NWA-PCUG Newsletter Article
Paperwork and Phone Calls
by Betty Davis, Vice President - November 97
bpake@juno.com
(click to email author)


When was the last time you had to make a call to a technician? Were you prepared? Were you happy? (I can hear the moaning from here...).

Information is the name of the game. And believe me, it's the only game in town. Save information. Save boxes. Save invoices. Save phone numbers.

If this sounds like the Voice of Experience, trust me, it is!

What I would suggest is to keep all of the information in one place. Make shelf space and have an envelope or folder for each software title you have.

l. Sort out all of the miscellaneous papers and disks so you have all of the pertinent information together by subject. Then make backup copies of the original disks and put the originals in a safe place, preferably at the far end of the house. Put the copies and the papers in an envelope (clearly marked, please) and they will immediately be available when you need them. If you prefer, keep the boxes but they are bulky if you need the space. Clip the panels with the model number, serial number, and anything else you might need. When you need to make a tech call, you'll have all the basic information instantly available.

2. Check all connections to make sure they are firmly plugged in. Check your circuit breaker just in case. That's one problem eliminated right there.

3. Before you make that phone call, have your machine running, and have a cheat sheet with anything you could possibly volunteer about your computer...make, model, RAM, size of hard drive, and if you have a modem, speed and maker and model of that. Have you added any hardware lately? If possible, know what Com Port is being used by your printer or modem.

4. Keep a running log (in the envelope, of course) of any previous phone calls you have made about this particular problem. And it's a good idea to get the name of the person you were talking to. Write everything down because the information fades with time. Oh, and be sure to write down the wording of the error messages so you can tell the tech exactly what it was.

Now are you all set? Are you sure of your problem? Good! There is one last thing to do before you call the technician....read the manual. More often than not, the solution is there. Sometimes you have to understand the problem before you can understand the solution.

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