Why Is This So Hard To Understand, People? We Need Info!
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This morning I received a comment in which the writer stated he had a new PC using Vista and he tried to record a show and the system froze and would not come out of sleep mode. Also with a question as to why is this? If this was an isolated incident I would not have given it much thought. But this is usually normal when people ask computer related questions. They don’t provide any information about their computer nor the software they are using.
I normally do not find this lack of information to be bothersome, but this time I did. You see, I had just taken my crystal ball into the repair shop for a tune-up! So why is this lack of information a problem for tech support folks?
There is quite a bit of difference between a system running Vista Basic that was purchased on sale for $399 with 512MB of RAM compared to a rocket Vista system running Ultimate with 4G of RAM and a super fast video card along with a dual-core processor. How about software? Which program are you using? Is it Vista compatible? Are all fixes in place? Just giving the name of the software would be helpful.
So it would be most helpful if users provided some additional information when asking for help, and not just a one liner that says ‘my computer is broke, how come?’ 
Rant off. Comments welcome.
One Comment
Computer Consulting Kit Preview Blog
February 27th, 2008
at 11:49pm
Working with computer consultants on a regular basis, I know how important communication between a helper and a “helpee” is. If you don’t have detailed communication and get a real assessment of a problem, how are you going to find the solution? I agree with you. People need to give more details, especially when asking for help to solve technology problems (which can be complicated enough as it is, without lack of information). Any time you are asking for interactive computer help, whether as part of a long-term, professional agreement (such as when you work with a computer consultant or like-minded individual) or just in passing, you are setting up some kind of relationship. And to have a relationship that works, you need communication and to get a genuine assessment of problems and facts.