I hate BT

[Colin Lindsay]

BT won't let me access my e-mails this morning; all accounts are off-line. If I try to take them back online, it asks for the password. This doesn't work.

So: I went online to BT.com, and logged in. No problem. When I went to check my mail online, it then asked for my e-mail password. 'Password not recognised.' Do i want to change it? Ok. I changed it, hit submit, then got this:

So I did. Try again later, that is. Except that my old password doesn't work, and my new password doesn't work either. So: I went to log back in to BT.com.

After that, I tried 'help'. Use our user forum for best results... in other words we can't be bothered so some member of the public will help instead. I went to the User forum and was required to log on. "We have no record of that user name... would you like to create an account?"

So I did. "We have sent a confirmation email to your e-mail address, click on the link to start." WHAT E-MAIL ADDRESS? That's the problem in the first place.

I tried phone. All our operators are currently busy. 

I just love BT.

 

[Nigel Clark]

BT aren't my favourite provider either.

I'm fed up with being gouged for a fast broadband service that's only fast on an intermittent basis, and vowed to change when my contract comes up for renewal this month. Trouble is if I do, I either lose my BT email addresses or pay £7.50 extra to BT each month to retain the addresses. We're being shafted!

Nigel

[Ian Faulds]

I remember  BT frome a few years ago. For a communications company, you can't get in touch with them. Masterstroke. Robots check your line and tell you its OK. But its not !. If it wasn't for a retired bt guy up the street I would've been goosed. Never used but since their crap.

[AndyTV8]

The ISP-provided email addresses are one of the main reasons why people are put off from changing to another ISP. Best bet is to gradually move yourself to an alternative (gmail, ms etc. )  well ahead of time, then you can contemplate a new ISP without major disruption to your email service.

it is worth noting that On many occasions authentication errors are not quite what they say they are -  more often than not related to sync-issues with the mail-service provider. Personally - even though it is a bit annoying - I’d hold off from any resetting unless the problem has hung around for over a day or 2.

....... Andy 

[poppyman]

I have managed to keep a Tiscali email address for many years and changed providers (would not touch BT) But only with the help of a computer engineer. My engineer say's never sign up with anyone without checking that their help desk is in the UK and that they speak the Queens English...... Although it is hard to understand broad "Scouse" at times where my people are, but they go out of their way to help to fix any problem.

Tony.  

[clive]

I bit the bullet and moved to a MS and second gmail email adresses about 10 years ago. Been a godsend, as the broadband providers can't hold me to ransome. 

I tried several providers in our current house (7 years) and all have suffered the same issue, connection drops out. None could ever find a problem, but it is obviously the wire swinging around and hanging off my house, but they won't send an engineer. A swap to virgin has solved it for this year at a fair price. If they gouge me, or try, I will swap and get a new line installed.(we disposed of the landline when we went to virgin, only ever got MIL, my parents or scammers calling)

[Qu1ckn1ck]

VirginMedia are appalling too.  Customer Service do not respond to phone calls, emails or letters of formal complaint.  They too leave the Users Forum members to sort out all problems.

[Colin Lindsay]

Currently waiting on a chat advisor who has already told me that Apple Mail is a 3rd party application and nothing to do with them. Can I uninstall and reinstall it, they ask? No idea how, not on the Mac anyway. I don't think I have the installation disc and there's no online download that I can find. I now have to 'bare' with them for three or four minutes.

They've now told me to wait for 30 minutes and try again. I'm very reluctant to erase the program as I've so many important e-mail addresses and saved messages which I don't want to lose.

[poppyman]

Have you tried a system restore to a previous date Colin, that sometimes works with gremlins.

Tony. 

[clive]

55 minutes ago, Qu1ckn1ck said:

VirginMedia are appalling too.  Customer Service do not respond to phone calls, emails or letters of formal complaint.  They too leave the Users Forum members to sort out all problems.

So far so good.... but I have had some dealings with them. Not easy to sort, but we have always got there. (usually billing via my daughters account, and a replacement router which took some persistence)

[Badwolf]

I run a piggy back email programme (Pegasus) which handles all my email through Virgin and also keeps a copy of all my emails on my pc. I was warned about the problem of switching ISPs right from the start of my broadband experience. Now I am also having Virgin problems and am very grateful for that advice all those years ago.

[NonMember]

35 minutes ago, Badwolf said:

I run a piggy back email programme (Pegasus)

By "piggy back", do you mean a traditional mail client that downloads from a mail (POP3 or IMAP) server, as opposed to a spawn-of-the-devil web interface? I wouldn't use anything else. Thunderbird these days, although I've played with Sylpheed and Claws, and used to use Turnpike when it was still a live product. I believe Colin's "Apple Mail" is also such a client.

I also don't use my BT email address - I have a domain with hosting, plus a legacy ISP email address that still works despite having closed the ISP account (and stopped paying them anything) five years ago. Oh, and a gmail for good measure. However, I have had the experience of BT "forgetting" my email password temporarily and producing all the "you did it wrong" lies that started this thread.

[AidanT]

Gmail and outlook on the PC for me.

I then have all the email files stored locally and apart from very occasionally can access everything on the net from my smart phone, tablet or other web connected device

Sorted!

Aidan

 

P.s.  My isp is bt  but I don't use any of their other services. Their Wi-Fi router ain't bad 

[Colin Lindsay]

16 minutes ago, NonMember said:

However, I have had the experience of BT "forgetting" my email password temporarily and producing all the "you did it wrong" lies that started this thread.

I'm starting to think it's BT rather than my Apple, but proving that could be difficult, especially when things start to go wrong I immediately suspect it's me and do all sorts of things that should have been left alone.

Although I did try to change the password, resulting in the error message in the second pic down (the something's gone wrong' reply to my e-mail change), I can still access the BT.com site using the original password, I can read my e-mails online, and it gives me the option to change passwords, yet nothing happens. No matter what password I try to use now it still gives me the message : "Unable to verify account name or password". Why the account name bit? It's almost as if Mail is not accessing BT at all, but the settings are all correct.

[Pete Lewis]

ask the track and trace as they know how to cock it up 

Pete

[Iain T]

I have BT Halo which is still slow at times. A few apartments in our estate have Hyperoptic fibre which they say is better and cheaper plus you keep your BT email address, didn't say anything about and extra charge.

Iain

[AndyTV8]

I’d suggest verifying your access via your providers web-interface. Once that is working then set up the email client on your pc/Mac/tablet/phone.

....... Andy 

[Anglefire]

 

3 hours ago, Qu1ckn1ck said:

VirginMedia are appalling too.  Customer Service do not respond to phone calls, emails or letters of formal complaint.  They too leave the Users Forum members to sort out all problems.

2 hours ago, clive said:

So far so good.... but I have had some dealings with them. Not easy to sort, but we have always got there. (usually billing via my daughters account, and a replacement router which took some persistence)

I've had a lot of success with Virgin. I do need to contact them about my router - which is showing a RED LED rather than a white one (Overheating apparently) - but I had to sort my mums out the other day after she took over the account from my dad - wifi was appalling, so rang them and they checked the modem to find it not responding well - so sent a new one out. I did get the tv box replaced very easily the other week though and the new one is so much better than the old one  

[Iain T]

28 minutes ago, AndyTV8 said:

I’d suggest verifying your access via your providers web-interface. Once that is working then set up the email client on your pc/Mac/tablet/phone.

I recognise the words but have no idea what they mean😂😂! 

Iain 

 

[Colin Lindsay]

I think he means check the e-mails online; if I can access them there then it's the download / Mac program that's not getting them. Done that already!

I just need to work out how to store or save my e-mail address book, then I'll delete the account and try again.

Everytime I try to make changes I have to enter the password, then a PIN they send me on the phone. I even tried to ask Apple, and Microsoft, and both made me do the same. It's a lot of hassle so that BT can make me feel like an annoyance.

[AndyTV8]

55 minutes ago, Colin Lindsay said:

I think he means check the e-mails online; if I can access them there then it's the download / Mac program that's not getting them. Done that already!

I just need to work out how to store or save my e-mail address book, then I'll delete the account and try again.

Everytime I try to make changes I have to enter the password, then a PIN they send me on the phone. I even tried to ask Apple, and Microsoft, and both made me do the same. It's a lot of hassle so that BT can make me feel like an annoyance.

 

Yep - your first paragraph is what I had suggested.

just had a quick check on BT’s guidance

(https://www.bt.com/help/email/manage-email-account/manual-settings/setting-up-your-email) 

which suggests the same thing - if the username/password combination works on the web-interface then the same will work from your email client.

the link above includes links to the IMAP/POP3 info that needs to be entered as outgoing/incoming servers. 

If you have a smartphone set up for email it will use the same info, but perhaps use slightly different names.

Apologies if I have confused matters, I was trying to be helpful

....... Andy 

[Colin Lindsay]

Got it sorted.

It was connecting to the SMTP for outgoing but not the IMAP for incoming; absolutely no idea why. The error message was just a continuous reply to every step I took so eventually I deleted the entire account and set up a new one. Unsuccessful the first three attempts but suddenly it went through and the account was created; then it downloaded an amazing 467 e-mails! I've no idea of where they were hiding, there's only 6 in the online inbox, but all read, replied to as necessary or marked for attention. Sometimes I hate these things for the grief they cause.

NOW what I have to do is work out why, if any other family member logs on to the Internet from their devices, it's always ME that gets kicked off. Bump - lost signal immediately.

[AndyTV8]

Glad you are sorted Colin  

..... Andy 

[Colin Lindsay]

Thanks Andy. Any idea now how I can sort the problem that, everytime someone else logs on to the Net in our house, I get kicked off? Wife has latest iPad, daughter has iPhone plus PC for Netflix, I know when they're returning home as everytime they come near the house the BT signal goes mad, I get kicked off, and if actually at home and they're surfing the Net from any of their devices I can't get on at all. I have to go and demand / ask / plead that they'll turn something off so that I can get online. That BT ad of everyone in the house doing something online in every room at full speed is a bit exaggerated.

[AndyTV8]

It really depends on whether when your family members return to your house you actually lose your wireless connection to the router (ie kicked out completely) or do you retain a wireless connection to the router but the speed drops right down.

If the former, The BT home hub could be reaching a limit on the number of connections it can support (oldest connection dropped) - I’d be surprised though. You should be able to logon to the router itself and check number of supported connections - if it is set to a low value like 8 this could be the problem

still on that subject, the router may be operating at both 2.4 and 5ghz.  Some but homehubs seem to be way more reliable if only operating on 2.4. It is worth disabling this 5ghz service (need to logon to the router to do this, then restart) the SSID for the 5ghz service should no longer be seen.

certainly worth doing both of these and then monitoring.

if things just get slow then you may need to consider more bandwidth because all the device will be competing for what is available. Your family members using Netflix (or other streaming/catchup/on demand services) could try watching standard Def streams rather than HD streams - that may help if bandwidth is at a premium. Skype/zoom/FaceTime could be adding to the pain.

....... Andy