B365V3.48 - Parting is such sweet sorrow unless.....

Well, it looks like I finally have to pay to play.  For those who follow along and for those who don't a little recapping is in order.  A few months back we had an issue with our credit cards at work, well not so much with the cards as it was with our internet access, and given we process our credit cards online, having no access meant credit and debit cards became useless for us, we became a cash only business.  It was hurting us to the tune of about a grand a day.  Naturally we placed calls to our register company and to Verizon, who does our internet.  As the fates would decree, it was at the time Verizon workers went on strike.   Verizon tried farming out some if their work to contractors who were overburdened and under qualified for the tasks they were being asked to do.  It took them four days to get someone to our location, he showed up one day, said he would be back the following day and never showed up again, he just up and quit.  So we were left with trying to come up with work arounds and what not.  Verizon sent us a device, a Ellipsis Jetpack, which is just basically a wifi hotspot.  It did little to solve our problems though, because our registers and back office are not wifi capable.  Another call to our register people came up with a temporary solution, he got a wifi receiver for the back office and that got us a patchwork solution until the underlying problem was resolved, that being we had no internet access from our Verizon landline.

Eventually the Verizon strike ended, our contact at Verizon, Russell, came and looked at our problem and resolved the issue in about a half hour's time.  But Verizon left the Jetpack behind, which allowed me and it to become best friends over summer.  Cue up the montage music with me taking the Jetpack on the bus, to the Waterfront, to the little kiddie pee pond, to Point State Park.  We were inseparable.  I still used it at work, with both my laptop and my tablet, so I can't say it was all fun and games, it had practical work applications as well.   So I go to log on yesterday, establish my network and i am getting a sign in notice, my days of free wifi had apparently come to an end.

As it turns out though, I was able to attach the Jetpack to my existing cell phone account (which the company pays) so if I can justify the cost with work product getting accomplished due in part to having the Jetpack, chances are the company will pick up the tab for it.  For now me and the Jetpack are on borrowed time, and I am hoping that we will not be bidding a tearful farewell.