Reply to: Oh FFS

[Sockpuppet]

Playing stupid for the win. Through to Level 2 tech support.

[2BIT]

If it's so important to you, shouldn't it all be backed up else where off the machine? you know, just in case something catastrophic does happen so you don't lose years worth of work.

I had all my files backed up it was just that my set-up consisted of hundreds of plug-ins and dlls and saved configurations so the only way I could restore and get everything back was taking the entire disk image which back then at the time I was ignorant of, I could have possibly been able to reinstall every app and plug-in i needed but it would have taken days and would have meant i'd lost saved settings and work, if it was just files i doubt I'd have called them in the first place and just reinstalled and restored the files from back up

[Spacecadet]

I would always fix myself if I can, when my lappy died a few years ago due to an SP3 update if I had listened to the guys on the tech line I would have lost years worth of work as they said it was screwed - in actually fact the fix was criminally easy (even if it took a month to discover) - I've never trusted tech lines since.

the script is very dangerous as it is designed to fix the problem but not always in a satisfactory way.

'do you have a windows disk'
'yes'
'reboot with it inserted and reinstall windows'
'no, because as I just said I CANNOT LOSE ANYTHING ON THIS MACHINE, REINSTALLING WINDOWS WILL WIPE MY FILES YOU F**KIN IDIOT!'
'you can't fix any other way, windows is broken please reinstall or return laptop to us and we'll wipe your files for you and charge you for that privilege'

If it's so important to you, shouldn't it all be backed up else where off the machine? you know, just in case something catastrophic does happen so you don't lose years worth of work.

[Sockpuppet]

I would always fix myself if I can

So would I but when the equipment in question is one week old and >£2k in cost I'd rather a tech support come and break it not me. At least if the tech support breaks it there won't be any "well its your fault etc".

[2BIT]

Graphics card blue screens when it tries to use hardware acceleration (useful....huh?).

Current BIOS version on card make a t-rex look as current as tigerblood. HP website has BIOS update - which solves this exact issue. Tech support seems obsessed around drivers and reimaging the system - basically follow the script.

Now I could update the firmware myself, though I paid for a next day warranty engineer dude so I don't really see why I should.

I would always fix myself if I can, when my lappy died a few years ago due to an SP3 update if I had listened to the guys on the tech line I would have lost years worth of work as they said it was screwed - in actually fact the fix was criminally easy (even if it took a month to discover) - I've never trusted tech lines since.

the script is very dangerous as it is designed to fix the problem but not always in a satisfactory way.

'do you have a windows disk'
'yes'
'reboot with it inserted and reinstall windows'
'no, because as I just said I CANNOT LOSE ANYTHING ON THIS MACHINE, REINSTALLING WINDOWS WILL WIPE MY FILES YOU F**KIN IDIOT!'
'you can't fix any other way, windows is broken please reinstall or return laptop to us and we'll wipe your files for you and charge you for that privilege'

[Sockpuppet]

Having said that, never actually had a problem with an Indian call centre. Yet.

I don't have a problem with the call center being indian. My problem is they're following scripts.....I suppose this is a level 1 tech support rant I need to speak to someone who knows what they are doing.

[Spacecadet]

Somebody I was talking to the another night insists that it is a legal requirement for any company to put you through to a UK call centre if you insist. Don't know if this pertains to any particular sector or if it's a load of bollocks but that's what he said so I'd give it a go if I were you.

Having said that, never actually had a problem with an Indian call centre. Yet.

That will possibly to do with data protection and some obscure EU law regarding use of data outside of the EU

[Mich the Tester]

Can you bill for the time that's being wasted?

Yes? Good. When you've finished, total up the costs of waiting for your clientco, multiply by the number of other people in your situation and present this to the clientco as a business case for bringing support back to Europe.

[Sockpuppet]

what is the actual issue, I'm not offering to do the needful or anything just interested

Graphics card blue screens when it tries to use hardware acceleration (useful....huh?).

Current BIOS version on card make a t-rex look as current as tigerblood. HP website has BIOS update - which solves this exact issue. Tech support seems obsessed around drivers and reimaging the system - basically follow the script.

Now I could update the firmware myself, though I paid for a next day warranty engineer dude so I don't really see why I should.

[wurzel]

Does anyone know of a way to get round speaking to India while using HP support. Or better still actually get one of the engineers to attend while using a next day warranty.

Somebody I was talking to the another night insists that it is a legal requirement for any company to put you through to a UK call centre if you insist. Don't know if this pertains to any particular sector or if it's a load of bollocks but that's what he said so I'd give it a go if I were you.

Having said that, never actually had a problem with an Indian call centre. Yet.

[2BIT]

Does anyone know of a way to get round speaking to India while using HP support. Or better still actually get one of the engineers to attend while using a next day warranty.

what is the actual issue, I'm not offering to do the needful or anything just interested

[Sockpuppet]

Did you ask to speak to a supervisor?

Yes, this may have been my failing. Now I'm apparently "re-imaging the laptop" which is code for having a cuppa and waiting a few hours to let them think that i've done it.


This error really is beginning to take the pish. The fix is a BIOS update. I know its a bios update, HP's website knows its a BIOS update but the indian call center is convinced that its a software driver issue. I could do the BIOS update myself but as a failed BIOS update is a fairly permanent problem I'd rather let the tech guy make that kind of mistake.

[gingerjedi]

Oh and just make up random error messages, thats always good to listen to the silence and them trying to figure out what the error message means

"PC Load Letter"? What the **** does that mean?
Michael Bolton

[Churchill]

Does anyone know of a way to get round speaking to India while using HP support. Or better still actually get one of the engineers to attend while using a next day warranty.

How about saying in a reasonable voice...

"I'm sorry but I can't understand what you're saying. Please transfer me to or let me have the number of a native English speaker."

See if that works. Personally I don't have a problem with heavily accented English. Perhaps that's because I'm a Lancastrian who spent a lot of time living near the border to Yorkshire.

[NickFitz]

Oh and just make up random error messages, thats always good to listen to the silence and them trying to figure out what the error message means

If it's MS kit, remember that the errors shouldn't be meaningful messages, they should be eight digit hexadecimal numbers beginning with "8" and with lots of zeros. 80004005 is always good as it is defined as E_FAIL, which means "Something totally ****ed up but God alone knows what or how", and therefore prevents them from asking any questions beyond "Have you turned it off and on again?"

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