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I think the unfortunate truth is that "please restart your computer"-level stuff actually does solve whatever problem the customer is reporting enough that comp

I think the unfortunate truth is that "please restart your computer"-level stuff actually does solve whatever problem the customer is reporting enough that companies put value into that type of support. If you're reading HN you probably don't need that level of support, but that's not to say there aren't customers who need their hand held to restart a computer.

flukus 9y ago
> If you're reading HN you probably don't need that level of support, but that's not to say there aren't customers who need their hand held to restart a computer. Part of the issue is that support is never allowed to push back on the customer. They don't get to say "I'm sorry, but you'll have to do a rudimentary computing course before I can proceed further". In a business environment it's all to easy to save on training costs in a department because they can push those costs on to support.
- jandrese 9y ago
  There really isn't a polite way to say "Do you have anyone competent in your office you could maybe ask first?"
  - PhantomGremlin 9y ago
    This has been an ongoing problem for decades. There's the (probably apocryphal) story of WordPerfect (huh, what's that?) support. It ends with: SERVICE: "Tell them you're too fucking stupid to own a computer." http://www.generationterrorists.com/quotes/misc/wordperfect_helpline.html http://www.generationterrorists.com/quotes/misc/wordperfect_...
- emodendroket 9y ago
  > Part of the issue is that support is never allowed to push back on the customer. They don't get to say "I'm sorry, but you'll have to do a rudimentary computing course before I can proceed further". Well, no kidding, because who would pay for that?
  - hmmph 9y ago
    Whether you're selling software or hard drugs, there'll always be customers who are just not worth keeping. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angel_and_demon_customers https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angel_and_demon_customers
    - emodendroket 9y ago
      I'm sorry, but nontechnical customers are an overwhelming majority. If you can't figure out a way to serve them you aren't going to be very successful.

flukus 9y ago

> If you're reading HN you probably don't need that level of support, but that's not to say there aren't customers who need their hand held to restart a computer. Part of the issue is that support is never allowed to push back on the customer. They don't get to say "I'm sorry, but you'll have to do a rudimentary computing course before I can proceed further". In a business environment it's all to easy to save on training costs in a department because they can push those costs on to support.

jandrese 9y ago
There really isn't a polite way to say "Do you have anyone competent in your office you could maybe ask first?"
- PhantomGremlin 9y ago
  This has been an ongoing problem for decades. There's the (probably apocryphal) story of WordPerfect (huh, what's that?) support. It ends with: SERVICE: "Tell them you're too fucking stupid to own a computer." http://www.generationterrorists.com/quotes/misc/wordperfect_helpline.html http://www.generationterrorists.com/quotes/misc/wordperfect_...
emodendroket 9y ago
> Part of the issue is that support is never allowed to push back on the customer. They don't get to say "I'm sorry, but you'll have to do a rudimentary computing course before I can proceed further". Well, no kidding, because who would pay for that?
- hmmph 9y ago
  Whether you're selling software or hard drugs, there'll always be customers who are just not worth keeping. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angel_and_demon_customers https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angel_and_demon_customers
  - emodendroket 9y ago
    I'm sorry, but nontechnical customers are an overwhelming majority. If you can't figure out a way to serve them you aren't going to be very successful.