WTF? My ISP just vanished!

[regnaD kciN]

I've been with Eskimo North for over 15 years, ever since I first got on the Intertubes. Even though I switched my connection from dial-up to Qwest DSL a few years back, I've still kept a shell account with Eskimo for my e-mail account, personal web site, business web sites, etc.

Everything was fine, no warning signs or anything, and I was getting e-mail delivered to my cell phone up until 2 or 3 this afternoon. Then, when I get home, and turn on my e-mail client, I get told the account "timed out." I check my photography web site. Nada. I check Eskimo's home page. Also nada. This has happened at times before, so I assume it's a service outage, and call their support line. I get a phone company recording instead: "We're sorry, the number you are calling cannot receive calls at this time."

:wtf:

I first think this is a temporary problem with their lines or something, but a web search indicates that's what the phone company puts up when a number has been suspended for non-payment. Is that what happened here? I'm trying to see if there were any warning signs beforehand, and all I can think of was their cutting of support hours not too long ago.

I really hope they aren't gone for good. Re-establishing e-mail and web hosting would be a massive pain. :-(

[Kali]

1. bookmarking

cause I have a small time shitty dial up co. too and while I don't care about who it is I followed them through 4 or 5 buy outs just to keep my cool e-mail address. So I want to see what happens.

[regnaD kciN]

2. I'll keep this posted as the saga goes on...

So far, nothing new. Still getting the "not accepting calls at this time" on the phone, and the website and e-mail are still down. (Those are really my only options, as the snail-mail address is a P.O. Box, and I can't locate contact information for the owner other than what is already available and inaccesible.)

I just spent the past hour changing the e-mail for all of my Yahoo and other mailing lists to my business e-mail, which is thankfully hosted elsewhere. I'm also looking at recommendations for good, inexpensive ISPs -- especially ones that can host multiple domain-names for no extra cost, and that allow a number of e-mail accounts.

[ff123]

3. Feeling your pain

Long time subscriber to Eskimo North as well (probably 15 years or so), although I don't go back to the time when it was a BBS. I hope Robert Dinse didn't up and die or something.

[regnaD kciN]

4. Still down...

The thing that gets me is that both the site and the support phone lines are down. That tells me that their telecomm service got cut off entirely. Now, I guess there could be a snafu, but it sure sounds like non-payment to me.

I would think that, if it were anything like a personal tragedy, someone would have put up something on the home page announcing it first, or at least not shut off everything without warning. Likewise, if they were going out of business, it seems like they should have given subscribers advance warning to make other arrangements.

I guess it would be surprising, if it were just some massive mix-up or crash, for it to be restored today, as it is a holiday, and I suspect Qwest would be on a skeleton crew for the day. But, if they aren't back or at least giving some indication they haven't folded without warning by tomorrow, I'm going to have to take my business elsewhere.

[regnaD kciN]

6. Another follow-up...

After doing some searching, I came up with an address, home phone number, and Yahoo e-mail for Robert Dinse. Unfortunately, both the phone and Yahoo accounts were disconnected. This doesn't look good...

[kentauros]

5. Maybe Rocky Rococo took it

:P

I hope you learn what's happened soon. It is a pain being without email and Internet. I went through that last year just a couple of days before Hurricane Ike and then AT&T taking forever (over a month) to repair their lines, only to want to charge me for their screw up!

[Kali]

12. hee!

Nick Danger Third Eye

Nobody plays Firesign anymorex(

A couple years ago I had some bumper stickers made that said "Stinking Desert" (helps I live in the desert) but not very many people got that.

[kentauros]

16. That is our Sacred Burial Mound.

It's a beaut!
No, it's a mound.
You'll have to move it. Railroad's coming through. Right now!



I used to play that one and others when I had a show. I guess the other option now is to blast it over the mobile boom-boxes and see if anyone gets it :P

[regnaD kciN]

20. Well, then, it's Treaty Time!

Back when I was in high school, a couple of stoners in our history class proceeded to "stage" the whole thing as a class project. Those of us "in the know" thought it was hysterical; everyone else (the ex-nun teacher included) was just puzzled.

[kentauros]

21. Yeah, I understand about the majority "not getting it"

but if you give them time, most will come around eventually ;)

I had introduced FT to all my friends in the mid to late 70s in high school and they all fell in love with it, too, especially Nick Danger :) So, one year's talent show had us on stage doing the first ten or fifteen minutes of "Cut 'Em Off at the Past!" The audience took a few minutes to catch on, but as the more intelligent ones figured it out, the rest of the audience finally understood the parodies :)

It would have been nice to have staged the whole thing, but the talent show had its time limits on acts...

[Capn Sunshine]

7. Try this website for more info

These folks are in your boat, if its any consolation.

[regnaD kciN]

8. Thanks!!!

That's really helpful, especially the hints from Twitter that it might be an outage problem after all. I hadn't thought about it beforehand, but, if they had switched their support phone lines to VOIP, they'd go down as well if the site connection died. Hope this is genuine, and they get back soon.

[quakerboy]

10. There would be something terribly

ironic (not sure that's the right word, but it will have to do as the cupboard is coming up bare for a better one) about a dialup isp switching their incoming lines to VOIP.

[gburlin]

9. Re: WTF? My ISP just vanished!

I've been with Eskimo North since BBS days. I won't panic until tomorrow, but it would be so nice to have a status. How in the world am I going to update all the logins and sites I've used that email on?

[Tikki]

11. Hi...Welcome to DU...

Hope all turns out OK for you all on Eskimo North...

:hi:


Tikki

[regnaD kciN]

13. OMFG...

If the news being reported at that forum is correct, this story has just gone from "weird" to "downright sick." I'm speechless.

Looks like I'll be searching for a new provider tomorrow...

[ff123]

14. What a way for it to end

Nanook, we hardly knew ye.

I guess I'll start the process of changing over my email address...

I had a recreational website there which I hadn't updated in a while. I think it's time to say goodbye to that as well, even though I could rehost it.

[grace0418]

15. What's the news?

What would be downright sick? I'm curious now.

[regnaD kciN]

17. That the main reason it's down...

...is that the sysop supposedly just got sent to the slammer for the next four years for sex crimes.

:wow:

[grace0418]

18. Eesh!

Well, that's an unexpected twist. I hope you get it all straightened out.

[regnaD kciN]

19. Actually, I shouldn't have posted that...because it might not be true

After thinking about it a bit, I only have one anonymous blogger's word that it was a sex charge. I do know that the sysop pled guilty to a criminal charge, was sentenced, and is currently serving time in prison, but the online court documents don't mention the charge for which he was convicted. It's possible that it was something less, shall we say, heinous than a sex crime, and I regret having spread that report without more convincing proof than I currently have.