I spoke with the tech regarding the problem with the 8200 while he was inspecting my line. He mentioned that Comcast has made changes to support new packages and his thought was that Comcast may have messed up a setting which affects the 8200 but he couldn't say for certain. Comcast will be back out today (hopefully) to check the main line. I'll try to ask the tech how I go about talking to someone at Comcast that would be able to determine what if anything is being done about the 8200.

Here are a few other points that came out of that conversation:

- When a tech 'provisions' your modem that means they push configuration information to your modem so that your modem may operate on the network. If the phone tech tells you that they *never* push anything to your modem then they do not know what they are talking about; it might be worth asking for a different tech.

- Techs can read the stats from your modem, if it is up (and this makes sense). If they tell you that there are no problems with the line and you suspect there is (and honestly any more, I'm *always* going to suspect there is a problem with the line as the first order of business), have them tell you the SNR/power readings from your modem and the CMTS. Ask for error counts (correctable and uncorrectable). According to the tech I talked with Comcast can access up to two weeks of line info if it exists; my tech from last night said he pulled two weeks of data about my line before he came out to inspect it, and sure enough, low signal. He also said there may be less than two weeks of data if the modem was recently added. If the phone tech continues to insist they can not read your modem, ask for a different tech because they don't know what they are talking about (my words, he never suggested not using the phone techs).

- Provisioning does not necessarily mean a firmware update. If your modem needs a firmware update, and if Comcast enables it, your modem will download new firmware, most likely from the manufacturer web site, and reboot.

In the mean time have you posted your experience to Tom? If not please do. Comcast claims they will respond within a business day; it's another avenue to pursue in getting this resolved. I can't work on modem issue with Comcast until my line is fixed as I can not prove that the only reason my 8200 isn't working is due to a Comcast change; as much as I believe it to be the case. Regardless, *if* I actually get a response I intend to use it as a means to figure out how to get answers to the 8200 problem. Once I know more I'll post it here.