Follow up to the previously discussed Vodafone outage.

After nearly 2 weeks Vf grudgingly admitted there had been an issue
without giving any details. This came in the form, Great news, our
engineers have fixed the fault at your postcode.

Followed 25 minutes later with a second mail admitting they had failed
so to do:-)

Another *great news* mail this morning! We'll see. They didn't say but I
guess the outage was restricted to 3g.

Either way, it has forced me to try getting to grips with a less basic
phone. The first disappointment was that having fitted the SIM from my
old Alcatel, the contacts list was not accessible!

My Motoe5 play is not hugely user friendly in that it seems to expect
everything to be run through my Google account!

Tempting to go out and buy a cheap basic 4g phone from Tesco.

--
Tim Lamb

On 08/11/2020 16:58, Tim Lamb wrote:
Follow up to the previously discussed Vodafone outage.

After nearly 2 weeks Vf grudgingly admitted there had been an issue
without giving any details. This came in the form, Great news, our
engineers have fixed the fault at your postcode.

Followed 25 minutes later with a second mail admitting they had failed
so to do:-)

Another *great news* mail this morning! We'll see. They didn't say but I
guess the outage was restricted to 3g.

Either way, it has forced me to try getting to grips with a less basic
phone. The first disappointment was that having fitted the SIM from my
old Alcatel, the contacts list was not accessible!

My Motoe5 play is not hugely user friendly in that it seems to expect
everything to be run through my Google account!

Tempting to go out and buy a cheap basic 4g phone from Tesco.


If you have no Vodafone mobile phone network coverage wifi calling can
be an alternative if you have a phone that can do that. You may also
have to ask Vodafone to enable the free feature on your account.

--
Michael Chare

In message , Michael Chare
writes
On 08/11/2020 16:58, Tim Lamb wrote:
Follow up to the previously discussed Vodafone outage.
After nearly 2 weeks Vf grudgingly admitted there had been an issue
without giving any details. This came in the form, Great news, our
engineers have fixed the fault at your postcode.
Followed 25 minutes later with a second mail admitting they had
failed so to do:-)
Another *great news* mail this morning! We'll see. They didn't say
but I guess the outage was restricted to 3g.
Either way, it has forced me to try getting to grips with a less
basic phone. The first disappointment was that having fitted the SIM
from my old Alcatel, the contacts list was not accessible!
My Motoe5 play is not hugely user friendly in that it seems to
expect everything to be run through my Google account!
Tempting to go out and buy a cheap basic 4g phone from Tesco.


If you have no Vodafone mobile phone network coverage wifi calling can
be an alternative if you have a phone that can do that. You may also
have to ask Vodafone to enable the free feature on your account.

Indeed. Managed to do that for the pile of accumulated upgrades.

Wifi at home but I may as well use the free land line.

GPS, what three words location and mapping is good on the Moto but it is
a bit large/delicate for many of my daytime activities.

I'll reassemble the sim and try the old Alcatel tomorrow.

I also have a gifted Microsoft Lumia to try.


--
Tim Lamb

On 08/11/2020 16:58, Tim Lamb wrote:
Follow up to the previously discussed Vodafone outage.

After nearly 2 weeks Vf grudgingly admitted there had been an issue
without giving any details. This came in the form, Great news, our
engineers have fixed the fault at your postcode.

Followed 25 minutes later with a second mail admitting they had failed
so to do:-)

Another *great news* mail this morning! We'll see. They didn't say but I
guess the outage was restricted to 3g.

Either way, it has forced me to try getting to grips with a less basic
phone. The first disappointment was that having fitted the SIM from my
old Alcatel, the contacts list was not accessible!

Go into Contacts, bring up the menu from the = thingy (top left corner),
choose Settings then Import from the Manage contacts section, then
Import contacts from SIM card. The SIM card contacts are listed with the
boxes ticked. Choose Import.

--
Max Demian

In message , Max
Demian writes
On 08/11/2020 16:58, Tim Lamb wrote:
Follow up to the previously discussed Vodafone outage.
After nearly 2 weeks Vf grudgingly admitted there had been an issue
without giving any details. This came in the form, Great news, our
engineers have fixed the fault at your postcode.
Followed 25 minutes later with a second mail admitting they had
failed so to do:-)
Another *great news* mail this morning! We'll see. They didn't say
but I guess the outage was restricted to 3g.
Either way, it has forced me to try getting to grips with a less
basic phone. The first disappointment was that having fitted the SIM
from my old Alcatel, the contacts list was not accessible!

Go into Contacts, bring up the menu from the = thingy (top left
corner), choose Settings then Import from the Manage contacts section,
then Import contacts from SIM card. The SIM card contacts are listed
with the boxes ticked. Choose Import.

Manage contacts not on the list! I can enter them by hand!


--
Tim Lamb

On Sunday, 8 November 2020 16:59:07 UTC, Tim Lamb wrote:
Follow up to the previously discussed Vodafone outage.

After nearly 2 weeks Vf grudgingly admitted there had been an issue
without giving any details. This came in the form, Great news, our
engineers have fixed the fault at your postcode.

Followed 25 minutes later with a second mail admitting they had failed
so to do:-)

Another *great news* mail this morning! We'll see. They didn't say but I
guess the outage was restricted to 3g.

Either way, it has forced me to try getting to grips with a less basic
phone. The first disappointment was that having fitted the SIM from my
old Alcatel, the contacts list was not accessible!

My Motoe5 play is not hugely user friendly in that it seems to expect
everything to be run through my Google account!

Tempting to go out and buy a cheap basic 4g phone from Tesco.

Sometimes you need a new SIM in order to access 4G. Partner is in that position - has a 4G-capable phone but restricted to 3G by the SIM. No cost to her to upgrade but keeps forgetting.

Tim Lamb wrote:

My Motoe5 play is not hugely user friendly in that it seems to expect
everything to be run through my Google account!

That's just Android isn't it, not a specific Motorola issue.


Tempting to go out and buy a cheap basic 4g phone from Tesco.

That'll have the same Google dependence surely, unless you go very
basic non-Android.

--
Chris Green
·

Tim Lamb wrote:

My Motoe5 play is not hugely user friendly in that it seems to expect
everything to be run through my Google account!

You can avoid it, but everything will be that bit harder without, and
whenever you ask "why doesn't X work?", people will either answer with
the assumption you are using cloud, or suggest that you should be ...

Tim Lamb wrote:
In message , Max
Demian writes
On 08/11/2020 16:58, Tim Lamb wrote:
Follow up to the previously discussed Vodafone outage.
After nearly 2 weeks Vf grudgingly admitted there had been an issue
without giving any details. This came in the form, Great news, our
engineers have fixed the fault at your postcode.
Followed 25 minutes later with a second mail admitting they had
failed so to do:-)
Another *great news* mail this morning! We'll see. They didn't say
but I guess the outage was restricted to 3g.
Either way, it has forced me to try getting to grips with a less
basic phone. The first disappointment was that having fitted the SIM
from my old Alcatel, the contacts list was not accessible!

Go into Contacts, bring up the menu from the = thingy (top left
corner), choose Settings then Import from the Manage contacts section,
then Import contacts from SIM card. The SIM card contacts are listed
with the boxes ticked. Choose Import.

Manage contacts not on the list! I can enter them by hand!



Where were contacts stored on your old phone? In ye old days, all contacts
were stored on the SIM card but as phones got smarter, they started
recording contacts in the phones own memory rather than the SIM as then
they could store a lot more info.

Your old phone may have been doing this. If you put the sim back into it
there may be an option to copy contacts to SIM. If you do this you will
get get basic name and numbers copied to the SIM that should then transfer
with the SIM to your new phone.

Tim

--
Please don't feed the trolls

In message
,
Tim+ writes
Tim Lamb wrote:
In message , Max
Demian writes
On 08/11/2020 16:58, Tim Lamb wrote:
Follow up to the previously discussed Vodafone outage.
After nearly 2 weeks Vf grudgingly admitted there had been an issue
without giving any details. This came in the form, Great news, our
engineers have fixed the fault at your postcode.
Followed 25 minutes later with a second mail admitting they had
failed so to do:-)
Another *great news* mail this morning! We'll see. They didn't say
but I guess the outage was restricted to 3g.
Either way, it has forced me to try getting to grips with a less
basic phone. The first disappointment was that having fitted the SIM
from my old Alcatel, the contacts list was not accessible!

Go into Contacts, bring up the menu from the = thingy (top left
corner), choose Settings then Import from the Manage contacts section,
then Import contacts from SIM card. The SIM card contacts are listed
with the boxes ticked. Choose Import.

Manage contacts not on the list! I can enter them by hand!



Where were contacts stored on your old phone? In ye old days, all contacts
were stored on the SIM card but as phones got smarter, they started
recording contacts in the phones own memory rather than the SIM as then
they could store a lot more info.

Your old phone may have been doing this. If you put the sim back into it
there may be an option to copy contacts to SIM. If you do this you will
get get basic name and numbers copied to the SIM that should then transfer
with the SIM to your new phone.

They were on my sim card for the last but one phone. I assume they would
still be there despite the Alcatel interval?

I can go back and check although re-assembling sims is a pain.

--
Tim Lamb

In message ,
polygonum_on_google writes
On Sunday, 8 November 2020 16:59:07 UTC, Tim Lamb wrote:
Follow up to the previously discussed Vodafone outage.

After nearly 2 weeks Vf grudgingly admitted there had been an issue
without giving any details. This came in the form, Great news, our
engineers have fixed the fault at your postcode.

Followed 25 minutes later with a second mail admitting they had failed
so to do:-)

Another *great news* mail this morning! We'll see. They didn't say but I
guess the outage was restricted to 3g.

Either way, it has forced me to try getting to grips with a less basic
phone. The first disappointment was that having fitted the SIM from my
old Alcatel, the contacts list was not accessible!

My Motoe5 play is not hugely user friendly in that it seems to expect
everything to be run through my Google account!

Tempting to go out and buy a cheap basic 4g phone from Tesco.

Sometimes you need a new SIM in order to access 4G. Partner is in that
position - has a 4G-capable phone but restricted to 3G by the SIM. No
cost to her to upgrade but keeps forgetting.

This is relatively recent sim and the moto display shows 4g signal
levels.

--
Tim Lamb

In message , Chris Green
writes
Tim Lamb wrote:

My Motoe5 play is not hugely user friendly in that it seems to expect
everything to be run through my Google account!

That's just Android isn't it, not a specific Motorola issue.

I don't know. Surely it is possible to have a contact list without it
being stored by Google?


Tempting to go out and buy a cheap basic 4g phone from Tesco.

That'll have the same Google dependence surely, unless you go very
basic non-Android.

Doro?:-)


--
Tim Lamb

In message , Andy Burns
writes
Tim Lamb wrote:

My Motoe5 play is not hugely user friendly in that it seems to expect
everything to be run through my Google account!

You can avoid it, but everything will be that bit harder without, and
whenever you ask "why doesn't X work?", people will either answer with
the assumption you are using cloud, or suggest that you should be ...
I don't mind harder if it means not sharing everything I do with an
organisation profiting from harvesting such data. No Alexa's here.

--
Tim Lamb

Tim Lamb wrote:

I don't mind harder if it means not sharing everything I do with an
organisation profiting from harvesting such data. No Alexa's here.

In which case, yes you can either turn off the individual sync options
for the google account (contacts, calendar, notes, photos, etc) or
delete the google account from the phone altogether ... both within
settings/accounts

You'll still have local contact data etc.

Tim Lamb wrote:
In message , Chris Green
writes
Tim Lamb wrote:

My Motoe5 play is not hugely user friendly in that it seems to expect
everything to be run through my Google account!

That's just Android isn't it, not a specific Motorola issue.

I don't know. Surely it is possible to have a contact list without it
being stored by Google?

On Android I doubt it, though maybe it's possible by not using the
default 'contacts' app.



Tempting to go out and buy a cheap basic 4g phone from Tesco.

That'll have the same Google dependence surely, unless you go very
basic non-Android.

Doro?:-)

Doro are still Android when they're smart phones, you have to go to a
'feature phone' to escape.

--
Chris Green
·

Chris Green wrote:

On Android I doubt it, though maybe it's possible by not using the
default 'contacts' app.

You *can* use the default contacts app, with a local database, just not
synced to a google account.

On Sun, 8 Nov 2020 20:47:51 +0000, Tim Lamb wrote:

I don't know. Surely it is possible to have a contact list without it
being stored by Google?

Yes, just turn off all the syncing with in the google account on the
phone. Preferably before you've uploaded/restored your
contacts/calendar/etc to the phone. Then never do or set off manual
sync for that account.

Deleting the google account will definitely break the link to google
but I have feeling the phone will complian about not being able to
"phone home" and it may affect your access to the playstore.

--
Cheers
Dave.

On 08/11/2020 16:58, Tim Lamb wrote:

My Motoe5 play is not hugely user friendly in that it seems to expect
everything to be run through my Google account!

It worth having it ties to *a* google account, even if not one you use
for other stuff, since it can then do a bunch of stuff that is genuinely
useful and worth having.

One you have contacts backed up on an account, its much easier to go to
contacts.google.com on a computer and edit them there than on the phone.
Same as "messages for web" makes it much easier to send and read SMS on
the computer.

Tempting to go out and buy a cheap basic 4g phone from Tesco.

Import from SIM is a standard part of the contacts app, if you go to
settings on the menu.

https://support.google.com/contacts/...droid&hl=en-GB


--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

Tim Lamb wrote in
:

In message , Max
Demian writes

Manage contacts not on the list! I can enter them by hand!



Older Moto here but under Contacts (People) there is Settings and under
that there is Import/Export, under that there are various options including
export to and import from storage (uSD card) so you should be able to
transfer via the uSD card.

You may need to search but hopefully there should be an equivalent
somewhere on yours.

Mine creates a single vcf file with all the contacts in it, not sure that
all providers use the same format so some tweaks may be required.

In message , Peter Burke
writes
Tim Lamb wrote in
:

In message , Max
Demian writes

Manage contacts not on the list! I can enter them by hand!



Older Moto here but under Contacts (People) there is Settings and under
that there is Import/Export, under that there are various options including
export to and import from storage (uSD card) so you should be able to
transfer via the uSD card.

You may need to search but hopefully there should be an equivalent
somewhere on yours.

Mine creates a single vcf file with all the contacts in it, not sure that
all providers use the same format so some tweaks may be required.

Now that 3g is back up, I have ditched the Moto and gone back to
basic:-)

I think there is provision for transfer via syncing but neither of my
old phones are that clever.

--
Tim Lamb

In message l.net,
Dave Liquorice writes
On Sun, 8 Nov 2020 20:47:51 +0000, Tim Lamb wrote:

I don't know. Surely it is possible to have a contact list without it
being stored by Google?

Yes, just turn off all the syncing with in the google account on the
phone. Preferably before you've uploaded/restored your
contacts/calendar/etc to the phone. Then never do or set off manual
sync for that account.

Deleting the google account will definitely break the link to google
but I have feeling the phone will complian about not being able to
"phone home" and it may affect your access to the playstore.

I have zero interest in the play store. I suppose system updates would
be missed.

I would use phone, SMS messaging, camera, mapping/gps and very little
else.

I have a desktop for mail, shopping, storing photos etc.


--
Tim Lamb

In message , John
Rumm writes
On 08/11/2020 16:58, Tim Lamb wrote:

My Motoe5 play is not hugely user friendly in that it seems to expect
everything to be run through my Google account!

It worth having it ties to *a* google account, even if not one you use
for other stuff, since it can then do a bunch of stuff that is
genuinely useful and worth having.

One you have contacts backed up on an account, its much easier to go to
contacts.google.com on a computer and edit them there than on the
phone. Same as "messages for web" makes it much easier to send and read
SMS on the computer.

Tempting to go out and buy a cheap basic 4g phone from Tesco.

Import from SIM is a standard part of the contacts app, if you go to
settings on the menu.

https://support.google.com/contacts/...E.Platform%3DA
ndroid&hl=en-GB

Umm.. I've taken the sim out now.

Going through the above instructions got me to an offer to download from
a .vcf but nothing on a sim. I suppose the phone knows I don't have one
plugged in!

Shunting these things about from generations of phones with different
sized sims is a pain.

Thanks but I'm heading for bed.



--
Tim Lamb

Tim Lamb wrote in
:

Now that 3g is back up, I have ditched the Moto and gone back to
basic:-)

I think there is provision for transfer via syncing but neither of my
old phones are that clever.


The other old school contact transfer method was via SIM but they have
limited capacity so it had to be done in batches, copy batch to sim until
full, switch sim to new phone, copy to new phone, delete from sim, rinse
repeat. Thumb intensive as contact copies often had to be done to sim one
at a time.

On 08/11/2020 23:21, Tim Lamb wrote:
In message , John
Rumm writes


Import from SIM is a standard part of the contacts app, if you go to
settings on the menu.

https://support.google.com/contacts/...E.Platform%3DA
ndroid&hl=en-GB

Umm.. I've taken the sim out now.

Going through the above instructions got me to an offer to download from
a .vcf but nothing on a sim. I suppose the phone knows I don't have one
plugged in!

Yup, I probably won't offer the option if there is no sim available.

You can get USB SIM readers as well - so could get them off and
converted to a .vcf that way if you wanted.

Shunting these things about from generations of phones with different
sized sims is a pain.

Yup!

--
Cheers,

John.

/================================================== ===============\
| Internode Ltd - http://www.internode.co.uk |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------|
| John Rumm - john(at)internode(dot)co(dot)uk |
\================================================= ================/

Nobody taking the **** out of tim lamb then?....even I know he hasn't
got a clue about phones and sim cards...missed a good chance there for
some fun chaps.....

Dave Liquorice wrote:
On Sun, 8 Nov 2020 20:47:51 +0000, Tim Lamb wrote:

I don't know. Surely it is possible to have a contact list without it
being stored by Google?

Yes, just turn off all the syncing with in the google account on the
phone. Preferably before you've uploaded/restored your
contacts/calendar/etc to the phone. Then never do or set off manual
sync for that account.

Deleting the google account will definitely break the link to google
but I have feeling the phone will complian about not being able to
"phone home" and it may affect your access to the playstore.

Yes, it's quite difficult to disconnect from Google completely. I
don't think Play Store works without logging in to a Google account
does it? (Among other things)

--
Chris Green
·

On Sun, 8 Nov 2020 23:04:02 +0000, Tim Lamb wrote:

Deleting the google account will definitely break the link to
google
but I have feeling the phone will complian about not being able to
"phone home" and it may affect your access to the playstore.

I have zero interest in the play store. I suppose system updates would
be missed.

Not sure I think updates use a seperate mechanisum, cofidence factor
10%...

I would use phone, SMS messaging, camera, mapping/gps and very little
else.

I have a desktop for mail, shopping, storing photos etc.

Record the google account login details and delete the account on the
phone. If the whingeing is disruptive just recreate the account and
turn off all the sync options.

There used to be global phone "turn off sync" option but that may
have diappeared in more recent versions of Android or been buried...

--
Cheers
Dave.

In message l.net,
Dave Liquorice writes
On Sun, 8 Nov 2020 23:04:02 +0000, Tim Lamb wrote:

Deleting the google account will definitely break the link to
google
but I have feeling the phone will complian about not being able to
"phone home" and it may affect your access to the playstore.

I have zero interest in the play store. I suppose system updates would
be missed.

Not sure I think updates use a seperate mechanisum, cofidence factor
10%...

I would use phone, SMS messaging, camera, mapping/gps and very little
else.

I have a desktop for mail, shopping, storing photos etc.

Record the google account login details and delete the account on the
phone. If the whingeing is disruptive just recreate the account and
turn off all the sync options.
I haven't yet signed in. Nervous days:-) I have a relatively unused
google account through my desktop anyway.

I suspect mapping is in the play store.

There used to be global phone "turn off sync" option but that may
have diappeared in more recent versions of Android or been buried...

Early days yet. Basically I need a grandchild or so to educate me:-)


--
Tim Lamb

Dave Liquorice wrote:

Tim Lamb wrote:

I have zero interest in the play store. I suppose system updates would
be missed.

Not sure I think updates use a seperate mechanisum, cofidence factor
10%...

Updates to android itself don't need the play store, however a Moto5 is
unlikely to see any new android updates by now?

Updates to apps do rely on the play store, but if all Tim want to use is
Dialer/TextMessaging/Contacts I think he'll survive without updates.

On 09/11/2020 08:17, Jim GM4DHJ ... wrote:
Nobody taking the **** out of tim lamb then?....even I know he hasn't
got a clue about phones and sim cards...missed a good chance there for
some fun chaps.....

must be because I'm a porridge wog ...