PC Doctor please help, my computer is unwell.

There are few things more annoying than whilst carefully crafting a post for a blog the PC plays up – freezes and all is lost Its become more and more frequent and there comes a point when enough is enough.

PC World offer a “Tech Guys PC Health Check In Store Service” but that means all the hassle hoff disconnecting and lugging it all the way to nearest store where there’s no guarantee of repair. Quiete frankly its like having a big sign outside the store saying “we don’t want to help you – but come in and we’ll try to sell you a new computer”

A web search revealed various businesses that offer home IT support

The PC Guru offered attractive rates but isn’t able to cover my area but covers an extensive part of the South of England with a reasonable call out charge.

BT have a variety of home PC and IT support options – including installation of a new computer or setting up a wireless broadband wifi network to computer repairs.

Now thats more like it – a home visit from qualified engineer to sort out my home computer needs – computer repair or installing new equipment without the anxiety of getting it wrong and making it worse. Ideal if your short of time or not confident to try yourself. A cunning plan would be to take full advantage of using their online booking to arrange a visit during the switch to a new broadband supplier and upgrading to wifi – the engineer will still give tips and pc help

Alternatively you could opt for one of the monthly payment options which gives you access to expert help over the phone but I guess you’d have to be a bit PC savvy to make the most of this although the service is advertised “support without the jargon”.

Of course there are times when its time to accept that an upgrade is necessary – the message is clear

Please note that although we will attempt to deal with any computer or other technical device we cannot guarantee resolution.

Very Expensive Gifts.

What do you do with heaps of money? – spend it on very expensive gifts.

These presents are suggestions on the city-of-london site for the wealthy Englishman to buy as gifts for others or indeed as a self indulgent treat for themselves.

A Racehorse
Beryl Cook Paintings
J D Yachts
Tiffany
Vintage Wine Gifts

Expensive Gifts of this nature are perceived to demonstrate affluence and the sense of having “made it”.

Of course many people who have created great wealth would be less reckless in their spending and prudently look to invest – finding less blatant and understated ways to display riches and success.

Its not what you buy – its the way that you buy it – a marketing message taken to heart by top banana banks who now issue the ultimate in cool for credit cards - black and made of titanium. See the reaction when the card drops to the counter when reserving a suite at the say The Grand Hotel, Jersey, when visiting your international bank manager at RBS Coutts to check on your offshore investments.

Flash the cash but only in the right places – RBS Coutts is the international banking arm of “The Queen’s Bank” a far cry from the days when Royal Bank made these commercials to attract the man in the street

Call Free Directory Enquiries

Free Directory Enquiry Calls

The UK Directory Enquiry Service became free again this month.

An official report by the National Audit Office said the switch to 118 from the old 192 service was an expensive flop that left consumers out of pocket and failed to improve service.

Hopefully the launch of 0800 100 100 will be the first nail in the coffin for rip-off 118 so-called providers that replaced the original free British Telecom 192 directory enquiry service. although BT have offered free directory enquiries online for at www.bt.com since the abolition of the 192 service which has been reasonably fast if you have a reasonable broadband connection.

You are required to listen to a 20-second advert but that is a small price to pay considering the long delays experienced on pay per second sevices – 40% of users thought 118 operators unnecessarily prolonged conversations to boost revenues.

Calls from landlines, cable networks and even mobiles will be free and answered by real people based in the UK rather than machines and international call centres.

Update see Comment by john smith — March 12, 2009 @ 8:41 pm

Have you tried it? “We are sorry this site is currently over subscribed but you can call our sister company on 118 ……” At 20:38hrs on a Thursday evening? How many calls does it take to “over subscribe” their system?? Clearly a rip off.

The service will be sustained by advertising. Enquirers will be expected to listen to a short message – twenty seconds – before they receive their information however top banana thinks this much better than the existing average call cost of 78p – over 378 million calls to directory enquiries in the UK annually – you do the maths.