uThousands Of Chicago Comcast Customers Could Lose HD Service Because Of Old Boxesr

4 4 4 9

• 
  Comcast is just about ready to flip the switch on upgrades to its network in Chicago, but thousands of area customers could be left without HD service if they are still using older set-top cable boxes.

  According to the Chicago Tribune, Comcast began alerting affected customers in the fall of the need to trade in their old boxes for new ones that will work properly on the network. However, the notices did not provide customers with any specific deadline.

  Which is a bit of a problem now because Comcast could turn on the upgraded network as soon as… today, leaving those people who haven’t switched their boxes without the service they pay for.

  The company downplays the scope of the issue by noting that most people have made the switch while acknowledging that there are “only” a “few thousand left” who have not.

  Customers in Chicago who need to switch out their old set-top boxes can get self-install kits from Comcast either by mail or by going to a Comcast retail location. But if you need to have someone come out and do the install for you, that’ll be $50.

  The model numbers for the outdated boxes are: DCH3416, DCT6200, DCH3200, DCT6412, DCT3416, DCT6416, DCH6416, DCT5100, DCH6200, DCT3412 and DCT6208. If you’re not sure, the Tribune says you go to channel 1995 and follow the instructions there to see if your existing box is compatible.

  
• 
  

ribbi

by Chris Morran via Consumerist

uPanera Says Its Entire Soup Menu Is Now Devoid Of All Artificial Ingredientsr

4 4 4 9

• 
  Panera Bread’s stand against artificial ingredients is marching ahead apace, with an announcement from the company that it’s eliminated artificial flavors, preservatives, colors, and flavors from its entire line of soups. It’s all part of the chain’s plan to go additive-free by the end of this year.

  The chain says its soup menu is “clean” now that its removed ingredients on its “No No List” of artificial additives.

  For example, Broccoli Cheddar Soup will no longer contain additives like hydrolyzed soy and corn protein and sodium phosphate, ingredients which are approved by the Food and Drug Administration, which you’ll find in many soup recipes from companies like Campbell’s and Progresso. Other ingredients that have been ditched include maltodextrin and sodium phosphate – no longer appear in any of the Company’s bakery-cafe soups.

  It took some work to go through each soup recipe: Panera says Broccoli Cheddar alone was revised 60 times.

  “I want to create soups that our guests will love” said Dan Kish, Panera Bread’s Head Chef in the company’s press release. “And equally important, I want them to understand and feel confident in the ingredients that go into those soups. We’ve long been advocates of transparency – providing full ingredient information online – and with these new recipes we have even more to be proud of today.”

  The items that have been removed haven’t been proven to be unhealthy, but Panera says they just weren’t needed. Companies like Campbell’s and Progresso that sell soup in stores need them to have a long shelf life, but because Panera serves a lot of soup in a short time period — about 200 million servings a year, the company estimates — preservatives aren’t as necessary.

  “Time and again, we’ve found that when you replace artificial additives with simpler ingredients, you achieve a better taste,” said Kish.

  
• 
  

ribbi

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uGrand Jury Subpoenas Chipotle Over California Norovirus Outbreakr

4 4 4 9

• 

  A grand jury is investigating the circumstances surrounding a norovirus outbreak at Chipotle. Not the recent one in Boston that sickened more than 150 people, but the August outbreak in California that left more than 100 employees and customers ill.

  Chipotle told investors in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing [PDF] on Wednesday that it had received a grand jury subpoena seeking documents related to the mid-August outbreak in Simi Valley, CA.

  “It is not possible at this time to determine whether we will incur, or to reasonably estimate the amount of, any fines, penalties or further liabilities in connection with the investigation pursuant to which the subpoena was issued,” the filing said.

  A spokesperson for Chipotle tells CNBC that “as a matter of policy” the company doesn’t comment on pending legal actions, but that it will offer “our full cooperation” to the investigation.

  In August, the Simi Valley Chipotle restaurant was closed for a short time after nearly 60 customers and 17 employees complained about feeling ill following visits to the restaurant.

  At the time, the cause of the outbreak, which sent several customers to the hospital, was unknown.

  Mike Byrne, Ventura County Environmental Health Division food safety supervisor, said that inspectors and specialists were following up with those who became sick to try to determine if the illnesses stemmed from a specific food problem or if changes are needed make sure food is safe.

  Customers and employees reported various symptoms following their visits, including fever, diarrhea and vomiting.

  One customer said that she and her sister became ill after eating at the restaurant on August. 18.

  “We were throwing up, going to the bathroom. We had really bad chills,” she said. “I just want to get the answer.”

  [via CNBC]

  
• 
  

ribbi

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uMicrosoft Ends An Era: Support For Internet Explorer 8, 9, And 10 Stops Next Weekr

4 4 4 9

• The end is nigh: as of Tuesday, January 12, Microsoft will issue its final support patch for versions 8, 9, and 10 of its Internet Explorer browser, bringing one of the web’s clunkiest tools one step closer to vanishing.

  The Verge reports that the final security update will deliver the last few bug fixes the browser is going to get, as well as an “end of life” notification telling users to go upgrade to Microsoft Edge already.

  The move isn’t really a surprise; all three of the doomed versions of Internet Explorer have been living on borrowed time since 2014, when Microsoft announced its intention to stop support eventually. Still, anyone who was stuck using old, unpatched versions of Internet Explorer for years at work, or who ever once came face-to-face with a browser made unusable by toolbar add-ons at their parents’ or grandparents’ house, will likely not lament the end of this era.

  But of course, the end of support does not actually mean the end of use.

  Millions of users — maybe as many as 340 million, by one analysis — still have IE 8, 9, or 10 running on their computers right now, and an end to patches means that software will quickly become ever-more vulnerable. Hacker-types are always pushing against software, and regular patches are software’s way of pushing back. Without those patches, security holes will be left open… and that means the number of available pathways into a machine using IE will increase rapidly, much in the same way computers running Windows XP have been left out in the cold since 2014.

  So if you or someone you know is still relying on an outdated version of Microsoft’s web browser, now would be a really good time to go change that.

  Microsoft is pulling the plug on Internet Explorer 8, 9, and 10 next Tuesday [The Verge]

  
• 
  

ribbi

by Kate Cox via Consumerist

uSprint Reportedly Ditching New 2-Year Contracts Starting This Fridayr

4 4 4 9

• 
  Nearly three years after T-Mobile became the first of the four major wireless carriers to ditch the two-year contract business model, Sprint is now the only of these companies to still offer these traditional plans to customers. But a company insider claims that Sprint will join the rest of the pack and ditch contracts later this week.

  This is according to a post from late last night by a verified employee on the Sprint subreddit.

  The employee writes that, starting Friday, Jan. 8, new Sprint customers will not be able to get two-year contracts and the cheaper, subsidized phones that come with them.

  Instead, customers will have to pay full price for their phones, either by purchasing them outright or by leasing through Sprint.

  Like the other carriers, Sprint has been offering this sort of contract-free plan for quite some time, but it has also continued to allow consumers to sign up for traditional contracts.

  Unlike AT&T, which is ditching new contracts altogether this week, the employee says that Sprint will allow existing contract customers to re-up their deals when their obligation expires.

  The employee also says that the change does not affect Sprint’s wireless plans for tablets, but that the company will soon begin offering incentives to nudge contract tablet customers into leasing their devices when their contracts expire.

  As the employee notes, wile contracts might offer you the cheaper sticker price on devices, customers may be able to save more by going contract-free and leasing their phones.

  We asked Sprint for comment on the reddit post and a rep for the company provided a statement that still lists contracts as an option, but doesn’t explain whether they will still be an option after Jan. 8:

  “Sprint continues to offer customers choices to obtain their new device in a way that best fits their budget,” reads the statement. “Customers can choose to lease a smartphone – the most cost effective way to obtain a new phone. Customers also have the choice to pay for their device through Sprint Easy Pay (installment bill), pay full retail price or sign a two-year agreement.”

  We’ve asked for further clarification on this issue and will update if we hear back.

  [via DSLreports]

  
• 
  

ribbi

by Chris Morran via Consumerist

uYahoo Hit With Class-Action Lawsuit Claiming Messenger Service Sent Spam Texts To Some Usersr

4 4 4 9

• 
  When you sign up for one kind of message service, you might not expect, or want, messages about that service elsewhere. As such, Yahoo is facing a class-action lawsuit that claims the company’s Messenger service spammed some Sprint cellphone customers with unwanted texts, which could put it on the line for costly fines if it loses in court.

  U.S. District Judge Manish Shah ordered that a lawsuit originally filed by an Illinois resident in 2014 now applies to all Sprint cellular customers in the U.S. who received a certain kind of text message from Yahoo in March 2013, reports the Wall Street Journal. That could mean more than 500,000 members, the judge wrote.

  The complaint claims Yahoo violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 by sending unsolicited text messages — or spam texts — from Yahoo Messenger. It essentially took instant messages and translated them into texts that could be sent to a cellphone, including a “welcome message” that urges the user to respond.

  The lawsuit wants Yahoo to pay at least $500 for every violation of the rule, which bars unsolicited automated texts, phone calls or fax messages, and allows the recipient to sue for damages of $500 to $1,500 per violation.

  Yahoo isn’t commenting on pending litigation, but says that the texts aren’t spam at all, they’re a good thing — because they’re “not the type of annoying, intrusive mass communication” barred by the Telephone Consumer Protection Act. Instead, they simply alert recipients that they’ve gotten a message from another user, say what that message is and gives them actions to take, one of which is blocking future messages.

  Yahoo Faces Class-Action Suit Over Spam Texts [Wall Street Journal]

  
• 
  

ribbi

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uChick-fil-A’s “Mom’s Valet” Aims To Take The Stress Out Of Dining With Childrenr

4 4 4 9

• 

  A simple trip for fast food can become anxiety-inducing when you throw a carful of excited kids into the mix. In an attempt to quell this chaos, Chick fil-A is testing a new service dubbed “Mom’s Valet.”
  

  The service, Business Insider reports, enables parents with children to order their meals via the drive-thru, then come inside with their brood to eat.

  Once an order is placed and paid for at the drive-thru, a Chick-fil-A employee will prepare a table for them and bring their order to them.

  David Farmer, Chick-fil-A’s vice president of menu strategy and development, tells Business Insider that the idea for the service came about after employees noticed how hectic the ordering process could be for families.

  The service, which will be advertised on participating restaurants’ drive-thru signs, is part of the company’s focus on “taking the stress out,” and making the dining experience more relaxing for all customers.

  Chick-fil-A is making an unprecedented move to hook millennial moms [Business Insider]

  
• 
  

ribbi

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist