by Larry Magid
This post first appeared in the Mercury News and SiliconValley.com
For the past few years, I’ve been using AT&T Fiber for my home internet, and it’s been nearly flawless. But, through no fault of AT&T, it’s down as I write this column, and that’s reminding me just how dependent I’ve become on 24/7 broadband.
We’re having work done on the wall and siding outside my home office, where the fiber enters the house and connects to a gateway. The workers didn’t cut the fiber, but apparently bent or twisted it enough to first cause intermittent outages and then a complete failure. Because fiber carries signals as pulses of light, a sharp bend or kink can disrupt the signal. AT&T is here as I write, restringing the fiber.
Disrupting life, not just work
There was a time when the only devices connected to the internet in our homes were PCs. But in my house, the internet is now how we watch TV, listen to radio and podcasts, turn on lights in some rooms and control appliances and our HVAC system. We also depend on it for security cameras, video calls, making and sometimes participating in medical appointments, access AI services and countless other everyday tasks. Throughout the day, we use our Alexa devices to play music, set timers and get information.
Email, web browsing, banking, shopping, news and social media also depend on an internet connection. Our cellphones have their own cellular internet connections, but for much of my work, or even writing a long email, I depend on a PC, which relies on our home internet service. Even my desk phone uses Voice over IP (VoIP), so it stops ringing when the internet goes down.
Cellular backup worked and then failed
Even though the fiber was disconnected, I still had internet service last night because I have both AT&T Internet and an unlimited AT&T wireless plan, which enables the gateway to switch over to cellular service in the event of an outage.
But, for reasons I don’t understand, the cellular backup stopped working in the middle of the night. Despite that failure, I love the idea of having a backup system now that the internet is so essential to our lives. I also have a battery backup to keep the gateway, router and other essential equipment running in the event of a power failure.
Couldn’t turn on bedroom light
I discovered cellular backup failure when I tried to turn on my bedroom light before dawn using a wireless switch connected to my Amazon Echo and Alexa system. After getting dressed in the dark, I noticed red lights on the AT&T gateway and router, indicating that I had no internet service.
There was something slightly absurd about not being able to turn on a light because my internet connection was down. I could have walked over to the lamp to turn it on manually, but the experience was a reminder that many conveniences we now take for granted depend on a chain of technologies working properly. The light bulb was fine. The electricity was on. It was the internet connection that was missing.
Phone’s Wi-Fi hotspot saved the day
I write my columns using Google Docs and the newspaper’s web-based editorial system, and the only reason that was possible today was that I created a Wi-Fi hotspot on my smartphone and “tethered” my laptop to it. It wasn’t quite as fast or convenient as my fiber connection, but it works. I also use my phone’s hotspot in airports, hotels and other public places because it’s more secure, easier to connect to and often faster than public Wi-Fi.
I’ve been filing columns electronically since the 1980s, but I’m old enough to remember using a typewriter and filing hard copy. Immediately after the 1994 Northridge earthquake, the Los Angeles Times had to fall back on manual typewriters, flashlights and walkie-talkies because of widespread power and communications failures.
To my delight, the day after I reported the outage, an AT&T technician is here completely replacing the long strand of fiber that snakes around my house and into my office. That’s the good news.
The bad news is what happened after the cellular backup went down. I called AT&T hoping to get some advice on getting it back up, but when AT&T’s AI agent looked up my account and saw that I already had a service appointment, it simply told me to wait patiently for the technician. I tried all the right words: “agent,” “representative,” “human,” “person.” I pressed 0. Nothing worked. Eventually, it just hung up on me.
But kudos to Pablo Rodriguez, the AT&T tech and real-life human who showed up at my house to fix the problem. He was friendly, knowledgeable and even taught me a secret way to get the app to connect me to a human agent. As I finish writing this column, the internet is back on. Life is good.
Having trouble with my internet was annoying, but I learned a few things: We’re even more dependent on the internet than I realized, and backup systems can fail, so it pays to have a backup for your backup and manual ways to control lights and appliances. Never twist or kink a fiber-optic cable. And appreciate actual human beings like Pablo, who provide personal service and solve problems in ways AI agents can’t.