12.08.2009
I had the cool opportunity over the weekend to be a tech for a day. It is something I had been meaning to do for awhile, but never had the time. I was in Cape Cod for the weekend visiting folks, and one of them happens to be a technician for Comcast. I had nothing better to do until they were done working for the day, so I tagged along and finally got some field tech time.
Some of you may have seen the tweets on Saturday. Here's the low-down!
We didn't start the day at this location, which is both a satellite office for the techs and a payment center. Saw the OLD payment center next to it... huge improvement :)
i'm at a customer's house doing a triple play install. of course two gigantic black labs are helping :) 11:39 AM Dec 5th
Having fun with punch blocks... which really aren't that much fun to be honest... 12:34 PM Dec 5th
Did I neglect to mention it was raining? A LOT?
First install finished! Next job involves finding out where a customer's dialtone ran off to. Comcast ninja skillz activate! 1:16 PM Dec 5th
ACTUALLY, we ended up picking up a job that was just a quick install of a cable box at an apartment complex. My tech, however, is a little OCD like me. We ended up cleaning up the entire box for the building so everyone would have happier cable!
Next up: Ooooh triple play install with home networking! Should be tons of fun (no really!) 2:43 PM Dec 5th
I actually spent this job setting up home networking for this customer while Will redid the phone wiring down in the basement. Sometimes, we're not given the most awesome wiring to work with from your old provider, but we'll make it work somehow! :)
(waiting for the test call to confirm service is working)
last job for the day, fixing some phone wiring to restore said rogue dialtone from earlier then done! 5:34 PM Dec 5th
This was actually an interesting dealy-o. The sad part is, we were not able to fix without an electrician (the phone line coming in was just... very unhappy). We got the dialtone, we did not get to fix the underlying problem. The GOOD news is, we know what it is and this customer knows exactly how to fix it. YAY! Also, Mr. Customer was super excited about having a social media person in his house :)
Alas, poor missing dialtone. We knew you well. Everyone should hug their next tech... they probably need it. This isn't an easy job! 5:58 PM Dec 5th
This is so true. It was raining hard, 40 degrees, never know what you're getting yourself into when you go to the next job... every house is different. Every job is a new challenge. I definitely gained a bit more insight into the field tech's day (this was a SLOW day, fyi), and how tough it can be. Gotta say, I slept like a baby that night!
Labels: How To, me, Troubleshooting
I just had an awesome tech come replace my 320gb dvr (ask george all about it). Those guys are getting nicer and nicer. Props to you for getting down and checking out what it's like to be in the field.
Still have lingering DecNet, RS-422, Q-bus Post Traumatic Syndrome.
bye