Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!wuarchive!usc!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!sol.ctr.columbia.edu!cica!bronze!mckimg
From: mckimg@bronze.ucs.indiana.edu (Geoffrey McKim)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.lans
Subject: Re: 3COM bridge resets
Keywords: 3COM
Message-ID: <1991Jan7.200513.2492@bronze.ucs.indiana.edu>
Date: 7 Jan 91 20:05:13 GMT
References: <1991Jan3.173757.8314@eagle.lerc.nasa.gov> <1991Jan4.140428.10849@uokmax.ecn.uoknor.edu> <3000@bridge2.ESD.3Com.COM>
Organization: Indiana University, Bloomington
Lines: 48

In article <3000@bridge2.ESD.3Com.COM> txd@bridge2.ESD.3Com.COM (Tom Dietrich) writes:
>
>In response to you, do you have an service account with 3Com? Your
>visions of how it works here are not anywhere near reality. We *do*
>ask that the Network Manager (hopefully someone who has an idea of the
>overall network topology) is the person who calls. 
>
>If you don't have a service account, (as I suspect is the case) you
>will go to another group, and the response time may be considerably
>longer.
>
Very few things on the net are more annoying (with the possible exception of
flames, for which I beg your forgiveness) than vendor defensiveness.  I would
hope that the original author of the complaint can be forgiven for not
knowing the exact details of 3Com's support structure.  In fact, I would 
hope that 3Com would realize that even having a user get this perception
of their support structure is a failure on their part, and that they should 
work to improve their user-interface, so to speak.  Runarounds on the phone
are very frustrating as it is, and this is exacerbated by runarounds and 
endless loops (I've actually gotten into an endless loop with a vendor that 
will remain nameless) involving touch-tone phone processors, where you can't
even speak to a human being.

>>Gonna replace them with anything but 3COM.
>>
OK, 3Com, perfect opportunity to blind the complainer with offers of support 
-- win him back!!

>If so, good luck to you.

Buzz.  You blew it, guys.  Try again next time.  

I don't mean for this to be a mean-spirited flame...I only mean to express
a little of the frustration that many users feel when faced with the daunting
task of trying to get deserved support on products that they've paid a lot
of money for.  And in the case of complaints -- do your best to win the 
customer back!  It may be less fun than making fun of them disagreeing with 
them, but it doesn't make for as good business.

=========================================================================
Geoffrey W. McKim			Internet: mckimg@ucs.indiana.edu
UCS Networks/LAN Group			BITNET: mckimg@iuamber
Indiana University Bloomington 		"I don't speak for IU or any of its
855-4643				organizations or departments"
=========================================================================

P.S. for 3Com...what *is* a "service account"?  Sure hope it is not something
users have to pay for...