Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!bonnie.concordia.ca!thunder.mcrcim.mcgill.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!usc!cs.utexas.edu!helios!cnh5730 From: cnh5730@calvin.tamu.edu (Chuck Herrick) Newsgroups: comp.sys.next Subject: Re: directory of personal technical contacts Message-ID: Date: 7 Feb 91 00:51:34 GMT References: <1773@camex.COM> Sender: usenet@helios.TAMU.EDU Organization: Geodynamics Research Institute, Texas A&M University Lines: 36 In-reply-to: news@Camex.COM's message of 6 Feb 91 19:56:35 GMT In article <1773@camex.COM> news@Camex.COM (news) writes: The Boston Computer Society NeXT User's Group proposes to create a nationwide (or wider?) directory of personal, technical contacts for the NeXT computer. The idea is that if you have a question a person local to you could answer, the directory would help you find assistance quickly. First, I'd like to support this idea. Second, I'd like to ask a question. Would anyone like to share their opinions about NeXT corporate tech support via the net? Fairly recently, the magazine Digital Review covered the application by a computer company asking for permission to offer some forms of technical support via the internet. I'm sorry I don't remember the name of the company, but I do remember that since the original request was motivated by overwhelming demand on the part of the users, that this application was subsequently approved by the net administrators. I take it that this sort of arrangement has little precedence since commercial use of "the net" has been regarded in the past as a big NO-NO. I must admit that I have no idea if this type of arrangement would be consistent with NeXT corporate's vision of tech support or if they would be interested in this at all. Nor do I know how this could be implemented in a workable way. It would seem to me that there are several issues here: 1) Is there a groundswell of desire for this? 2) Is NeXT interested? 3) Would this necessitate a separate specific newsgroup? 4) How would this be structured? 5) Is the idea even worth pursuing? I should point out that if this idea were not acceptable to NeXT, that fact should not be interpreted in any way as a reluctance on their part to offer support to their users. It might be, for example, that organizational constraints would prohibit implementing net-tech-support. -- The opinions expressed herein are mine and are in no way attributed to any of the many people for whom I work. Who they are is irrelevant.