Just a little out of warranty...

[sirwired]

I get a new call today from a peer support group. General performance problems. I pull up their hardware logs and discover that they are running a model of switch that doesn't play well with their other hardware product. The switch was architected poorly as part of a rush job; I busted out laughing when I saw the block diagram for this POS. To top it off, the thing is so old, we are withdrawing support at the end of the year.

Finding the particular problems with this switch usually involve weeks of work and $85k worth of test equipment.

Lucky for me I check the status of their service contract. The dumb-ass customer let it expire four freakin' years ago. I'm a nice guy and give the boxes a cursory once-over because I'm a nice guy (and I may have found their problem), but beyond that, it's "Buy about $200k-$300k of new equipment and call me in the morning."

SirWired

[earl colby pottinger]

Support and Updates

Ah, yes. Support contracts and Virus updates.

Two things customers can't seem to realize that the reason they see no problems is that they are paying to have the problems resolved before they become serious issues.

I lost count of the number of out cries of the costs of repairing a problem fter a customer has let one othese lapse for more than a year. And they always say the same thing, "I don't see why I should have kept spending the money when they never got any problems in the first place."

To which I growled under my breath, "That was what you payments insured."

Customers! Love them, hate them, but you can sure you get the money one way or the other.