We rarely get thunder & lightning storms in this part of the valley but we had one between 3 and 4 this morning, followed by a light, fragrant summer rain. It was a pretty active storm, too. So many flashes and bolts it was hard to keep up.

I love these storms, but my ‘puter doesn’t. Do you know what to do to protect your computer? Right, unplug it. But it’s easy to forget to unplug the modem. Don’t just unplug the power cord, unplug the phone cord or the cable. A surge of electricity can get to it from there just as easily as the power cord. And if it’s still attached to your PC, well, that would be bad.

Got everything unplugged? Good, I feel better.

We finally got all our gifts unwrapped and we get to play with our new toys. But what if something goes wrong? What if it doesn’t work or we can’t get it set up right?

Oh, great, now we have to call customer service. Not how I want to spend my day. Well, here are some ways to make your customer service call a little easier.

1. Be Prepared.

You will need model numbers, serial numbers, service tag numbers, account numbers, your complete billing address, your password, and God knows what else. Gather these things together before you call customer service and you will save valuable time on the call.

2. Set Time Aside.

You never know how much time you’ll need, even with the time you saved getting prepared. The customer service rep may ask you to complete some troubleshooting tasks or walk you through a process that may take some extra time. This is a good thing. You’re getting the help you need.

3. Have Patience.

I know you’re frustrated! Answering those endless questions about your account and the problems you’re having… Let’s just get to the point already! The truth is, this process will go much smoother if you let the customer service rep take the lead and get all the info he or she needs. And don’t jump ahead and say “I already did this and tried that” before they even mention those things. The reps often have a step-by-step guide they follow to ensure they’re covering all the bases.

4. Know What I’m Sayin?
   

Help us help you. If you tell me “it’s the little button by the round thing”, I don’t know what that is. Tell me it’s the reset button or be as specific about the description as you can. We do our best to keep up, but we don’t have access to every piece of equipment that’s out there. If you don’t know what something is, take a look in your owner’s manual. Lots of good stuff in there.

5. Be Nice.

A little friendliness goes a long way with the representative on the phone. We get beat up all day by angry, frustrated customers who complain and swear at us. Even one little “How are you today?” or a little humor can make our day. We love helping the nice people, and even going the extra mile for you! Don’t be this guy.

Bonus.
Thanks for reading this far! As a reward, I give you this extra tip: Do NOT put in the Restore disc just because they tell you to. The Restore disc has very powerful magic, and if used carelessly, it has the power to destroy all of your data. If you don’t have a current backup of your hard drive, get it done before you use the Restore disc. K?

Have fun

The timing couldn’t be worse. This vulnerability in Windows XP Help and Support Center has been cracked wide open by hackers, but Microsoft just issued their security updates for the month, so you will have to wait til next month for them to repair it.

Thankfully, Microsoft has posted a quick and easy fix at their support web site. All you have to do is go there and press a button. It looks just like that –>

Here is where you can fix your XP system: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2219475

And here is where you can read the techno-babble about the problem: http://www.microsoft.com/technet/security/advisory/2219475.mspx

So if you’re using Windows XP, go now and get the fix. Don’t make me come down there!

My friend Byron wrote an excellent article about spam, specifically when it comes from an individual you know or a company you do business with. At first you think it’s legitimate. It’s from your bank or ISP or whatever.

But if the email has links, or wants you to log in to your account, or requires any action whatsoever, be warned: This email is probably a fake. Byron breaks it all down and teaches how you discern whether it’s good or evil. Go read Byron’s article, then you can teach all your friends and they might give you some cookies (ya, that’s a hint).

Have fun

Some people don’t care much about having a public presence on the Internet so they might not care that Facebook is trying to improve privacy. I like to keep my Facebook private so when they announced a major privacy change, I looked at it right away. I couldn’t help it, actually, because they have a pop-up window that invites you to go through a settings wizard.

The wizard is really pretty useless. You can set each item to “Everyone” or “Old Settings”. It does not tell you what those old settings are but I chose old settings for everything anyway.

Facebook Privacy

After you go through the wizard, go to Settings → Privacy Settings and click on each category to check because even though my previous settings were for friends only, some of them had been reset to everyone. Suddenly, without my permission or knowledge, everyone could see my photos, and yours too! Do yourself a favor and take a quick look and make sure your privacy settings are exactly how you want them, then you can relax and go back to playing Farmville.

Have fun