Merry Christmas, Search the <censored> Forums. (NYT Article)

[mkrishnan]

Hehehe... The press writers haz found teh interwebz.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/25/technology/personaltech/25basics.html?_r=1

If you’re like me, odds are that you’ve also found yourself with a tech problem that was made worse by the lack of ready, available — and perhaps most important — useful help. But with the Internet, there’s no need to have to wait on hold.

There are hundreds (if not thousands) of other users out there, sharing their experience and wisdom, often free. So instead of getting on the phone, get online and start crowdsourcing your tech support needs.

Here’s how.

Surreally, there is an explicit section of the article on finding help with Macs and no mention of MacRumors. Also curiously there's lots of mentions of some of those "paid" tech support websites, which I have always assumed to be of ill repute. Interesting.

 

[GoCubsGo]

Wait up.
There are ways you can get tech support without calling the actual company who sold you the computer and sit on hold?

*hangs up phone*

FWIW, Cox cable has a flyer they hand out with their new internet service. They give a troubleshooting guide that gives the typical tips such as "is your computer on" or "is the internet cable plugged in". At the end it says, "if you still cannot connect to the internet, please visit www.cox.net for customer service tech support."

 

[rdowns]

Also curiously there's lots of mentions of some of those "paid" tech support websites, which I have always assumed to be of ill repute. Interesting.

Ill repute? Does the support come with a happy ending?

 

[mkrishnan]

At the end it says, "if you still cannot connect to the internet, please visit www.cox.net for customer service tech support."

I did once call their brain trust tech support line because the cable internet service went out. After making me go through the process of resetting my router and modem several times and trying a direct computer connection to diagnose what was a sudden failure in the middle of using the network, and then finally admitting the problem was on their end after wasting 15 minutes of my time, they had the nerve to make sure I knew I could get tech support online. To which I responded, "Do you understand what the problem I'm calling you about right now is, and how that would make that a little difficult?" And to which she responded, "Umm, I mean, erm, for next time."

Yeah, thanks.

Seriously, I think we as forums carry a mixed blessing. I find the solutions to my tech problems online more than 95% of the time and from their tech support much less than 5% of the time. But a lot of time there's a lot of digital ink spilt over an unfixable problem, or worse a problem that can very easily be fixed with the right knowledge. And also, this forms a vicious circle effect where companies feel less and less inclined to offer good tech support or products that actually work as advertised without tweaking, because they know we'll pick up the slack. Forums do tend to make that problem even worse.

 

[GSMiller]

Hehehe... The press writers haz found teh interwebz.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/25/technology/personaltech/25basics.html?_r=1



Surreally, there is an explicit section of the article on finding help with Macs and no mention of MacRumors. Also curiously there's lots of mentions of some of those "paid" tech support websites, which I have always assumed to be of ill repute. Interesting.

Ugh, I hate those sites. It's quite frustrating to be searching for help and stumble across one of those sites, all of which I ignore.

 

[mkrishnan]

Ugh, I hate those sites. It's quite frustrating to be searching for help and stumble across one of those sites, all of which I ignore.

I guess it could have been worse. He did not endorse Yahoo Answers!