Lightwave said:
Well the supplier in this case is Future Shop but they can't answer questions
specific to the operating system. I'm sure it's written somewhere, but I
don't think most consumers know that when they purchase a computer with MS OS
that the store is responsible for answering questions or fixing any issues
that may occur much later down the road.
It's not the store that responsible for support, unless they happen to
have also built the computer with the OEM installation; it's the
computer manufacturer who is responsible. And all responsible consumers
would learn of this the while doing the obligatory product research
before they make the final purchasing decision.
As I'm sure you all know, the
systems run fine for a while until the registry gets clogged or other third
party software might corrupt data.
The registry cannot get "clogged." Blame poor maintenance and
housekeeping, along with the installation of not-fully-compatible
programs and malware.
In this case I bought the Toshiba Qosmio with XP proffesional, do I go to
Future Shop or Toshiba for support.
You go to Toshiba.
All Toshiba is able to do is tell me to
reload the image which means I loose all my programs.
That's not horribly surprising, unfortunately. Many OEMs reduce costs
by hiring near-minimum-wage telephone personnel who need only read a
simple script. This is why it's so important to consider after-purchase
support before buying a product. Didn't you inquire into the caliber of
Toshiba's support before deciding to buy their product?
It does, but that's the precise kind of support you chose when you
selected Toshiba. With computers, just as with any other consumer
product, you get what you pay for.
I used to be able to call Microsoft with confidence knowing that
I have a licened product,
And you still can, provided you have a retail product. OEM product
support has been the sole responsibilty of the manufacturer for well
over a decade, now.
now my licence seems to be worth squat. I'd rather
pay the extra bucks for a Microsoft version of the OS and get some support.
Quite a few people buy only retail licenses for that very reason,
although I've personally never found Microsoft's direct support to be
any great shakes, either. Fortunately, their extensive Knowledge Base
contains solutions to most problems.
--
Bruce Chambers
Help us help you:
They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. -Benjamin Franklin
Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. -Bertrand Russell
