[Musings] The paradox of selling computers to everyone.

I will try to not make this a rant, as it is not my intention. I am the primary tech support for most of my family. I used to hate it, but now I don't really mind. I don't mind because I see the happiness it brings, and I know my family will get the help that they need. My opinion was changed when I was standing in line at a Computer Super store (I won't say which one, but it starts with a C and ends in ompUSA). An elderly lady who could have easily been my grandmother was consulting the 'sage' behind the counter about the difference between a printer port and a USB port. The 'sage' behind the counter told here there was none and then went on to spout a completely convoluted story about IRQs, interrupts and compatibilty. I was beside myself in shock that this 'sage' would tell a paying customer that incredible load of BS. As this nice lady left the counter shaken, confused, and saddened I stopped her and both told and showed her the difference between a printer (parallel) port and a USB port. She was grateful.

As the years progressed more and more of my family became wired. They discovered that the internet was an amazing place and they would be able to save a lot of money by using things such as email and instant messaging, instead of expensive long-distance phone calls (which was adding up in my gossipy and chatty family). My grandmother in fact was the first of my immediate family to go online. Her first computer was a Frankenstein's monster of second-hand parts, built by a friend of the family and used a questionable copy of WinXP Home. After the hard drive died, I built her a new computer, tuned it, installed a legal copy of WinXP and transferred her email and instant messaging accounts. I built the computer from scratch (both for cost and quality reasons) ensuring adequate power, a good stable motherboard (ASUS), a large hard drive, and new modem (and a geForce 3 Ti-200 video card). I wrote an easy-to-use manual for her to read with instructions on how to update her anti-virus software (McAffee, it is also the one with the built-in firewall), run windows update, and just general safety tips like 'don't open attachments from strangers.' She was happy with a computer that didn't crash. She has not had problems since, now instead of the computer house-calls twice per week, now I make social calls where we can just talk and share coffee, much more enjoyable. She really enjoyed the neon-blue light that came from the case, which was by accident since I just used a good, affordable case.

My mother was the next to go wired. She and my stepfather went to a large computer chain (again, I won't name names but it starts with B and ends in estBuy). They purchased a complete HP package: mini-tower, Pentium, 120GB IDE drive, printer, LCD monitor, the works. BB sold her the MS Office and WinXP Home pre-installed. As a bonus there was a lot of HP OEM stuff loaded, such as the HP recovery software. They sold her the replacement warranty (3 years, which to me seems almost like 'undercoating' for cars, but some swear by it). Annoyingly they also did not give her the CDs for WinXP, MS Office, and the various HP software. Mom did not go on the internet right away, but eventually did and within a week had 3 viruses. BB had not sold her AV software, nor did they tell her that she needed it when she asked what she needed to go online. Her computer started to do funny things and I was called. I purchased her a copy of Norton SystemWorks 2003 and Personal Firewall, re-installed her system (I asked her to call BB to get the disks, which they did provide), patched it and setup the Norton products to help protect her system. I then wrote a short manual for her with instructions on how to keep everything updated and what to do if she sees a virus. Her computer has been running smoothly since then (with the exception of a clogged inbox of spam).

I tell these stories because my grandmother and mother are two examples of everyday people who want to be connected to the internet and have a computer. The computer industry has come a long way to make computers easier to use, but there are still some things that may seem like voodoo to most people (like general system hygiene and security). These people will go to places like CompUSA and Best Buy and will rely on staff for expertise and advice. These companies need to quit hiring people who do not understand the nuances of helping the novice computer user own a computer. Give them their CDs when they purhcase a system and give them a handout at least with tips on keeping their system running well and to keep them safe on the internet. Suggest they purchase or download an AV product (not necessarily the most expensive you sell as there are free products like AntiVir and AVG that are great).

Please, think of your grandmother.