Network issues

Everybody suffers from network issues from time to time. I'm actually a bit of a computer expert. I don't know everything about everything. Heck, I don't know everything about anything. But I know a lot about a lot when it comes to computers. That includes networks.

Now, to be sure, there are plenty of people, including people I know well, that know a lot more about networks than I do. But, I'm still pretty good. At the very least, I can set up my own network and troubleshoot issues accurately.

Just because I'm the family's "computer guy" doesn't mean things don't go wrong. For example, I spent most of the week out of town. I had a business trip (two actually) and squeezed some out of town family time in the middle of it all. And, when I got back home after being away for a few days, I had a problem with my network.

Now, picture this. I pull up in the carport and grab my phone to turn on the lights. Many of my lights are on the network, and I can use an app to turn them on or off. But, in the carport, my phone is still on cellular.

That's odd, because I should be on my network. So I'm wondering what's going on. Then, I get an idea. I have a VPN running, and I can connect to it from cellular. So, I launch the VPN app and it connects. That tells me the network is actually running -- if the network was down, I couldn't connect to the VPN -- but the wireless isn't working.

I launch my Home Automation app. Some of the lights are available. So, I turn those on. They are on the far end of the house, near to where the main network connections are.

That tells me that some of the WiFi is working, and some isn't. I've either a problem with the second wireless access point, or the connectivity between the main wireless router and the secondary one.

All this, and I've not even exited my car. By this time, I'm tired of being outside and unload the car and go inside.

Just because someone is pretty good and knowledgeable about computers and networks, that doesn't mean they won't have problems. Problems don't care how much you know. But how much you know can determine how quickly and inexpensively you'll get the issue fixed.

Being somewhat computer savvy does make some things about my Streaming Life easier. I'm hoping that one day, all these issues would go away. But, then what would I do for fun?