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PC makers recognize that they must do better. So they continue to create new tools to improve support. Emachines, for example, provides a program called BigFix (a utility that downloads new drivers, software patches, and BIOS upgrades as they become available) on all its PCs. IBM has an Access Support feature on its Web site that performs diagnostics, such as a hard-drive fitness test, at the push of a button. "Nine of ten problems are now handled electronically," says Andrew Flanagan, manager of IBM's global service and support strategy. "Call volume is flat to declining." However, 57 percent of survey respondents who used online support said it did not solve their problem.

Future PC Reliability and Service surveys may show improvement, but in the short-term, a couple of forces could affect the results. The first is the vendors' shift in emphasis from reducing hold time to resolving problems on the first call. There has been a definite change in recent months at Dell's third-party call center in Lake City, Florida, says technician Timothy McLendon. "It's taking more than 15 minutes to resolve problems, but more problems are being solved."

The other factor is problems getting more complex. "Questions coming into call centers are difficult to answer and require more time on the phone," says IBM's Flanagan.

Perhaps the best solution is to produce a better PC. "As we look out to the horizon, we see a point where machines can diagnose and repair themselves," says Enderle. In the meantime, PC makers must handle the job--and handle it better.