Fixing PCs

I don't often get asked but I'm still happy to check out problems with PCs of acquaintances who I sort of know for free, it's experience apart from earns good will IME. Last time, someone I didn't particularly know, storage external hard drive on its way out, simple matter of copying off it, telling them to buy a new one, and putting it on the new one, and she gave me £20 of vouchers and some beer. Very nice, especially as I wasn't expecting anything other than a thank you :)
 
sod fixing a PC, if anyone ever wanted their PC "fixed", i give them my 64gig usb key fob, tell them to move all photos and docs, and anything thing else they do not want to lose on it.

I then reiteriate it and say, you will lose anything thats not on the fob.

Then its a format/reinstall and drivers, for the agreed price. (close friends family Free) firends nextdoor neigbours dog? £50 please

less than an hours work, no hassle.
 
hardware issue i'll take a look for £10 or so and see whats up. If it looks like i have to spend more than half an hour fixing it i phone them up and tell them the situation.

software i just ask if they have anything they need on the computer, whack it onto a usb stick and format. software issues are a pain.
 
I used to "fix" a few computers for people at my old work - it was my first IT job and a few extra quid in my pocket was welcomed.

However, it soon became very tedious to be doing it, and I would always get calls from people who I'd seen 6-12 months (or often, more) ago, expecting me to remember every in-and-out of their personal system.


I've built up a couple of PCs for family in the past, but then of course you become their perma-available, 24/7 IT support contact.


I've stopped doing it now - well, I thought I had - until my missus offered my services in exchange for a skink (which has now started her on an obsession with reptiles, and we have a skink, a gecko, a royal python and a boa constrictor, and of course all the equipment to go with it has cost a fortune), and I've still got more to do in exchange for a polished inlet manifold for her car... wonderful! :rolleyes:
 
Dont even do builds anymore for anyone and no way do any fixes.

Remember seeing my mates dad having a minor heart attack moment when I was fishing around in the case to tidy up wires after a build, he thought it was like putting your hands in a crt tv set, his face was a picture, told him I was used to it, never told him any different, that way he would not go poking around inside then blame my skills when he broke it,

he's one of those duct tape fix anything people, very dangerous.
 
you help someone once and then they seem to think every future problem they experience / create is linked with the task you helped with!

I do it for my parents happily but everybody else I've helped has ended up being a PIA.
 
stokecity_m said:
i'll only ever fix anyones pc if they bring it to me :)

Then i say i'll get it back to them within a couple of days.
Click to expand...

This is the same as me too...If they bring it to me, fair enough...If they paying me to do it, then i'll go round to theirs when they want, but if it's a freebie repair then they get the repair when im available...lol
 
I stopped fixing other peoples' PCs outright a while back. It became tedious when they ask for you to 'take a quick look' at random hours of the day, and it turns out they've totally hosed their system due to incompetence (usually by installing various pieces of adware/malware). This 'quick look' then turns into you spending a few hours of your time putting things right, which usually ends up being a complete wipe/re-install.

It was becoming an increasingly common occurrence, and it just drove me nuts. I stopped for the sake of my sanity, and the general lack of thanks/funds coming my way. On a similar note, it's really not surprising that the UK is one of the countries with the highest number of virus-infected PCs (and I believe a large portion of those form botnets aswell). There should be some compulsory course required beforehand, as a lot of people are just outright clueless with regards to using a PC correctly/safely.
 
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