Volume Number: 16 Issue Number: 10$ Column Tag: Opinion@ Cable Modem GuideX )by By Ilene Hoffman, Contributing Editorp Welcome WCable modem access has finally reached mass proportions. If you don't have it, you will Wsoon. High speed Internet access is almost required these days to access all the Flash, TShockwave, QuickTime, and other useless crap posted by many web sites. The following Tnotes are meant to help you wade through the cable abyss, so that you are not caught unawares. W1. First, find out which company is the cable tv provider in your town - because that'sŸ Pabout your only choice. These companies have a monopoly in any town they cover.Ô U2. IF you happen to be one of the very lucky few who has more than one cable provider[TOKEN:10]T- Call their tech support line, or billing, or almost any number associated with the Scable company - listen carefully to their hold music. As most of your communication Uwith your cable provider will be waiting on hold you might as well pick a company who plays music you like. R(Recently my ears were assaulted with classical music, REALLY loud classical music Rfrom Mediaone, now Roadrunner, now AT & T. When I called RCN though, I was greeted Qwith "Hold on I"m Coming" by the Temptations(?) and "Wait a Minute Mr Postman" by Othe Beatles - obviously RCN has a better sense of humor! I was expecting Stevie ,Wonder's Don't You Worry Bout a Thing next.) Q3. If you are lucky enough to have more than one cable service provider, when you Xcall, see what their wait time on the phone is - I guarantee you won't need a stop watch Dfor this one. Pick the company that puts you on hold for less hours. P4. Mediaone (AT&T) advertises broad band service - what they really mean is when Uyou buy a head set so you can stay on hold all day and still get something done; they Vmean buy one with a wide head strap, so you'll be more comfortable, while you wait ... and wait ... and wait... V5. If you ever really need tech support be prepared to be the victim. First, they will Xtell you, you're on a Macintosh, which of course they support; but then they tell you to Rhold the left mouse button, and ask if Windows is running. Second, they will blame Eyour OS, doesn't matter what version you're running - its your fault! U6. Once they've established that you're on a Mac, and that the OS is ok, then they'll) Pblame your old version of TCP/IP (which of course is the newest version) or Open5 UTransport - doesn't matter if you've been working fine for 2 years with your set up -A Rits still your fault or better yet, Apple's programmers. Now, the blame is slowingM (being spread to a whole slew of people! c V7. After holding for a hour to get tech support, and rebooting your machines ten timeso Uand discovering that its all your fault, and your patience is running t

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