Thursday, Oct 20, 2016
Internet Problema
Last night about 8 pm our internet service had a freak-out. Uuugh, internet problema. No bueno! Everything was fine and then it wasn’t. None of us could log onto any sight that had any kind of secured access. Outlook, Gmail, Facebook, Whatsapp would not allow us access whether we tried from our computers or phones. We still could get onto sites like MSN, Huffington Post, and other sites that didn’t require secure access.
Since we were watching the debate and eating cake and ice cream no one cared too much about fixing the problem. This morning however is a different story. After looking at some of the diagnostic messages it appears our modem has a different IP address than what it should have.
What clouds the issue for me is that yesterday I called Puntonet because my download speed was between 1.5 and 2.5 megas. I’m supposed to be getting 10 megas. There is one woman in the office who speaks English, she is very helpful, and she is my contact. A while back she gave me her cell phone number to call if I had any problems.
Yesterday I called her and explained the slow speed problem. She acted as interpreter and after 5 minutes on the phone my speed was back up to around 10. They obviously did something from the office to fix it. The rest of that day went fine until 8 pm, when suddenly I have a different IP address on my modem. Did they mess something up at Puntonet? The message I am getting is that I am not on a private network. Have I been hacked? I have no idea.
Error Messages
This morning I called the cell number of my contact at Puntonet and left a message. After an hour with no response I sent a Whatsapp message with screen shots of the error messages I was getting. At some point I could see she picked up the message, but as noon approached with no response, I walked to the Puntonet office.
When I arrived I was greeted by Fabiola, my contact, and she apologized for not getting back with me. No problema, I said, and she went to go talk to the technicians with the info I had sent her. After 30 minutes she came back and said that I would need to have a technician come to my house and see what the problem is, and that wouldn’t be until Saturday.
I told Fabiola that is too long to wait and asked if there isn’t something they could do remotely. She told me they tried but my modem has a different IP address and they couldn’t get into it. I told her I have the correct IP address and the incorrect one, and isn’t there something they can figure out? She told me she would call me at 3 pm with a technician and they could walk me through a reset of the modem through my computer. Great, I said.
Just after I arrived back home our power went out. It was off for about 30 minutes. When it came back up I still pushed the reset button on the modem to see if it would help, it didn’t. Throughout the day I had unplugged and re-plugged the modem twice, as well as the router with no luck.
Three o’clock came and went with no call from Puntonet. At 3:30 pm I Whatsapp’d Fabiola and asked when she was going to call. No response. At 5 pm I sent another message and asked if the technicians were unwilling to help. Again no response.
Chase had been volunteering at a school where he helps kids with their homework. He arrived back home shortly after the power came back on, and I updated him on the internet problema. He went to Google and found a solution for getting rid of an incorrect IP address in a modem. Honestly, the web and all its information is an incredible place.
The info he read said we needed to unplug the modem for at least 5 minutes. I had unplugged a few times but for less than one minute. We did this, and unplugged the router as well. After 5 minutes we plugged everything back in, and bingo, everything was working as it should.
Wow. Incredible. I feel very lucky. If you have been reading my blogs you know me and an internet problema are mortal enemies. I’ve gotten better though. This is Ecuador and there is nothing in my control to make things happen when they aren’t. Puntonet’s response, or lack of, to my problem is how it goes sometimes.
I was happy I could get a nice walk in today going to their office. On the way home I passed a fruit stand and found some apples Heidi was needing for a recipe. It is a beautiful day and I’m lucky to be fit and able to be out and enjoying it. This is how one’s mindset needs to be living here. If something isn’t working, then go do something else until the people you need help from show up. Things happen when they happen here.
I lucked out with Chase finding the fix we needed. It made my “patience” feel like I scored a bonus. Living here is good for me. I’m (slowly) learning to go with the flow and I need this in my life in Ecuador.
Sunset in Cuenca
Chau.
or you could have called someone in USA like your Technical Support Professional for HOPE.
It’s the high altitude in Cuenca Ashwini, I wasn’t thinking clearly, ????
Thanks for the reminder!
Todd
Do they have Internet cafés there
Many of the coffee shops and restaurants have internet here Paula. The speed varies a lot, but it is a reasonable option. When we first arrived in Cuenca it took over a month to get our internet service squared away. We became very good at finding the best internet coffee shops. 🙂
Todd
Hi Todd thank you for telling me I’m familiar with the Internet cafés in Argentina I figured Ecuador had the same. Now I have another topic are there special transportation companies in Cuenca to help people get around if they need it? I use it here in the US when I have a lot of errands to do and my back hurts. I am legally disabled. I was also thinking of trying to hire somebody if it’s cheap down there to do much driving for me . Is that reasonable?
I think hiring a driver and/or a person to help you would be easy to do here Paula. One place you can look is on GringoPost.com Everyday there are notices of people offering services and those asking for services. Transportation service offers are common. Another option can be asking local taxi drivers. There are ones who are willing to drive or help with errands for a reasonable fee. Asking for referrals for these drivers from other Gringos can be done on facebook groups like Ecuador Expats.
Hope this helps!
Todd
Yay Todd!
I’ve gotten the same message on my computer before. my computer geek friend came and worked his magic and it went away. I’ll have to remember to unplug for five or more minutes though next time.
What a beautiful sunset !! looks like your weather is warming up a little bit. Dodie and Randy said that summer is coming on soon !
Have a great weekend!
It is finally warming up here Laree! So happy. I still don’t understand why the modem started working. When the power was off for 30 min I would think that would have been enough to reset the IP address. At any rate, problem solved and now I know about the 5 minute rule. You have a great weekend as well.
Todd