RCN Redux

Well after all my rants, I would think that I should share the conclusion of my epic cable saga. I went to the office to grab a DVR cable box, conceding defeat. If it weren't college basketball season, my reaction might have been different, although I must admit RCN internet is great and I only pay $40 for biz-class internet with a static IP, so it's kinda hard to give up. Anyway, now that I am done with my grudging compliments for RCN, the story.

The lady was actually pretty nice, and quick, and I drove home with my cable box, figuring it wouldn't take that long. Starting at 5:15, I should have this thing up and running by 6pm so I can tape the Syracuse-Richmond game for Jena, right?

Wrong.

I follow the instructions, then call the 'automated activation line', where I am told that an activation signal has been sent successfully! Yay. Now they say "wait an hour", like it's a laxative or something. How can this take an hour? After about 40 minutes of zero activity, I call back (now 5 min til gametime), and they tell me because it hasn't been an hour, I have to call back. Of course.

I go to pick Jena up and return to find that still nothing has happened. I call back and get a live person who now agrees to send a "manual activation signal", which of course works. But I find that the actual digital cable features won't load for 2 hours. I have no idea what happened, but it used to be that you plug in your cable box and it just worked, digital, DVR, or basic analog. Why is this so hard?

Anyway, now I have digital cable, with a slow cable box, an ugly guide, and DVR with a smaller hard drive, for $15 more a month. Whoopee. I hate you RCN.