Landline to mobile number without an actual landline.

Our landline numbers, we love them, don't want to lose them, but it's expensive to keep paying for the landline each month.

With the NBN rolling out, those who wish to have NBN internet services, keeping the landline is fairly easy. But if you mostly use a mobile phone and only keep the landline number so others can call you, there's a couple of alternatives and it can save you money.

I'm not a fan of Vodafone, but I do use their services. Recently we dropped the landline, increased out data allowance (which is shared across  two mobiles) and moved the landline number to one of the mobiles so if someone calls the old landline number it goes to the mobile.

With Vodafone you need to be on a plan, but it only costs $5 a month to port your landline number to Vodafone and then Vodafone redirects the number to a nominated mobile on the Vodafone plan. I called Vodafone help and they didn't know about the service so expect staff not to know. Here's a link to an article on the Vodafone site and it's called the Vodafone Mobile Landline Service. If you let Vodafone staff know the name of the service they'll quickly find they do have it.

Keep in mind it takes 15 plus days for the service to be ported. In addition once ported you need to advise your old telco to cancel the service or they'll just keep charging you. Vodafone advised me I didn't need to do anything, but after the number was ported and calls were going to the mobile, I could still call out on the landline which meant I still needed to cancel the service with the old telco.

Overall apart from Vodafone staff not knowing their products, the service is working well. When people call the old landline number it simply goes to the mobile. They aren't aware and it doesn't cost them anything different from what they'd pay to call you. That is if they called your landline number for a local call that's all they pay even though the call goes through to your mobile. Also you don't pay extra for the redirection as you would if you redirect your landline number to your mobile.

The one thing callers will do is if they don't get you on the landline, they'll then try you on the mobile, which of course now the same thing.

The problem with Vodafone is you need to be on a Vodafone service. So far there's only one other service provider I've found in Australia that provides a similar service and that is Click Broadband. I've not tested their service so I have no actual experience. In theory it looks OK.

Click Broadband have a service called Landline Connect. The service enables you to redirect your landline phone number to your mobile (any Australian mobile service provider) and then disconnect your landline service. The cost is $10 a month.

As you only receive calls and can't make calls using the number there is no additional charge. Calls to the landline number are the same as calling a regular landline number. There's no additional cost for the redirect.

If you decide down the track to redirect your landline number to a difference mobile number you can put in a request with Click Broadband.

You can find details on the Click Broadband Landline Connect Service here.

Finally I just received feedback from a client  using their broker that Telstra is also able to redirect the landline number to a mobile without having the landline. What the final cost will be with Telstra however, I don't know.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
IT support

Adsense ads no longer working on my websites. Adsense ad unit deleted.

Recently I got the following notification in my Adsense account and didn't think too much about it.

"We found your ad code on one or more sites that aren't on your Sites list. To avoid lost revenue, make sure you add all your sites to this list."

Next I found a couple of my sites stopped displaying the Adsense ads. Again I'd seen ads not display so I wasn't too concerned. Once I started checking things out more I then found Google's made a few significant changes.

One thing I didn't expect is that Google had completely deleted the Ad Units from Adsense and not added the site to the Sites list. I've never added a site to the Sites list so this must have been done by Google using a bot.

First I added one of the sites to the list of sites. This is a new change for Adsense. The Sites option has been moved higher and is more obvious. From what I've read in around October 2018 Google decided to start putting more time into reviewing new sites so now you need to add additional code to your site and the site gets reviewed as to whether or not the site is suitable for Adsense.

The second thing that happened is Google Adsense went back and reviewed a couple of my sites and found they didn't have sufficient content and were now barred from showing ads. The sites have been showing ads for years. I get the first site (https://www.Mapz.com.au) being barred as the main page really is a table of contents to the 14 sections of the site plus one external site. Not much content there so I understand Google Adsense's approach.

I went back and added more content and submitted the site but it was still barred.

The second issue is one of the sites listed is an external site (https://www.NearestTrainStation.com.au) and that site too has been barred from using Adsense. I have quite a few other similar sites that have not been barred, so linking from the Mapz site has probably resulted in the Google bots somehow associating the sites. It could also mean many of my other sites may eventually be impacted in the same way and that's very concerning.

I've always felt Google Adsense is an exposure as at any time Google can decide what you're doing isn't acceptable and you no longer have access to Google Adsense. Since I can't get the sites to meet the terms of Adsense, the simplest approach has been to use a different adveristing approach for those sites I can no longer use Adsense. Not ideal but not much I can do about it.

The real concern going forward is what will Google Adsense do with my other sites. I need a proven alternate to Google Adsense. It's always good to have multiple strategies in case one strategy ceases to work.

Hopefully since many of the sites I have, have been added to the Sites list by Google, this means those sites won't be impacted. I suspect since a bot went through the sites to add to the Sites list, that at the same time the bot was looking for non-compliance. Since the Mapz site was non-compliant, the Nearest Train Station site being linked, was found to also be non-compliant. This could be the end of it, or it could be the first stage of Google going through sites and additional sites may be found to be non-compliant. Only time will tell.

As a side note, this is the first time I've seen an impact with Google where one site has been impacted which has been linked to from another site. Other similar sites have not been impacted.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
IT support.

Setting up Google Chromecast to a mobile hotspot on a mobile phone.

Recently I went completely mobile for accessing the internet, ditching the ADSL2+ broadband and landline. When you make a change like this you need to make sure you don't lose any services you currently use. The Google Chromecast is one such service.

Google Chromecast is relatively easy to set up normally. The hotspot in your home is usually the Wi-Fi access point, which is also your router and ADSL modem, or cable modem. Because your mobile phone and Google Chromecast connect to the Wi-Fi access point everything tends to work OK.

However, if you want to ditch the home broadband and go mobile, you need to set up the Google Chromecast to use your mobile phone as the hotspot. Therein lies the problem. When setting up a Google Chromecast the set up steps need to use Wi-Fi, this disables the hotspot, which means the Google Chromecast can't access a network.

There's an easy way to work around this issue. Set up your mobile phone as the hotspot. Now get a second mobile phone and connect the second mobile to your hotspot. Use Google Home on the second mobile phone to set up the Google Chromecast with the Google Chromecast using your first mobile phone as the hotspot and network. Once the set up is complete the second mobile is no longer required.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
IT support.

Advice from Vodafone staff, apps, and online so confusing and conflicting you don't know who to believe.

Recently I decided that Vodafone had a range of offerings that would allow me to achieve what I wanted. The apprehension was, in the past I've had issues where Vodafone staff gave wrong advice. In one case the Vodafone reseller contact had to retrain staff in the store so they could deliver the service they had available. As they say, once bitten twice shy.

In summary what I was doing and did was two set up two mobiles with 12 month SIM only plans. I also wanted to port our landline number to one of the mobiles thereby keeping our landline number, but getting rid of the physical landline. Now calls to the old landline number would go to the mobile. Yes this can be done.

The benefits are obvious. Instead of getting 6-7Mbps on the fixed line with ADSL2+ I'd now get 30-60 Mbps or more. Keep the landline number and able to use the broadband allowance of 70GB which is shared between the two mobiles anywhere there is a good Vodafone connection. All for less than I was previously paying.

Issues I had.

1. Calling the customer service number to confirm I could port the landline number and the first response is Vodafone didn't do it. I advised the customer contact person they could and asked them to look up the service on the Vodafone site and they came back confirming the service was available. I'd done a lot of online checking and I expected the customer contact person wouldn't know about the service. Porting can take around 15 days.

2. Not trusting the customer contact call centre off I went to the local Vodafone store to check all the details. Left and came back on another day once I was sure I knew everything I could. Set up the two mobiles and ported the landline. These would all port and I was told I didn't need to do anything more such as cancelling services. That was done when numbers were ported. I selected a $35 a month plan which had 30 GB of data as I was advised I could upgrade a plan at no cost, but couldn't downgrade. The other plan was $40 with $5 discount and 40 GB of data. Porting the two mobiles happened very quickly. One whilst in the store and one by the time I got home. That's great but a concern because if I was a fraudster the real user would have received no notification. I never received notification from TPG the mobile numbers were being ported.

3. I signed up on the 8th of November and the plan reset on the 10th. I was told this is what Vodafone did and effectively you got two days free. I was billed $10 extra for 1 GB of data. Had to call Vodafone for this to be corrected.

4. The porting of the landline took a little longer than the 15 days. Calls were now going to the mobile if the landline number was called. I decided to test the landline. I could still call out so the landline was not automatically disconnected as advised by Vodafone staff. Had to call Vodafone to confirm they didn't cancel the line. Had to call TPG, then message TPG to cancel service. TPG kept all unused amounts from mobile services including charging for 30 days notice on the landline/ADSL2+ service. Unfortunately I couldn't provide advance notification to cancel the landline/ADSL2+ to minimise this cost as I couldn't be sure the landline port would work. Just so others are aware this probably means $60-$70 of services you've already paid for but won't use.

Overall at this stage everything was now working.  The next stage was to increase the $35 plan to have more data if required.

The plans I was discussing with the Vodafone staff are shown in the the following image from WayBackWhen. The prices didn't come up on the WayBackWhen site but were $35, $40 (includes the $5 discount and $60.

As it turned out I had to use more data than expected in the month upgrading computers, so felt upgrading the $35 plan would give more elbow room. I saw Vodafone now offered 10 GB more on the $40 plan and 20 GB more if I upgraded the $35 plan to the $40 plan. That made me think I could upgrade for $5 a month in total and get an additional 30 GB of data.

With the $40 plan since it was the same plan I had, but just with extra data this wasn't considered an upgrade. I accept I was wrong in my assumption. No problem. That's just 10 GB.

With the $35 plan I could upgrade to the $40 plan and get the extra 20 GB of data. I was advised there was no cost to upgrade by two staff members. There was three days to the end of the current period. I asked what happens with upgrading. When you upgrade you lose any remaining and the plan upgrades immediately. I decided to wait until the last day of the month for the plan which was the 9th of December. (NOTE: According to the Vodafone terms and conditions upgrading plans start from the beginning of the next billing cycle and not immediately. This differs from what the staff member said.)

On the last day of the current (the 9th of December) I went into the Vodafone store to upgrade. I didn't trust the call centre and don't trust the app as I get inconsistent information. Two Vodafone staff had told me I could upgrade the $35 plan at no cost.

I asked the staff member at Vodafone and they said you're locked into the 12 month contract and can't upgrade. I let her know what the other staff members had said but she again said I couldn't upgrade. I then showed her the Vodafone app which said I was eligible to upgrade. She then conferred with her manager. She came back and said you can upgrade but have to pay out the exit fee for the plan which is 50% of the remaining 11 months.

The real problem here is the information you get from all the sources available from Vodafone is not consistent or complete. You never know if the staff you talk to know what they're doing or not. The Vodafone app which knows the plan you're on shows you can upgrade but does not mention exit fees. You just don't know who is right and who isn't.

At this point I've largely given up because the time involved has been excessive and more time with Vodafone feels like a waste of time and energy. If this is too hard for me, and I live in the world of providing advice and guidance to others on technology, then I don't know how others with less knowledge don't get burnt. Two staff at the one store say one thing whilst two staff say another. Online and app information also say different things.

It is my nature to persist and get answers to these issues as that is often what I do for a living. Even though it does take a lot of time, it does mean I can provide better advice and guidance to others that I help.

Also I should say I'm often looking at new services people can take advantage of and that means often staff in the companies aren't informed and this creates problems.

With Vodafone I think it's best to keep things simple. Try to understand the contracts and the commitment you are entering into. Assume if you sign up for 12 months you can't change anything. Assume the worst. It may be staff don't know, or it can be miscommunication. We often assume things in a conversation based on our perspective or knowledge and don't quite hear things in the way another person has said it, or the other person was simply wrong. The bottom line is, only the contract matters. That is what you've committed to. It's a sad fact of life that we get told things that aren't true but if they're not written down in the contract, you'll only get grief and agro trying to get satisfaction with what you've been told.

Would I refer others to Vodafone. I'd be very reluctant. With all the time I put into making sure I get everything right, and it is considerable, and still come unstuck, I'd suggest others be very cautious.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
IT support.

Update: 17 December 2018
After taking some time going through the Vodafone site I decided to revisit the Vodafone store to ask the original staff member to confirm what I'd learn even if it wasn't what I originally understood he'd advised me.

The problem in hindsight is I went into the store discussing the current advertised plans. They were the only plans I knew about and thus I assumed the staff member was talking about the same plans including bonuses such as data and discounts.

Whilst I was told I could upgrade the $35 plan at no cost, I wasn't told that when you upgrade you lose all the data bonus and discount. That is the $35 plan with $30GB of data could be upgraded to the $45 plan with no $5 discount and no 25GB of bonus data. Less data for $10 more.

Vodafone have plan upgrades as one facility and switching plans as another. When you switch you lose benefits of the plan. If you upgrades you generally need to pay out the old plan if under contract.

In addition, if I read the online information correctly, you can upgrade at no cost from the 12 Month SIM only to the 12 Month SIM only Plus plans. That is you can go from the $35/$45 to the $60/$80 plans at no cost, but I suspect you'd lose any bonus data on the $60/$80 plans.

Overall a very confusing situation for consumers.

I've decided now to leave the plans as they are. Whether I continue to use Vodafone when the contracts expire is hard to say. During the 12 months if I need additional data, Coles and Woolworths often have new prepaid plans that can be purchased for a considerable discount. For example today I purchase a SIM kit for $9 which will provide 35GB and can be activated up to the 4th of February. If I activate the SIM at the right time (halfway through my Vodafone billing cycle) I can use this to supplement the data covering two billing periods giving me more data if needed, at a lower cost, than picking a higher priced plan from Vodafone. Not as convenient, works around this issue if needed.

Can't type into Search Google or type URL on Google Home page.

A client recently said his browser was playing up. He couldn't type into the search field on the Google Home page. The field where it states "Search Google or type URL". The field was greyed out and the cursor would jump to the address bar when he started to type. The problem for him was the address bar was much smaller and more difficult to read than the Google Home page search field.

I'd not seen this behaviour before and my first thought was that it could be malware. A couple of tests and malware wasn't the problem. The question then is what had changed for the client. Because the client's hard disk had failed the computer had a fresh install of Windows 7 and Google Chrome.

With a bit of testing I determined this appears to be the behaviour designed by Google into the Chrome browser. If you have the default search set to Google, when you type into the search field on the Google Home page, the cursor will jump to the address bar area and enter your search request there. It works but it's confusing and unexpected behaviour for users and one could argue it is a poor design decision.

The good thing is it's easy to work around and get the Google Home page "Search Google or type URL" field working as you'd expect. You just need to make two changes in Settings for the browser.

1. Change the default search engine to something other than Google such as Bing. This is the setting  "Search engine used in the address bar" found in the Search engine section.

2. Set up www.Google.com as your default page that opens when you open the browser. You can set this in the On start-up section. Select Open a specific page or set of page, click on the three vertical dots, select Edit and type in the page (such as https://www.Google.com) you want to open when you open Google Chrome.

How long this behaviour has been occurring I don't know. I use my own search page https://www.AdvancedSearch.com.au/SearchGoogle/ or https://www.AdvancedSearch.com.au/SearchBing/, as my own search page takes me direct to hundreds of sites if I type in the company's name or product, avoiding the search engine results page and saving time.

Because this design by Google confuses people, is not expected behaviour, is different from how other browsers behave, or even how Google Chrome behaves with different settings, it could probably be considered poor design on Google's behalf. The design however could be a deliberate strategy to enforce the Google Home page isn't required for searching and people can use the Address bar.

Whatever the reason you now know the issue isn't a bug or malware and you can easily change your settings to create the behaviour you want.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
IT support

Microsoft Windows Essentials 2012 couldn't be installed errors 0x800c0006 WLXSuiteLang UXPlatformLang

A client's Windows 7 computer failed due to a failing hard disk. Lots of errors, Outlook not working and unable to repair. As a precaution I kept the client's hard disk for them and installed a new hard disk giving them more space at the same time.

Reinstalling Windows 7 isn't difficult now that Microsoft provides ISO images that can be downloaded. A welcome change from Microsoft that they make the ISO images available. However, reinstalling Windows 7 on an older computer nearly always comes with issues and time consuming updates. This computer was no different. Over a hundred updates to be applied, graphics card not recognised and issues with the ports. All taking a considerable amount of time to find drivers to install.

The client used Windows Essentals Photo Gallery and sometimes Movie Maker. No problem I thought. A visit to the Microsoft download site should fix that. How wrong could I be. As the software was discontinued in 2017 and no longer supported, the software is not even available from the Microsoft site.

Really Microsoft! Surely you could provide an archive area for all your old programs that people could download. That protects people from having to download software from potentially questionable sites. Just another reason my support for Microsoft has nearly vanished over the years. If Microsoft doesn't look after their users, users should reconsider supporting Microsoft.

But I digress. After quite a few attempts to install Windows Essentials 2012 found using Google searches, with the error messages 0x800c0006 WLXSuiteLang UXPlatformLang, the client suggested I try YouTube as he'd seen links to the software on YouTube. I checked YouTube and found https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y9aAnqXDSpw. The comment in those video post lead me to the site http://hifi2007reviews.com/movie-maker-windows-essentials-2012-microsoft-offline-installer/.

On this site there were two links. One for Windows Essentials 2012 and one for Windows Essentials 2011. I downloaded the Windows Essentials 2012 file, performed a virus scan and installed the software removing all options except for Photo Gallery and Movie Maker. The software installed without a problem. Configured the software for the client since they had their files on a second hard drive and the client was now up and going again.

For those getting the same error messages as I did, try the site above. It could be I'm located in Australia and the other downloads I tried weren't suitable for Australia. The error messages indicated a language interface issue so that sort of makes sense.

It's a pity Microsoft alienates their clients by not providing their files in an archive area. In this case the client was using an older version of Outlook but now the client is happy to use Gmail, further reducing the need for them to use Microsoft products. Microsoft seems to have forgotten that if you look after you're clients, your clients will look after you.

Kelvin Eldridge
Online Connections
www.OnlineConnections.com.au

Office 365 licence changes coming on October 2, 2018.

According to a blog post from Microsoft, from October 2, 2018 there will be some changes to the Office 365 Home/Personal licences. The first thing to note is you don't have to do anything. This will all happen automatically.

I'm always a bit perplexed when companies make changes. Often there can be a bit of manipulation. You appear to be getting something extra, when in the background something is being taken away.

If I've read the following article correctly this is what you get from October 2, 2018.

https://support.office.com/en-us/article/important-news-about-your-office-365-subscription-06828297-4f1d-4059-8748-365d8e658968

Microsoft previously allowed you to load Office 365 onto up to 10 devices. Now you'll be able to load Office 365 onto an unlimited number of devices. That's good for convenience as the software's on the devices if needed.

For Office 365 Personal you'll be able to load Office 365 on all your devices but you'll only be able to sign into five at any one time. That appears to be an improvement as previously you only had one PC or Mac and a tablet. Now if looks like you could have PC, Mac, tablet, mobile device, etc.

For Office 365 Home you'll now have an additional user licence giving you six users. Each user will be able to sign into up to 5 devices at one time. Previously it was 5 users and up to 10 devices. In effect 2 devices per user. Now it looks like there could be up to 30 devices signed in.

Overall there doesn't seem to be any losses, just gains for users.

For Office 365 Personal it now means if you have more devices such as PCs and Macs, the Personal licence may be used instead of the Home licence.

Overall there's more options, more flexibility and potential for home users and their families to save money and that's always a good thing.

Kelvin Eldridge
www.OnlineConnections.com.au
IT support