help me get my FR working

[Zooko Wilcox-O'Hearn]

Folks:

I've decided I do need to own a cell-phone after all. It has been a
delightful few years of cell-phone-free life. How long as it been?
Maybe ten years? Anyway, I've decided I need to own a cell-phone, and
I would much rather it be my Neo FreeRunner than anything else.

So, please help me get it working. It almost always stays in the state
where it says "Registering..." and therefore is never able to use the
cellular network to make or receive calls. A couple of times it
instead went into the registered state soon after bootup, and those
times I was able to make or receive calls, but it almost never does
that. I'm using whatever firmware came with it when I bought it. I
should probably start by upgrading the GSM modem firmware or the FR
firmware, right? What's the best-supported firmware available
nowadays? And where are the best instructions in how to upgrade? Thank
you very much for taking the time to help me out.

Regards,

Zooko