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We live in an impatient age. There was a time when you'd order an item - usually by mail order - and expect to wait around a month for it. Certainly, even for smaller items, two weeks wasn't a long wait at all. Now, in a world where you can order an item one evening and expect to see it the following day, we've got out of the habit of waiting.

Consider for a moment the joys of wireless internet. We're not that far on, time-wise, from the development of the internet. Only in the last decade or two have most people had it at home. And those of us older than, say, 25, can remember when it was all dial-up. To put it another way, most of us remember a time when we had to log in to go online, and wait often minutes for the privilege.

These days, if you take your phone out of your pocket to check the news or send a Tweet, you expect to have done what you needed to do in under half a minute. If it takes longer, your feet start tapping, you curse under your breath and shake your head. If you continue having to wait this long, you may complain to the provider.

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Looked at in that way, our behavior can seem pretty spoilt, can't it? Yet it shouldn't be seen that way, because fast internet is what we have been promised. As we see at http://www.howtogeek.com/165321/why-you-probably-arent-getting-the-internet-speeds-youre-paying-for-and-how-to-tell/, what we are promised and what we get are not the same thing. Often, the level of service is over-promised, as providers know the limitations of cable internet. If a number of users in one area are all using it at once, speeds will suffer. But often, even if you specifically ask whether that will happen, you'll be told "no".

It's not spoilt behavior to expect a service that you have paid for to do what you have paid for it to do. You're entitled to expect a high standard of service, and to get accurate answers to direct questions. But given that they want to ensure a sale, representatives of some corporations will be careful what information they give you.

Sometimes, to get a straight answer, it is best to check with consumer services before you sign anything. Information from sources such as http://cutcableinternet.com/comcast-internet/ may save you from making a mistake. After all, that's the other thing you need to be conscious of with cable service providers. Once you're in a contract, you may find it tough to escape.

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None of this is to say that the salesman you deal with will be dishonest. In a great many cases, they will be entirely straight with you and tell you what's best for you. In some cases, it is about knowing what to ask. If you show up, or call, and give the impression of someone who doesn't know the market, you may well be seen as a mark. But if you are confident and informed, they're more likely to be level with you.

We're socially conditioned to put up with a lot before we will raise a complaint these days. But sometimes, there is no other way to get the service you are entitled to. Keep that in mind whenever your level of service falls below what is expected.

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