Windows said modem worked fine. That unmistakable scorched electronics smell suggested otherwise

Energy can be hard to find on Friday mornings, which is why The Register uses them to offer a fresh instalment of On Call – the reader-contributed column that shares your hopefully empowering tech support stories. This week, meet a reader we’ll Regomize as “Lachlan,” who told us he once did tech support for a senior exec who had a side hustle writing essays for Japanese university students attending UK universities. The exec asked Lachlan for help diagnosing a sudden inability to send or receive