I Prefer Wires, but Sometimes Wireless is Inescable

Readily I don't remember the last cell phone I had.  I got rid of that binding two year contract with Verizon and never looked back.  Before that it was a Nokia, and it worked better than the Samsung flip phone which did nothing.  I had to use an earpiece with the Nokia, and with that it was usable.  My mother got the first smart phone, an iPhone 7.  We needed to get it, because so many companies have gone to cell phone apps to run their products including Amazon Alexa.  It was a painstaking process transferring her contacts into that phone.  I did the same for her pictures off of her old Dell cube PC.  I was an Apple user, and eventually I converted her.  She didn't like it, only because she knew how to use the PC software programs.  Her first software was for her Kodak digital camera and of course mail.  When we ditched Roadrunner I had to set her up with web-based mail.  Progress is not always productive or fun, especially when it is for the next generation.  Still I am running Macintosh computers including a Mac Pro with outdated operating systems.  I keep getting notifications that my browser is out of date, but they want you to buy new stuff.  They give it a shelf life to force you to become obsolete.  My software runs fine on Mac Mavericks, and that includes MOTU's Digital Performer.  I am not going to buy a new computer to be able to buy products online or set up a security system.  The old stuff works fine and in some cases better.  We are used to it.  Today I watched Brightspeed install fiber optic internet in my home.  There are several takeaways. First they ran their line parallel to the old Spectrum coaxial cablevision cable.  They just wire tied to the old stuff.  Easy.  The obvious deduction was fiber optic cable is much thinner than traditional coaxial cable and there is no ground.  That necessary thick shielding to keep out unwanted RF interference is not necessary anymore.  Fiber optic cable is like half a piece of ribbon, and I assume it is a digital signal that is running through it.  Brightspeed was extremely efficient bringing three separate vans to the job.  The three technicians were communicating on 3 way calling on their cell phones.  Choosing the location of the modem was the biggest decision, but I had planned in advance.  It ended up in the kitchen on the counter, and that was best for everyone.  I was nervous about the exchange, because we have had the same land line since l978.  All of the phones in the house worked with the original copper wiring.  I knew I needed to upgrade, but if it works don't fix it.  When Brightspeed called and said they were offering for me to keep my original landline and add fiber internet for half the price, it was too good to turn down.  The difference between Metronet and Brightspeed is the modems.  I know, because I had to mail in the Eero to cancel the Metronet service.  It was a brick with a power cord, not like any modem I had ever seen.  No vent holes, no visible antennas, and a bit of a mystery.  I was relieved when the new modem was similar to the old Roadrunner unit, tall and with breathing holes.  Obviously there were different technology.  The proof is in the pudding, so you just try both and see how they behave.  It didn't take long to get both the wireless internet and voice phone working.  He handed me a little business card with the password, and it was complex.  The only drawback was I was loosing my upstairs phones, but that is okay.  I found some cordless DECT phones on ebay and ordered them last night.  Am I going backwards?  Surprisingly the land line via fiber optic cable is clear and loud.  No static.  I reckon there is a digital to analog converter in the router for the phone.  I had to move the answering machine.  I think that Eero brick probably pulls a lot of electricity, and the Metronet monthly rates increased each year.  Change can be good.