vacation for a week. Going away with my best friend and her kids. That'll last two days. 😂

Behave all. See y'all in a week's time.

I'm off on vacation for a week. Going away with my best friend and her kids. That'll last two days. 😂

Behave all. See y'all in a week's time.

Have a great time. Just don't bump into another username who just went on vacation elsewhere.

Glory.
Took a reading & found that my new utility provider is just under £11 a month cheaper than the previous one. :-)
Grumble.
With payday being the last working day of the month, decided to top up for the whole month & slightly into next month.
Took longer than expected & given 3 receipts. WTH?
Apparently, Paypoint won't accept transaction larger than £25 hence the 3 transactions/receipts.
So much for the cashless society. :-(

Saw this in newsfeed today... Hope those of you 'down under' have a good cache stashed away.

COVID-1984: Australia Now Confiscating Alcohol in Locked Down Areas

Here in UK, I have 4 gallons of mead which is ready to drink, courtesy of my bees. Probably enough to see me through most lock downs.