Firstly, I do not follow the adage that the definition of a power user is one who does not refer to a manual nor read a book. Although sometimes hard to follow, these documents were written for a reason and do help solve problems and flatten the learning curve when dealing with both new and old software and hardware. I consider this to be incredibly important!

When dealing with a Tech support person on the phone, the more information one can give them, the more helpful they usually can be. Since most manuals, have a trouble shooting section, the steps listed in the manual do not necessarily have to be repeated when speaking to a Tech on the phone.

I usually make a list of what happened, what I was doing, and how I tried to alleviate the problem. Sometimes, although aggravating, the phone Techs, according to company policy have to go through their own check list and cannot deviate; as annoying as it is, it is better to bear with them than try to jump ahead.

Sometimes, technicians do not know what they are doing. There are two ways to deal with this. One, one can call again. The chances of getting the same tech on the phone are slim; or two, one can insist on speaking with a higher level tech. In many companies there are many levels of technicians. I do not advise the latter route unless one knows that he is receiving a snow job.

If the product has passed its warrantee deadline, one can try to solve the problem in many ways. Most companies have
1) a fax back system that deal with common problems;
2) a 24 hour direct fax system to technical support;
3) a forum on AOL or CompuServe;
4) a section on their web site which deals with technical tips ; or
5) a tech support e-mail address also on their web page.

All of these options work. If one uses a product or a piece of hardware a lot, it is worth following discussions on it. Sometimes a fix directed at someone else proves useful. If a tip seems that it might be worthwhile at some point, I save it to my computer, print it out, and file it in the individual folders that I keep for all programs and hardware.

In the future, Don and I singly or jointly will discuss how to trouble shoot specific hardware and software programs. If this topic is of interest, perhaps we can have a meeting in which we explore it more fully. Look for future articles.

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