I thought some of you might like this story.  I have been having problems
with logging on to my server lately, and have been forced to actually show
up at the university just to read my mail.  (Yes, you can actually take 12
hours and never have to go to the school.  Aren't computers lovely?) We have
limited access times for mail-n-stuff, and you have to spar with undergrads
who want to play Doom or download girlie pictures, so I haven't had a lot of
opportunuity to respond to a lot of mail.  Sorry; the problems started when
they added a third server, and increased the number of modem accesses.
Since then, I lose my slip in the middle of a session (boy, I love that!),
my password is rejected, mail is lost or rejected, and often the system just
freezes for no apparent reason, and forces my mac to commit digital suicide.
In the meantime, my mailbox gets stuffed with more stuff than I can respond
to in any reasonable amount of time.  Well, I got quite frustrated this
weekend when I couldn't upload a chapter of my disseration to my chairman,
and later when I tried to upload something to Mary at Modern Ferret and
failed at both.  So this morning, I got on the horn and spoke pointedly (but
not harshly) to the people-in charge of the whole mess.  They listened, and
admited they were having problems.  The guy actually said, "We are not sure
what's going on.  Its like twenty ferrets have been running amuck in the
system..."
 
I said I understood, and wished him luck.
 
Bob and the 13 Telecommunication Terrors
[Posted in FML issue 1491]