Dish phone service disaster

My best friend called me the other day with this true phone tech help screwup. His picture started pixelating badly (the weather was clear) and he couldn't get it corrected. He called Dish and was answered by a lady who proceeded to lead him through the standard tests...signal strength, hard reset of the STB, etc.....all to no avail. Finally, she told him that she wanted him to press the Recover button on the remote 37 times and to count out loud to her as he was pushing the button. My friend asked the lady 3 times if she was sure that it was 37 times and that she really wanted him to proceed. She affirmed that was exactly what she wanted him to do....so, he did as told. Upon pressing the button the 37th time, the tv screen went completely black. When he told her about the black screen, her response was "Oh my". She then asked my friend to hold a moment while she checked with her supervisor. After a few minutes, she returned and told him that she was referring him to the 2nd level of tech support. The man who answered asked my friend to relate what had happened, which he did. The 2nd level tech said that the lady tech should never have had him do the 37 presses of the recover button. My friend said that he questioned her about that before proceeding and the 2nd level tech said that she had noted my friends questioning in her notes. The 2nd level tech then told him that your TV is dead. My friend then asked "do you need to send out a repairman"? The 2nd level then said "no, you've misunderstood.....your TV is now dead". My friend then asked "does that mean you need to send a TV repairman"? The 2nd level said "no, your TV is ruined and we're going to have to buy you a new TV". He explained that by depressing the recover button 37 times, that all the preset codes/settings from the factory had been erased. He then stated that "I will refer this to corporate and they will be calling you back. You'll need your sales receipt". Fortunately, my friend had his receipt..$1500.00...but he has yet to hear from Dish. I will update when I hear more.

I just tried hitting the recover button 37 times... nothing happened to my TV :what:

:rolleyes:

Interesting....I wasn't about to try that on my Dish remote. As mentioned, I will update when I find out more.

Interesting....I wasn't about to try that on my Dish remote. As mentioned, I will update when I find out more.Oh... OK... I'll fess up, I didn't really hit the button 37 times. It was more like 36.

Let's just say that I have doubts about the veracity of your story.

Veracity or not....it was what transpired between Dish and my friend. However, I just heard from my friend and here's the update. He never heard back from Dish, so he called them via the help line. Upon reaching the help tech, and having his file reviewed, he was put on hold. After 20 minutes, he hung up and recalled Dish. This time, the tech reviewed the file and told him that his tv wasn't ruined. What happened was that the proceedure they had him do locked up the remote function. So, the current Dish tech had my friend get the TV remote and activate the programing feature....the TV resumed functioning. However, the picture was still pixelated and unwatchable. So, he's back to square one, but at least his TV is ok. The phone tech believes it's a problem with the cable between the dish and the stb and he can send out a repairman to look at it for $50.00. Anyway, it appears the neither the original 1st phone tech nor the 2nd level tech/supervisor knew what they were doing or talking about. A mess any way you look at it.

Nothing like a smart ass huh ohheck ... but no wonder, look what he drives!:yippee:

Nothing like a smart ass huh ohheck ... but no wonder, look what he drives!:yippee:

Why because he does accept the scenario without having more facts? Since when is that a 'bad thing'.
And assuming someone's intentions based on car preference is shallow at best. :)

Nothing like a smart ass huh ohheck ... but no wonder, look what he drives!:yippee:
What's the difference between a BMW and a porcupine?

Nothing like a smart ass huh ohheck ... but no wonder, look what he drives!:yippee::D I realized when I wrote my response that it could've been construed as rude, however, the "I heard from a friend of mine..." routine followed by no supporting references left room for such a response, IMHO. I tend to read lots of stuff about Dish and this "story" smelled of halibut to me. It's not something that I've come across before. That certainly doesn't mean that it's not possible... it just didn't appear plausible.

I'm happy to eat my shoe if several board members, such as daleb, can corroborate the story. Otherwise, I stand by my remarks without apology. Incidentally, don't you think it's interesting that the story has already changed...?...This time, the tech reviewed the file and told him that his tv wasn't ruined. What happened was that the proceedure they had him do locked up the remote function. So, the current Dish tech had my friend get the TV remote and activate the programing feature....the TV resumed functioning...That certainly sounds more plausible to me...

Thanks for the support daleb! :hithere:

:D I realized when I wrote my response that it could've been construed as rude, however, the "I heard from a friend of mine..." routine followed by no supporting references left room for such a response, IMHO. I tend to read lots of stuff about Dish and this "story" smelled of halibut to me. It's not something that I've come across before. That certainly doesn't mean that it's not possible... it just didn't appear plausible.

I'm happy to eat my shoe if several board members, such as daleb, can corroborate the story. Otherwise, I stand by my remarks without apology. Incidentally, don't you think it's interesting that the story has already changed...?That certainly sounds more plausible to me...

Thanks for the support daleb! :hithere:
Well, I guess I've learned my lesson by posting this incident on this board. It's bad enough to have someone accuse me of making up a bogus story, but then to make a further jab (quote:Incidentally, don't you think it's interesting that the story has already changed) in an attempt to cast further doubt is truely sad. To make it clear....the story didn't change. It just so happened that my friend called me a short time after I made this post. He had been trying to call me all evening, but since I only have dialup and had been online for several hours, he couldn't reach me. So, I did as I said I would...I posted an update. To clarify, I an not a disgruntled Dish person. I currently have Dish HD and quite satisfied with the service. Just so you know, I am a retired tech worker and have a firmly established reputation for honesty and integrity. Sorry, there's no way you can corroborate that either. Anyway, I've made my last post here and will no longer visit this forum.

...Anyway, I've made my last post here and will no longer visit this forum.It wasn't my intent to discourage you from visiting or posting in the forum. It was my intent to encourage accurate descriptions/information being posted.

For the record I wasn't targeting you personally, I was was focused on the story. As this came across as arrogant at worst and prickly at best... mea culpa, mea culpa.

"I'm happy to eat my shoe if several board members, such as daleb, can corroborate the story."

Oh sure put it all on me!! Kidding!!

I will try it myself, or will I ......but unless this is a repeatable phenomena chances are something unrelated happened while pushing away on the button 37 times. But now we know the whole story!

Don't take this all too seriously ohheck (gotta love that handle)
No one is accusing you of being dishonest. That's a far cry from thinking something may have happened for other reasons than what seemed obvious at the time.
And then came the other comments from the peanut gallery which added nothing constructive at all to the topic at hand.
Hang in there! We don't have enough techie types anyway, and you do explain what you do in detail which is helpful.

If I had to describe communicating on Gore's internet 'clarity' would not be on my short list. But we keep trying!

Just tried it, nothing happened. I guess someone is trolling.

"I'm happy to eat my shoe if several board members, such as daleb, can corroborate the story."

Oh sure put it all on me!! Kidding!!:D Sorry daleb, I just trust your feedback.

I guess I got a little carried away here... maybe I should cut back on the caffeine :o