This morning, we went to Pier Park so I could use the free, city WiFi. I had already written an email on my phone. It was addressed to the Surf Internet guys and detailed the MAC address of modem/router. I couldn't send from the apartment as we were without Internet, TV and VoIP.
I had upped service speeds when we got back from the winter but started to run into problems with the old device. It first became obvious when I was trying to upload 12GB video files to YouTube. The whole modem would crash and it'd require a physical reset in order to get back online. It was hard to pinpoint the trouble but it generally occurred during uploads.
I finally decided it was a problem with the technicolor hardware. The guys at Surf Internet, the ones who provide fiber into our building, were very helpful. They said they'd drop off a different modem to our building but the tech guys weren't able to come into apartments at the present time. I didn't see that as a problem and a guy stopped yesterday to drop off a different make and model.
I didn't want to fiddle with things last night, but this morning after the routines were finished, I plugged in the new one and it wouldn't access the Internet. I had already changed over the WiFi names and passwords for 'WINDTALKER' and 'WINDTALKER-G5'. That would ensure it wasn't necessary for me to have to run around and update the Google Minis, Hub, and nearly a dozen lightbulbs and switches. I've used that SSID for years and years!
Down in the park at around 9:30 am, I pressed ENTER and sent off the email and then Skyped to their support number. He said it appeared as though my modem was okay at that point. Sure enough, after a pleasant hike to the 'W' public-art containers, we returned to the apartment to find everything up and running.