should I start Charging money for Tech Support?

[ssj6akshat]

My life is like this-
http://theoatmeal.com/comics/computers

Should i start charging them so they won't bug me and let me live peacefully.

[Apollo87]

My IT tech rate for family and friends is about $3000 an hour. They tend to leave me alone now.

[lykwydchykyn]

You never charge family, and only rarely charge friends.

What you do is to have another friend who knows a lot about tech. Whenever someone you can't charge asks you to look at something, you say "I might be able to fix that, but I have a friend who would definitely sort you out. It will cost you a little, but it'll be worth it." Then you recommend this friend.

Your friend does the same for his/her friends and relations, recommending you.

[ssj6akshat]

You never charge family, and only rarely charge friends.

What you do is to have another friend who knows a lot about tech.


Only my parents live with me.other relatives live far away.

None of my friends know about "tech".

[NightwishFan]

I do not charge friends, but if they need Windows help more than once I recommend wubi. Soon I am dropping support of Windows Xp.

[dragos240]

If you want to charge people, do it.

[underquark]

Should i start charging them so they won't bug me and let me live peacefully.Yes, you should. Publish a list of terms and conditions including your fees. Be consistent and make no exceptions.

My fee for this advice is £425 (US$600).

[ndefontenay]

I've dropped support for microsoft products altogether.
I request usage of linux before I can provide any form of assistance.

If they do switch, I will give them my utmost attention from installation to post installation and whatever they need to know before.

Only my parents haven't switch yet because the internet connection in Mauritius is primitive and uses some winmodem for adsl... I've found no way around this and I'm way too far to provide a serious and long term solution.

My wife, my kids, my sister and soon my brother (he's waiting for Lucid Lynx) have switched. Some of my friends did switch and used linux until they moved to some other countries.

So if you are a reliable and serious source of information and support the do listen if you offer.

What sold the product for most of them is 1) absence of virus 2) Self discipline to use legal products or pay the cost

[lykwydchykyn]

Only my parents live with me.other relatives live far away.

None of my friends know about "tech".

It was kind of a joke. Well, only kind of.

So we're talking about parents here? Never charge your parents money. For anything. If they offer it, take it; but never ask.

[steev182]

Don't charge your parents or they'll start asking for 10+ years of backdated rent...

[lisati]

I hesitate to charge family for tech support (even for copies of Windows seriously borked by malware), but a donation of some kind is usually welcome. The usual suggestion Mrs Lisati comes up with is a packet of cigarettes, much to the family's disgust. Please don't tell our doctor!

[murderslastcrow]

I just get them addicted to Ubuntu- then they never call me back about computers again, unless they wanna' dual boot for a game or something. Then I make it clear that I haven't used Windows for a long time, so don't expect me to know anything (although I remember it all quite clearly, painfully clearly).

Seriously, we need to get rid of all the real computer problems, so that when someone's confused RTFM makes sense, and we can just tell them they have to learn how to use the stupid thing. @____@

On a lighter note, I do computer stuff all the time, since computers are like this mystical, forbidden, unpredictable thing to people who use Windows, so they won't trust just anyone. They've got this overwhelming sense of fear and paranoia about things after they mess it up once, just because it's Windows.

I'd really rather not let Windows into my life again since I don't need it anymore. T^T The last thing I want is to deal with peoples' silly Microsoft problems. If you need something on Windows, or intend to use it, then plan on figuring the stuff out for yourself. It comes with the OS, don't be a wuss.

[toupeiro]

I never charge family or friends money unless I was in a situation where it was going to put food on my table.


What I will do is trade for trade. Spyware fix for a home made german chocolate cake? deal!


I think one of the best trades I've ever done was with a co-worker many years ago. He wanted a few computers and printers in his home networked and wanted a few other things done. For my payment, I got a set of ported and polished 2.02 camelback racing heads and a racing Predator carburettor for my 1970 car at the time. He wasn't using them, and I surely could have. He saved me hundreds (maybe over a thousand) dollars of CNC machine work and price premiums for really top end stuff and he got his home network all setup including network printint, software configuration and performance tuning. I never set the bargaining piece. I always let the other person offer what they feel it was worth.

I love trade for trade deals.

[MooPi]

I can't refuse family or close friends. I even help hapless acquaintances. But I joke that the second trip back for help will cost them on billion DOLLARS$
http://i559.photobucket.com/albums/ss36/MooPii/Assorted/th_dr-evil-billion-dollars.jpg (http://s559.photobucket.com/albums/ss36/MooPii/Assorted/?action=view&current=dr-evil-billion-dollars.jpg)
They get the hint that I don't want to be back for every detail.