Misadventures in Tech Support

ISPs Get Passing Grade

• Services: Adelphia Communications, Comcast Cable, and SBC Yahoo DSL
• Easy problem: Unplugged modem
• Difficult problem: Altered IP setting
• Good news: Calls to all three providers were answered quickly, and their reps were generally on the ball.
• Bad news: Adelphia's support tech came that close to solving our complex technical issue, then reversed course and told us to call our system vendor.

In contrast to the software firms, cable-Internet providers Adelphia and Comcast, and DSL provider SBC Yahoo, responded quickly: Adelphia averaged 3.5 minutes for our two calls, Comcast answered each call within 2 minutes, and SBC Yahoo picked up within 3 minutes both times. The technicians we dealt with appeared to be in the U.S. or Canada.

The ISP reps had an advantage: They could tell if we were on the network. This made it easy for the agents to diagnose both our problems.

The technician at SBC was friendly, knowledgeable, and fast--he resolved the unplugged-modem challenge within a few minutes. Both of the Canada-based Comcast support reps we spoke with helped us solve our problems, although the first, who found our unplugged modem in just a few minutes, was much more efficient (and confident) than the second, who led us down a few blind alleys before discovering our misconfigured IP setting. Adelphia's tech rep was every bit as quick in resolving our simulated failure. He also surprised us by asking if we had a cat.

"In winter, some cats like to sit on the modem because of the warmth," he told us. "One lady had a cat that slapped at the modem because it didn't like the lights. It was slapping at the power button to make the lights turn off. We finally caught the cat in the act."

Our second call to Adelphia about the IP setting was answered by a support rep who quickly ascertained that the modem was properly logged on and working. Some adroit questioning revealed that we had an active connection and that the problem wasn't in the cabling between the PC and the modem.

Unfortunately, the tech, who said he had a year and a half of experience, failed to close the deal. We told him that someone had hooked the PC to a friend's system while gaming the night before. But the rep failed to follow up on this piece of evidence, though he did mention that changes to our network settings could disable our Internet connection. In the end, he advised us to contact our PC maker. Surprisingly enough, the solution to our second "failure" is posted right on the Adelphia support pages (see FIGURE 3). Alas, the Adelphia technician didn't suggest that we check the company's Web site for a fix--or check it himself.

Online ISP Support

If your Internet link is down, your ISP's online support may not be your most convenient source for help. Still, you might find the solution to your problem in the ISP's FAQ pages or its knowledge base.

Adelphia's FAQs cover installing and securing your connection, but the site doesn't offer any speed-check tools such as those at BroadbandReports.com, for example. Comcast's support page includes step-by-step instructions for restarting your modem, setting up an e-mail account, and other common activities. The site's FAQs have information on troubleshooting a dodgy Internet link, but most of its support-related links simply refer you to the company's toll-free support line.

SBC Yahoo's support page includes a DSL Internet Throughput Test. The company's help site also features an extensive section explaining how to set up and troubleshoot your DSL modem.

Paying the Support Price

Bob Igou, principal analyst in the IT Services and Management group for industry research firm Gartner, says shabby support is due to simple economics. "It's pretty tough for these companies to offer free technical support," Igou says. "If they take many technical support calls, it will just kill their [profit] margin."

Igou says vendor call centers are ill-equipped to field diverse complaints from consumers and small businesses. Unlike a company's help desk, the people supporting commercial products can't predict your hardware and software configuration, he says.

Ron Silliman, principal analyst in Gartner's Infrastructure Support Service group, says online service is catching on with business users, but vendors have not committed to serving consumers. "Just because something comes in on e-mail doesn't mean it's not urgent," he says.

Whether by Web site, phone, or pony express, support must improve--or else tech vendors may find that their telephones stop ringing altogether.