Tech Support, like the IT industry in general, has gone through massive change over the last several years. The most visible transition has been the seemingly wholesale offshore migration of many tech support functions. India has been a primary beneficiary of these changes. Many, including myself from time to time, argue that the American consumer more often than not is the loser in this “new age” of technical support.

There was a time, not so long ago really, where I would argue that Dell, and other American hardware companies, had a distinctive point of difference because of their generally timely and knowledgable technical support group. No more. If you want to speak to an American technical support analyst at this company, you either have to pay a premium or establish that your issue is such that it warrants being “bumped up” to a second, usually, third, tier support group for resolution.  In all fairness, Dell has very recently received overall positive comments in the areas of service and reliability in PC Magazine’s annual Reader Survey. If you are considering purchase of a desktop or notebook, or even an ISP (Internet Service Provider) this review is highly recommended. Readers of this magazine tend to be IT Professionals with extensive industry experience. (Just a quick notice, eMachines didn’t fare well at all so if you are considering this brand, be aware that Tech Support isn’t likely to help you out should you need it.)

Now for the rest of the story.....  I had a significant issue, largely of my own making, with this blog a few days ago. While attempting to update significant elements of the PCMG Consulting web site, files critical to thie blog’s functioning were inadvertantly overwritten with files from an older version of Expression Engine software. This effectively rendered the blog unviewable to public eyes and I had in fact lost access to the software’s Control Panel. Visions of many hours lost work in site design and content creation danced through my head.

Now Expresssion Engine is not freeware (although there is a free trial I believe and pricing depends on usage-- personal or commercial). This software is not out of the box simple to install. I say this having originally purchased the software based on a review in Lockergnome which touted this blogging solution as a quick, flexible, development environment allowing you to have a blog up and running in an hour’s time. This comprehensive chart details a wide variety of blogging software and is well worth reviewing if you are considering jumping into the world of online web logs (BLOGS).

After the panic subsided, I attempted to replace the overwritten files on my system with current versions. My efforts failed to restore the site or even provide Control Panel access.  I visited the Expression Engine forums and posted a message detailing the SQL Server Error I received when trying the repair. Within a couple of hours, one of the company’s Administrators had posted a response. This led to a serious of forum posts between he and I over two days. This Administrator agreed to look at my actual online system files. I thanked him profoundly, provided him with ftp information, and headed out to dinner last night. Upon returning home, I read an email stating that he had successfully corrected the damage to the system files and this blog back up and running. Amazed, I logged into the Control Panel, looked at the site online, and threw my hands up in happiness. This assistance makes the price of the software, the learning curve needed to work with it (and I am still very much in the midst of gaining proficiency with this software), all seem worthwhile.

In an era where outsourcing tech support is de rigour. where many companies insist that you pay by the minute to resolve any problem (self inflicted or inflicted by their own product), it is refreshing to find someone go the extra mile to help one of its customers. There are lots of ways to say “thanks” and show appreciation for this kind of effort. One sure way, is with your pocketbook. If you are in the market for a tool such as Expression Engine or Image Gallery or any of this company’s other products, consider the total package including follow up support before placing that order and hitting send.