Um... like trying to run a car without gas.

[sld72382]

Got a lady who bought a laptop and was having trouble getting online.

SLD: Me.
SC: You'll see.
Italics: my thoughts.

SC: I can't get online, the salesperson told me I can get right online!

SLD: Well before we begin *gives empathy, affirmation and attempts at "small talk" first.* Now who is your internet provider?

SC: Internet Explorer!

SLD: Ma'am, that's just the browser. Who do you pay the bill to, the cable company or the phone company?

SC: No one!

SLD: You're kidding me, right? Ma'am, in order to get online you have to subscribe to an internet service provider or ISP. Since Vista does not work well with dial-up, your best choices are either cable or DSL.

SC: Why do I have to do that? The salesperson said all I have to do is plug it in and go online!

SLD: In that case he probably assumed you already have an ISP set up....

SC: Well your salespeople should never assume!

SLD: He probably didn't expect you to be that ignorant. Well I'm sorry ma'am but if you want to be able to get online, you will need to contact either your local cable company.....

SC: I will not deal with Comcast, they suck!

SLD: Ok, who is your local phone company?

SC: AT&T.

SLD: Then I would highly advise you call them and set up DSL service from them. Once you do, you should have no problems.

SC: I just wish the salesperson would have told me this when I bought it!

SLD: I'm sorry you were misinformed, ma'am. No, not really. When you buy a car does the salesperson need to tell you it needs gas or diesel to run?

SC: Well I guess I have to call AT&T and set up something.

SLD: Yes, once you have high-speed internet you'll have no problems.

SC: Ok, thanks.

*end of call.*


I needed to take a break after that call. Sheesh.

[Bright_Star]

So once she has high speed internet then she'll have no problems? I seriously doubt that...lol.
Honestly now, who buys a computer nowadays & expects it to go online as soon as they take it out of the box & turns it on?

[SpyOne]

Well, I bought a "reconditioned" DELL laptop and it went online as soon as I turned it on.

Of course, that's because it is set up for wifi, and I happen to have already set up a wireless network at home.
But if it had been my next-door neighbor who had the wireless network, I might have thought I just had internet access, that it came with the computer or something. If I were just a bit dumber, and knew a bit less about computers.

[Pedersen]

Honestly now, who buys a computer nowadays & expects it to go online as soon as they take it out of the box & turns it on?

Oooh! I do! Well, once I've assembled the pieces anyway. And disassembled to reseat something that didn't get seated properly the first time and I closed everything up without testing. And reassembled after testing that. And installed the operating system.

But then I get right online!

Unless I'm using a wifi connection. Then I have to find the MAC address of the new computer, and add it to my WAP's "allow MAC address lists". And then tell the new computer to try again.

But, after that, I get online, easy as pie!

[otakuneko]

Why bother with useless MAC filtering? Use WPA with a simple passphrase made from SFSP.

[Pedersen]

Well, for two reasons, really:

1. Probably because new research has shown that WPA/WPA2 can now be cracked?
2. It's a joke. It was meant to be amusing. Hence why I went all out in over-describing every piece of the process that could possibly fail.

[HawaiianShirts]

Honestly now, who buys a computer nowadays & expects it to go online as soon as they take it out of the box & turns it on?

My customer and her dad from yesterday.

I go through the general process of figuring out what they want their new computer to do and make some suggestions. Then she asks the question I have dreaded since I started doing retail computer sales in April of 2005:
"Does this computer come with the Internet?"

I then had to explain the concept of web browsers and Internet service providers. She seemed to get it because she then asked some questions about how to sign up with such a provider. I explained about a few local providers, including DSL, cable, and even dial-up.

Her dad was there the whole time. His attention seemed to alternate between listening to me and comparing two computer models on the shelf. When his daughter switched from Internet questions to something about the printers that come with most of the computers we sell, Dad just had to pipe up and ask the question again:
"So, does it come with the Internet?"

I told him it did not and tried to explain again, but he cut me off:
"What about this other one? Does it come with the Internet?"

That was not a fun sale. But, yes, there are still plenty of people out there who just don't get it. And after going 3.5 years without having to answer that question (questions about whether laptops have wireless Internet is another matter, in my opinion), I had to answer it three times in less than an hour.

[otakuneko]

"So, does it come with the Internet?"
"Does your DVD player come with movies?"

[Skeksin]

I've found comparing it to phone useage to be helpful.
You can buy a phone but you do not automatically have phone service just by having the phone, you need a provider.
Similarly you can have a PC but it doesn't have internet connection without a provider.

[draggar]

"Does this computer come with the Internet?"

Easy way to answer that question in a way most people will understand:

Your new car does not come with the interstate highway system, but you use it (the car) to get onto the highway to go to different places. The internet is similar to the interstate highway system and the computer is the car.

[smileyeagle1021]

Easy way to answer that question in a way most people will understand:

Your new car does not come with the interstate highway system, but you use it (the car) to get onto the highway to go to different places. The internet is similar to the interstate highway system and the computer is the car.

ooh, bad example... interstates are free to use (at least out here)...

better example would be a toll road (granted... no one out here would know what one of those is )

[LoTech]

ooh, bad example... interstates are free to use (at least out here)...

better example would be a toll road (granted... no one out here would know what one of those is )

Yeah, a better example would be one closer to the computer: The TV.

"Sir, that is a bit like asking if a TV comes with Cable. Just as you can not buy cable TV, and must subscribe in order to watch it, you can not buy 'the Internet' along with your computer, and must subscribe to it in order to use the internet."

There's probably a more politic way of stating it, though.

[Eric the Grey]

Oooh! I do! Well, once I've assembled the pieces anyway. And disassembled to reseat something that didn't get seated properly the first time and I closed everything up without testing. And reassembled after testing that. And installed the operating system.

But then I get right online!

Unless I'm using a wifi connection. Then I have to find the MAC address of the new computer, and add it to my WAP's "allow MAC address lists". And then tell the new computer to try again.

But, after that, I get online, easy as pie!

LOL, you sound like me. There's nothing like building your own machine.

Oh, and I use MAC filtering and WEP as well on my wireless router. It's just another layer of comfort, IMO.


Eric the Grey

[Bliss]

Btw they would still have to pay a phone provider for the service, but if she bought a laptop with gobi she has all she needs to get internet, in itself.