I don't think of myself as massively technicaly literate, but then again I am not a total idiot in the field. Though I can't do DIY or mend cars or build things I can usually get computers and TVs and stuff plugged in and get them working and even negotiate some of the trickier aspects of going to the PC control panel and sorting out occasionaly problems. I can certainly follow instructions in this regard. So I have to assume there are lots of very poorly written manuals and CD ROMS because recently I have nearly always had problems getting new equipment up and running.
Today it was a hub I had bought to give me wireless internet in my home. When I had ordered it on line it had said how simple it was to install and get up and running.
Indeed it all seemed fairly easy to put together. The CD ROM took you through the process slowly and with massive overexplanation and all seemed fine. But after the 25 minute tutorial about how to put three leads in the right place, the central light ("Broadband link") was still flashing green, rather than being solid green, which meant I was not linking up to the internet.
I rang BT. The first person put me through to a second person who sounded very unsure of what he was doing (he didn't quite say, "It's my first day!" but behaved as if it was, yet tragically I don't think it actually was). He kept putting me on hold and asking his supervisor and supposedly testing my line, even though I told him it wouldn't be anything to do with that as it had been working earlier in the morning with my non-wireless equipment. Finally he conceeded defeat and said he could give me a number for technical support, which is what I thought I was getting. Maybe he was just a caretaker who had happened to answer the phone. "This number will be charged at the national rate," he told me, "So maybe think about what time of the day you would like to use it. Are you satisfied with the service you've had today?" he asked, obviously something he was duty bound to do. "Well, not really," I replied, "Given that you haven't really helped me at all and have wasted 30 minutes of my life and now I have to pay to get this problem sorted out."
"Ah yes, Richard" he replied, being one of those annoying people who use you first name much too much in conversation (espeically irritating when you are not meeting them socially, but just talking to them over the phone), "Well, I...." he floundered to a stop as he didn't really have an answer to that. He was very personable. Incompetent, useless, but personable. And that's all that matters in this day and age.
I got through to technical support and a nice man called Jeff took me through my problem. He needed to look for a manual as mine was a new make of wireless hub and he wasn't too familiar with it. We faffed around for a couple of minutes as he tried to ascertain the problem. "The last man said it might be problems on the line," I told him.
"No, it won't be that," he said, "The test we do is not really very efficient." Nice to know.
He then made me type in loads of numbers into my internet explorer ("But I am not connected to the internet," I protested. "It's OK," he replied). This took me to a systems page and he then talked me through a complicated process in which I had to fill in some serial number that he dictated to me. Now none of this was explained anywhere in the CD ROM or the booklet. This didn't seem to be very easy to install. After a couple of minutes where this had seemed not to work, it finally kicked in and I thanked him.
I thought it was over, but now I tried to set up the wireless part of the system. Now this might have been more down to my stupidity and confusion, but although my computer was recognising the existence of the network I didn't know what the security code was. I tried for another 30 minutes, reading a complicated pamphlet, typing in all the numbers I could see anywhere and even managing to find something on my own computer that would generate a code for me - though as it turned out, not for this specific wireless network. I was at a loss. Neither the booklet or CD ROM seemed to tell me what I needed to know.
So I rang technical support again. This time a lady answered the phone and she took me through the exact same process that the other guy had done. I told her I had done that but needed a code for my wireless system to work. She didn't know how to do that and gave me another number to ring (possibly charged at the international rate - the cleverer the person you talked to, the more expensive it becomes). The person I got through to next explained to me that I had to type in the number from the base of the unit (I thought I'd tried this, but had missed one of the numbers). Even then it still didn't work and he took me through another exercise that would make my computer automatically connect to my own wireless system. Finally it was done. It had taken the whole morning though, which was annoying for a system that was supposedly easy to install by oneself.
I don't think it's that I am stupid and it seems to me that most of the information I required was not available to me (nor to 50 % of the people working for BT). I was stressed and sweating and annoyed by the end of it all. It doesn't seem it would have been that much of a problem to explain these things in the manual. Maybe I missed the relevant bits. Maybe I am getting old.
Still now I can play poker whilst making my breakfast, so life is good.
