Quote:
Originally Posted by topxx
How do I access the newsgroup ?
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I've included information on accessing the newsgroup below (apologies for copying chunks of pre-prepared text) but it'll be helpful to them if you have already done the following:
- Check for broadband problems in your area on the Service Status webpage.
- Disconnect any home networking equipment you have (eg. a router) and only connect directly to the cable modem with a single computer.
- Reboot your pc.
- Close as many applications on your computer as possible, in particular any P2P, streaming or IM programs.
- Start 2 simultaneous downloads from the VM demo games server plus 2 simultaneous downloads of Zen test files. That's four file downloads happening at once!
Now add up each of the four download speeds to get your accurate download rate.
Now onto the newsgroup:
If you've not already setup access to newsgroups on your pc, you may find VM's
step-by-step guide to using newsgroups with Outlook Express useful. The Tech Support group is 'virginmedia.support.broadband.cable' on news.virginmedia.com or text.news.virginmedia.com and is monitored between 8am and 10pm every day. You can usually expect a response within a few minutes but, if the staff are exceptionally busy, it might take as long as 4 hours.
When reporting a problem in the newsgroup, as well as the speed you obtained from the multiple-file downloads test, ideally the Tech Support staff would also like to see the results of the following tests:
- Your netstat -a (see notes at Q05 )
- A ping to www.bbc.co.uk (see Q06)
- Two trace routes to www.bbc.co.uk (see Q06)
- Your modem logs and signal levels (see Q07)
- And a good description of your exact issue
- Make sure that you also mention your VM alias (that's the part of your VM email address before the @ symbol) so that TS can identify your account details on their system.
(All the notes (and more!) have been ripped from Annie's excellent Broadband FAQ: well worth further reading!
If you're frustrated and angry with the quality of your service, try not to take it out on the Tech Support staff who are only there to try to help!
Good luck!