THIS IS CRAZY ! they say it's broken and i install any ubuntu os

[firedancer]

something happened last week, two ,three weeks ago

a friend told me his pc isn't good anymore , motherboard is damaged ,

This is what THEY told him at the pc "repair" shop , ok

So i told him to bring it to me since fiddling with pc's and linux is part of my live (yes) ,

he brought it two days ago to be exact, telling me it was going to the dump (laughing).

I watched the thing , opened it , hardware can always get damaged , so before stripping the thing , i threw in DSLinux -N first , it booted , running live (no hdd) , then by accident i bumped the pc and the DVD flew open with the cd , so i thought hmmm, thats it probably, it spitting out stuff (hahaha)

afterwards i tried (only lives) ubuntu, edubuntu (first time had never used) xubuntu, slax server,popcorn, etc..
booting, rebooting,

it never failed ! the dsl cd came flew out cause while bumping i hit the open button

i had it on the whole day and now it is up and running,

and my friend bought a laptop probably at the same store , he has money and a good job , otherwise i would have given him back this pc. And a friend of us who lives close buy , saw thew pc inmy apartment , which I rent it is heirs. she told me not to collect to much old stuff and to carry it to the dump.

i didn't even wanted to tell here that's it's already "repaired"
although i have another PC now

WHAT IS GOING ON !

second case :

my cousin had a new 64 bit duo 2core laptop

got a simple virus ,
he brought it to a pc store where i purchase items at times,

but i met him at another store where he was carrying again to be checked ,
together (i was there for a soundcard , which i never got )my cousib the pcrepairguy and i found out that the other pc specialists , never I repeat never removed the virus , just installed bitdefender , put there logo adress,etc big in the rite corner on the screen of his laptop ,the othet guy and i were surprised , since when does is a pcstore advertises on pc screens which they "repaired"
my cousin doen not know alot about pc's , so they told him their is something wrong with his "smartdisk" which is something tottally different and i believe something to make fun of him.

in that same store when i go , and ask in details about specs , they "freeze" ,

something smells rotten ...i Know is It .
my cousin sold his new awg2750 = $1600 for awg 1200 - $700 , cause he was fed up with pc's and the trouble they were giving him


BUT this is RIPPING OFF FOLKS who don't much about their pc's

i don't trust any of these shops anymore man, not all do this ,but i was also once ripped off $100 for a 30 min checkup that lasted 5 min and wasn't needed , i told the guy that i wasnot going to pay for nothing ,he better upgrade the ram and i'll pay him the extra adding it with the $100 , he watched at me and (a)greed.

I had to tell someone , i know here (on the forum) there are some good plp.

yesterday, i "fixed" one for a friend, she couldn't afford to pay me rite away (end of the month) so she gave me a special bottle of rum (but i 'm not a drinker ,so it's home) she is gonna by another videocard and then it will be good for some time again (onboard videocard "last breath")

i'm gonna put an add at the library as "the alternative" , i fix for a not too low price and will introduce some folks to alternatives (ubuntu,kubuntu,edubuntu) if they want to. set it up nice so it's user friendly for them .


yes i know is a very long thread , i never do this. but wants to share these experiences, i "notice" more and more of cases like the once above .


firedancer

[Het Irv]

There is a store around my house like that. They got their license to sell Windows revoked because they sold the same copy of Window to everybody for 2 years. Same key, same everything. They also sell Computer for $200-300 above their retail value. I do my best to discourage people from going there.

Consider Your Self Warned: Vettronics of South Hill, Va will not help you in any way.

[-grubby]

I know...people think their PCs are "broken" because they get a virus in Windows, they send it to the shop, the shop says "it's irreparable" or "it's gonna be expensive to fix" so they just buy a new one and waste money

[RageOfOrder]

I just love it when someone brings in their PC to have a virus removed, and you discover the old Kazaa program, which has installed about 200 spyware apps and a dozen or so viruses.

So you remove the viruses, remove Kazaa, replace it with frostwire and tell them not to download Kazaa anymore.

The next day, the husband comes in pissed off because you changed his software, and he had to change it back, and now there's all sorts of viruses again! It's all your fault!

Or the people who bring in their PC for repairs, but don't tell you the password for their account, so I use Winternals to remove their old password and reset it to "password".
I leave this on the repair slip, and of course 30 minutes after they take the machine, I get a phone call about a password that doesn't work and since they tried it 8 million times, windows won't let them log in. So I tell them what I did and get yelled at for "hacking"

And of course, there's the people who want impossible upgrades.
"Van you put vista on my pc? It has Windows 95 right now."
"Ma'am, you'll need a new computer for Vista"
"But my cousin has it on her computer and I just bought this last week!"
"We can't do it. It's impossible."

Ugh. I hate tech su pport.

[Nunu]

I just love it when someone brings in their PC to have a virus removed, and you discover the old Kazaa program, which has installed about 200 spyware apps and a dozen or so viruses.

So you remove the viruses, remove Kazaa, replace it with frostwire and tell them not to download Kazaa anymore.

The next day, the husband comes in pissed off because you changed his software, and he had to change it back, and now there's all sorts of viruses again! It's all your fault!

Or the people who bring in their PC for repairs, but don't tell you the password for their account, so I use Winternals to remove their old password and reset it to "password".
I leave this on the repair slip, and of course 30 minutes after they take the machine, I get a phone call about a password that doesn't work and since they tried it 8 million times, windows won't let them log in. So I tell them what I did and get yelled at for "hacking"

And of course, there's the people who want impossible upgrades.
"Van you put vista on my pc? It has Windows 95 right now."
"Ma'am, you'll need a new computer for Vista"
"But my cousin has it on her computer and I just bought this last week!"
"We can't do it. It's impossible."

Ugh. I hate tech su pport.

my favorite is when you ask them to click on the start button they go ok i did now the screen is off (They love mistaking the power button for the start button).

Or did you type the correct password?
Yes six dots like you did when you where here

[mikeypizano]

http://www.rinkworks.com/stupid/ Need a good luagh? I love this site as it proves how dumb people can be!

[Sunflower1970]

And of course, there's the people who want impossible upgrades.
"Van you put vista on my pc? It has Windows 95 right now."
"Ma'am, you'll need a new computer for Vista"
"But my cousin has it on her computer and I just bought this last week!"
"We can't do it. It's impossible."

Ugh. I hate tech su pport.

Ahh. But the stories we get to tell after the fact can be highly amusing :lolflag:

[jkeyes0]

The CEO of the company I just started working for brought his PC in to me to check it out. He took it to Best Buy to have the motherboard worked on, and they told him he had a virus and spyware, and wanted to charge him $200 to clean it up.

Being a smart man, he opted not to do that and brought the system back here to work. I booted it up, ran several virus scans and anti-spyware scans, and found what? Nothing...

I've never taken my PC to another company to have it worked on, and I highly recommend people try to find a local, cheap company to work on it if they HAVE to have it done. They'll always be cheaper than the major competition, and rarely if ever will they try to say there's something wrong if there isn't.

[boast]

Or did you type the correct password?
Yes six dots like you did when you where here

:lolflag: omg, thats hilarious!

[rjs82vette]

PC Repair shops have the lowest salery of any IT profession..... so most of the people who work there are either

1. new to the IT field and they are trying to get experience for a better job

2. just graduated IT school

3. are going to IT school

or

4. cant work any where else because their morons....

[firedancer]

well , i'm no IT anything , i still post in the newbie forum, but bring the thing to me and i'll find my way
I didn't started the thread to say that all ITT's are bad ,not at all , but if ppl don't know something and pay shouldn't you at least explain them a little, that's why i use ubuntu/linux cause there's plenty to read and then one can still ask
i have no IT credentials (do i say this good) but it's kinda my hobby and i'm learning soooo much, but only since using linux and that's what i mean , the avarage linux user knows more about pc's then the average windows user

when i step into a pc store and ask in details what i need sometimes they look shocked , i guess the average pc user has to be dumb then,
i tried convincing someone to install puppy ,cause the pc was old and running w95 and indeed the person asks for Vista (the biggest spyware ever the name says it, Vista = Bista = I have my eye's on You)
couldn't microsoft upgrade the users minds a little , like "hey buy a new pc for my new OS" or something like that

and if you use ubuntu it won't make you less smarter, cause of it's userfriendliness, but i buzz my brain with all types of linuxes , from a headless debian to a "radical" dynebolic , puppy's and damnsmallinux
this way i know what will be able to run and what not ,anyway

[koleoptero]

Another problem is though that if ppl see that you know a bit more about computers than they do, and you are honest with them, your phone starts ringing every two minutes.

I know, cause that's what's happened to me, and it can be very frustrating...

[TeaSwigger]

I suspect everyone would be surprised (more exactly, appalled) if we were ever able to actually see the sheer amount of toxic waste made from perfectly functioning hardware every year.

[daynah]

For some reason, I couldn't get a job for a while. (There will be spruts where everyplace I apply to can't live without me and no place can have me) The tech support place said I was over qualified, me - an English major - because I could use linux.

[dnns123]

lolz at the one above me.

I hate it when they say that I'm the Computer Expert in class (middle school). I could barely save my own OS after tinkering with it. Does it really make a big difference if you use Linux or Windows? I'm asked for techsupport almost every other day from friends. It's tiring since I cant help when I cant see the PC in action, so I have to go to their house.... ugh.....

[markyb86]

PC Repair shops have the lowest salery of any IT profession..... so most of the people who work there are either

1. new to the IT field and they are trying to get experience for a better job

2. just graduated IT school

3. are going to IT school

or

4. cant work any where else because their morons....


Or it is the persons second job because working an IT help desk for national city bank doesnt allow you to install linux and fix computers for your community.... (me)

[Caffeine_Junky]

my favorite is when you ask them to click on the start button they go ok i did now the screen is off (They love mistaking the power button for the start button).

Or did you type the correct password?
Yes six dots like you did when you where here

lol.

[BarfBag]

Oh yeah? I used to work restoring old documents, and the machines were pure crap. PIII's running XP. My supervisor was really bad with them. I was told not to put sticky notes on my monitor because HQ "monitored" the PC's.

[ayenack]

http://www.rinkworks.com/stupid/ Need a good luagh? I love this site as it proves how dumb people can be!

LOL

Just spent the last hour or so laughing tears at some of these. Great stuff.

[Lostincyberspace]

the only store I would consider getting my computer repaired at is PC Club I know all the repair people personaly.

[firedancer]

Another problem is though that if ppl see that you know a bit more about computers than they do, and you are honest with them, your phone starts ringing every two minutes.

very much true koleoptero, agree on that

i just told one i can help and after that..., that i have no time and am no IT specialist




and today during classes , just because i said something about i'm helping a friend who had a combined Trojan.Busky + extra's , ...i had to shut up cause "You and your Linus, linup, leanup,lixon.....what's it called again" , my answer " I don't use that anymore, i use ubuntu now "(lol) , i keep my mouth shut now , i've learned that now

but he , guess what's on my friends pc ,well i'm writing this from her "box" , yes it's ubuntu fellas ! dualbooting for now ,cause her son plays maplestory (is there a wine cedega successtrory ) and i'm still not done with that thingy which is on it, if a port was opened (which is possible) we might just wait a minute with MS, let ubuntu do the works

later , ppl having fun for real ! nice , and the guys pc is part of my private collection (first post)

[sports fan Matt]

Best buy with the geeksquad is horendus and the sad thing is they dont care..$$$ these days..I know a guy here in Chicago that doesnt charge half as much as geeksquad and he does things right the first time. I also know a guy who does the same for mac's but never discovered who would do it for linux..maybe the forums are the only hope :)

[cwrann]

Before I knew anything about computers I had a great PC repair guy.
I crashed my Dell and didn't know what to do so I took it to him because his computer repair shop was two doors down from my store. He extracted all the files from my fried hdd, installed an new hdd and set up my computer to exactly how it was and he only charged me $125.00 (this included the new hdd).

Unfortunately he died a couple of weeks later resulting in me learning everything I could about computers.

A moment of silence for Mr. Wills

[regomodo]

i was shocked when my mum told it me it cost her to get her pc fixed by PCWORLD for 80pounds. Turned out the psu had died and they swapped it for a horrendously cheap one.

[mysticrider92]

I recently started working at a computer store in downtown Aiken (this is a small town buisness, owned by one person, and staffed mostly by relatives), and I find many similar things. We are a small buisness, so the prices can be higher (realisticly, some people don't know how many hours we spend fixing one problem), but I think the owner always tries to be fair and give thourough service.

We end up with plenty of weird problems (nearly 80% related to Windows....), and some that are fairly routine (viruses, adware, spyware...). Some of them have been very similar to the things the OP described. One person brought in a desktop, saying that it was giving off a burning smell. Turns out, there was a small amount of dust in the CPU heatsink/fan, and they were probably just stuffing it into a cabinet with no ventalation.

I have seen some problems with other repair shop's work, though. One was an HP laptop that the trackpad and USB ports (all but one) had stopped working. The person had sent it to HP, who sent it back 5 weeks later after "fixing" it. The problem was still there, so they brought it to us (we will have to send it to HP anyway, as it is still under warranty...). There were a few other pc's that people have sent to us after some shop replaced the insides (lower performance parts) and gave it back to the customer, which is not a very good buisness practice...

[firedancer]

paid rent fixing pc ,

son got 3-day "course"


probably bad for someone 's bussiness, :)

sure not doing this everyday, the "course" was ,that i had no time ,so i told their 13/14 year old son call me if you don't know how to proceed, else go ahead ,google, etc
ofcourse i helped , till getting all drivers cause he was getting frustrated, missing playing his online game , the video and audio driver cd were missing with the package or so, now they have the latest (i guess)

or what should i do ?

"Madam, your pc is broken", buy another since you can and i'll bring this one to the "scrapyard." :lolflag: just messing ,have some pretty good IT fellas in the field !



a school is looking for a sysadmin or so, but I probably wont get the job , no qualifications in that field,
but i helped the same guy i mention above , he was the first who finished with his school filmproject, yes made with kino and kubuntu OS , he went school two days ago with a usb stick ,still the only one finished, the laptop has some hardware problem i guess, because the guy wasn't able to get it on the pc (some "reboot system" issue) and there is noone that can solve this for them,
I'm willing so , i told the guy that i don't mind to do it for him, just go one of these days in the morning and see what the problem is,

don't why they didn't try to use on of the other pc's , because there is noone to i guess,
this would be a nice edubuntu project, mmmmmmm only if they let me !
well, but it seems odd that the principle of the school's husband is one of the handful of ppl which i know using a linux system (there are more ,i just don't know'em) and has a "struggling" pc shop , i believe it's "open source" that's why, i'm not sure though, it's not so much of a bussiness, but strange though

maybe i'm too motivated , could be .

anyway , going to do some real stuff now
respect,
firedancer