Something very similar happened to me a couple of weeks ago. My ISP said that it looked like blah, blah, blah was gone or missing. When I went to Control Panel there was no icon there for the ISP. I too did a system restore and then all was well once again....just like magic.

Could the 8 or 10 day time frame coincide with your system maintenance? Just a thought that perhaps you are using a "cleaning" application which is removing your modem driver. Some of them can be quite powerful when a unknowing user tinkers with the Advanced Settings. Good luck! Enjoy! DA

I would add one suggestion to this...be sure to active your computer cookies, Patti. I had a similar problem a couple of weeks ago after resetting my computer resultant from a modem problem. I was in a hurry and didn't realize that resetting my browser also removed all of my acceptable "cookies". After tearing my hair out for about 15 minutes...trying to get rid of the green words...it suddenly dawned on me what the problem was. I reactivated the cookie for Garden Wed and all returned to normal. HTH Anne

If you are running MicroSoft Windows, they offer a free malware cleaner. In fact, Microsoft sends that cleaner out about once a month with other updates; It runs once and then excuses itself. When it runs, it takes a long time for it to scan critical files and locations on your disk. Over a year ago, I converted to Uverse to get the better internet speeds and at about the same or less cost that I was paying for DSL and the old analog phone (voice) service. I was renting 2 lines from the phone company: one for the computer and the other for phones. IN addition, I was paying $240 per year for dial-up internet connection. But with the increased amount of data that flows today and high graphic content, dial-up no longer was practical. Also, software and software updates no longer arrives on a CD of DVD, it is downloaded. Dial-up is too slow and error prone for effective software installations or updates. I chose Uverse when it became available and the sales force was knocking on my door touting all its good points - they did not adequately explain all the changes required. Uverse has been very convenient since it sets up a wireless network within your house. A number of things can be connected wireless PROVIDED they contain a radio to converse wirelessly with the gateway. A PC can connect wirelessly or through the air. The computer needs a wireless card if it does not have built-in capability. (Most newer laptops do have a radio.) Many newer printers have a radio, but the lower end versions may not. I direct connect my printer to the desktop computer with a USB cable, but I can also at the same time, activate its radio and then it can be seen by other computers. The Uverse set-up negates your analog phone connection. Once Uverse is installed, phone signals arrive in digital form and a converter-to-analog is included in the incoming box so that the analog phones continue to work. Here;s the rub. Most 911 emergency calling systems today have locater capabilities for the older dial up phones. That is, the 911 operator is able to locate the phone that is making the call. This is critical in case the caller can not speak, That capability may be negated with a switch to digital phone service. At my location, AT&T assured me that the location feature was available at my phone exchange. The second rub: Depending on what kind of phone you had, some older simple phones did not depend on house current to operate, but ran from the power supplied by the phone company. You could still make a call if your power went out. With Uverse service, that function is handled differently. Part of your installation is a battery box that is plugged into your house power. It keeps a battery charged that can maintain your phone service for about 18 hour. After that, you are without phone service until power is restored. That also means you have no 911 capability after the battery runs down. After that, you will be dependent on a cell phone. For Uverse service, you will need to dedicate one electrical outlet to power the installation. It is recommended that a transient protected extension be used. My gateway can handle 10 channels, i.e., 10 signal sources such as printers and computers. Our typical load is 2 to 4 computers and 2 printers. My original gateway failed early. The replacement unit has ran trouble free for over a year. I have rebooted it only twice during that time: once because power line glitches upset the system, and once when it was shut down for vacation. Because of old telephone cables (outside) and the distance to the fiber optic node, the installer had to use 2 phone circuits to bring my service up to the intermediate speed they had sold to me.