Poll: Are you able to resolve technical, software or hardware issues yourself?
Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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Jun 4, 2020

This forum topic is for the discussion of the poll question "Are you able to resolve technical, software or hardware issues yourself?".

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Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 11:39
Member (2007)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
I need help with most issues Jun 4, 2020

I’m not tech-savvy at all, so it will depend on the issue. Some technical and software issues are quite easy to solve but I wouldn’t touch a hardware problem. Anyway, I have an annual contract with a computer technician and all the maintenance is done online and if there is a serious problem that she can’t fix online she will visit me promptly (it has happened twice or thrice).

Muriel Vasconcellos
 
Tom in London
Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 11:39
Member (2008)
Italian to English
Yes Jun 4, 2020

"Are you able to resolve technical, software or hardware issues yourself?"


Yes. The Mac OS does not require any outside help. I have been using Macs since 1995. In all that time I have never needed the attendance of a "computer technician".

But I do get the impression that Windows-based computers constantly develop software and hardware problems that require outside help- which must come at a cost.

A while ago when I was working for a company I once chatted with their "computer technician" . He hold me that each time he comes in he deliberately "plants" a glitch in the computers that will require his attention at a later stage. I suppose everybody has to find a way of putting food on the table.....

[Edited at 2020-06-04 11:59 GMT]


Angie Garbarino
Wolfgang Schoene
Vi Pukite
 
Kay Denney
Kay Denney  Identity Verified
France
Local time: 12:39
French to English
. Jun 4, 2020

Of course it depends what you call an issue. Like yesterday, my mouse just froze. I got a non-ergonomic one back out, then later remembered that the ergonomic one has a battery. I replaced it and all was well once more. Would that count?

neilmac
Tom in London
Ann Marie Bohan
Christine Andersen
 
Angie Garbarino
Angie Garbarino  Identity Verified
Local time: 12:39
Member (2003)
French to Italian
+ ...
Usually yes Jun 4, 2020

If not highly technical, for example to resurrect a dead computer, i solve,

 
Becca Resnik
Becca Resnik  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 07:39
Member
German to English
+ ...
Majority Jun 4, 2020

I'm very tech savvy, so unless it's an issue that literally only the developer/company can fix (i. e. a glitch of some sort), I can almost always handle it on my own. My husband is a programmer, and he sometimes shows me additional tricks of the trade in troubleshooting. He helped me sift through the code behind an email just the other day to help determine if it could be a scam.

 
neilmac
neilmac
Spain
Local time: 12:39
Spanish to English
+ ...
I need help with most issues Jun 4, 2020

For example, this week I had a hardware issue. On Tuesday morning, my main PC wouldn't start, and I hadn't backed up for a while, so couldn't really continue where I left off the night before on a backup PC. So, I got in touch with my tech guy, who lives about an hour's drive away, and luckily enough, he had a replacement for the part that had burnt out (power supply+fan). Carefully observing social distancing, I left the PC at the door of his garage, where he picked it up and give it back to me... See more
For example, this week I had a hardware issue. On Tuesday morning, my main PC wouldn't start, and I hadn't backed up for a while, so couldn't really continue where I left off the night before on a backup PC. So, I got in touch with my tech guy, who lives about an hour's drive away, and luckily enough, he had a replacement for the part that had burnt out (power supply+fan). Carefully observing social distancing, I left the PC at the door of his garage, where he picked it up and give it back to me about an hour later all cleaned up and in perfect working order again. We exchanged the cash for the service using a cardboard box and observing a 1 metre distance between it and each of us.

I can deal with some technical or software issues myself, but I'd usually rather get things done quickly by someone who really knows what they're doing.
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Christine Andersen
 
Tom in London
Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 11:39
Member (2008)
Italian to English
The path of wisdom Jun 4, 2020

neilmac wrote:

......I hadn't backed up for a while....


Seen in a Mac discussion forum:

"Regular backup is one of the steps on the Buddha's Threefold Way to Enlightenment"

On the very rare occasions that a problem crops up on a Mac, the only thing I need to do is go here: https://discussions.apple.com/welcome



[Edited at 2020-06-04 12:51 GMT]


 
Viesturs Lacis
Viesturs Lacis  Identity Verified
Latvia
Local time: 13:39
English to Latvian
Capable of troubleshooting/correcting virtually anything that can be done user-side Jun 4, 2020

Ever since I got my first home computer roughly 20 years ago, I've made it a point to familiarize myself with all aspects of it that could be relevant to a power user. That includes configuring the computer (and all software I decide to install) to my preferences and keeping an eye out for any security alerts and major issues affecting the digital world. I also feel comfortable working with command line - the Linux VPS that hosts my website is entirely self-managed - and know how to write and re... See more
Ever since I got my first home computer roughly 20 years ago, I've made it a point to familiarize myself with all aspects of it that could be relevant to a power user. That includes configuring the computer (and all software I decide to install) to my preferences and keeping an eye out for any security alerts and major issues affecting the digital world. I also feel comfortable working with command line - the Linux VPS that hosts my website is entirely self-managed - and know how to write and read basic scripts/programs. As a result, I feel confident of being able to independently tackle most of the issues that can be resolved user-side.

I've only experienced major hardware issues twice over this time period. A hard drive gave up the ghost 15 years ago and an aging monitor - 10 years ago. I hope that doesn't mean I am overdue for another calamity...
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Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida  Identity Verified
Portugal
Local time: 11:39
Member (2007)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
That's exactly my point Jun 4, 2020

neilmac wrote:

I can deal with some technical or software issues myself, but I'd usually rather get things done quickly by someone who really knows what they're doing.


Muriel Vasconcellos
 
Tom in London
Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 11:39
Member (2008)
Italian to English
Curiosity Jun 4, 2020

neilmac wrote:

..... I'd usually rather get things done quickly by someone who really knows what they're doing.


Out of curiosity:

1. How many times a year, on average, does your computer technician have to come to your workplace to fix a problem?

2. How many hours of downtime, unable to work, do you lose because of these problems ?

3. On average per year, how much do you pay your computer technician?


 
Yetta Jensen Bogarde
Yetta Jensen Bogarde  Identity Verified
Denmark
Local time: 12:39
Member (2012)
English to Danish
+ ...
Some of them yes Jun 4, 2020

It was frustrating in the beginning being on your own after working in-house with instant helpdesk support.

I just had to Google the problem and little by little I learned a few things.
Sometimes I ask my daughter, who studies computer science.


 
Mario Freitas
Mario Freitas  Identity Verified
Brazil
Local time: 08:39
Member (2014)
English to Portuguese
+ ...
Yes, etirely Jun 4, 2020

I learned it and I try as much as possible to stay up to date with the tech issues.
The problem is, and I know this is not standard everywhere, that the so-called technicians around here will take your computer to their office (for some reason they'll never fix it in your place), and two days later call you and say they have to format the PC. This is what I've heard 90% of the time. Formatting the PC is like overhauling an engine when there is an issue with the starter. It is the clearest
... See more
I learned it and I try as much as possible to stay up to date with the tech issues.
The problem is, and I know this is not standard everywhere, that the so-called technicians around here will take your computer to their office (for some reason they'll never fix it in your place), and two days later call you and say they have to format the PC. This is what I've heard 90% of the time. Formatting the PC is like overhauling an engine when there is an issue with the starter. It is the clearest evidence that the person DOES NOT know how to fix the issue or even what it is.
I gave up using these "professionals" long ago.
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Becca Resnik
 
Muriel Vasconcellos
Muriel Vasconcellos  Identity Verified
United States
Local time: 04:39
Member (2003)
Spanish to English
+ ...
I need help with most issues Jun 5, 2020

I can solve some of them myself, but my tech comes to my house about once a year to take care of a list of niggling problems that I can't figure out but can still live with: e.g., one email in my inbox that causes MS Outlook to shut down if I try to delete it.

He has also seen me through four computer crashes. In each case, I had to replace my computer. He recommended the necessary purchases and reconfigured the new machine.


Maria Teresa Borges de Almeida
 
Edith van der Have
Edith van der Have
Netherlands
Local time: 12:39
Member (2016)
English to Dutch
+ ...
I can do the majority myself ... Jun 5, 2020

... and the rest is solved by the in-house helpdesk to whom I'm married

Elizabeth Tamblin
Aline Brito
 


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Poll: Are you able to resolve technical, software or hardware issues yourself?






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