Internet connection problems

(Please see UPDATE at end)

During yesterday I had intermittent problems with my broadband connection. This culminated at about 5pm when my internet connection went down completely and has not as yet been restored.

Diagnosing what the real problem is has not yet reached a proper conclusion. My ISP (AOL) informed me on the telephone this morning that whilst there were some problems in my local exchange yesterday, these have been resolved and my internet line is 'active' so far as they are concerned. They suggested I contact my wireless router manufacturer (Netgear in my case).

Netgear tell me that because certain lights are not illuminated on my router that the problem must be with the cable or the splitter (filter). My next task will be to repair the cable and filter (or more probably buy new ones as they are not expensive).

I don't have a lot of confidence in what the AOL call centre told me as on several occasions in the past their advice has, to put it kindly, been flawed.

Anyway, what this means is that my access to the internet is for the moment severely restricted - I am currently using the broadband connection of a kind neighbour and may possibly be able to get sporadic access from her over the next few days until my own broadband is restored and functioning properly, although I do not wish to impose on her generosity unnecessarily. So if I seem 'quiet' or unresponsive for at least the next few day, this is the reason. My apologies.

UPDATE (Tuesday 2JUN09 17.40 BST): My internet connection has come back to life. I have been out for the whole afternoon and when I switched on the wireless router on my return home a short while ago, it booted up normally with all three relevant lights illuminated to show that there was a carrier signal and an internet connection. AOL had assured me this morning that, since the exchange work yesterday (when the problem began), my broadband connection was again 'live' according to their systems, which it obviously wasn't! I have no confidence whatsoever in AOL's technical helpline and must now really 'bite the bullet' about switching my ISP; there have been too many problems over the last 2 or 3 years and I am cheesed-off with them; they used to be so excellent, but in recent years have gone downhill badly and it is not as if they are a low-cost provider. I've kept them as my ISP only because it was the easy option, but I've really now got to undergo the inconvenience of making the change to someone else, so I can escape from their clutches. Having had my 'rant', I'm obviously pleased to be back online; being deprived of an internet connection has become akin to being rendered blind or deaf for those like me who have become accustomed to its convenience.