A little Idea I had

So Ive started up a little tech support buisness to get a little extra $$ on the side. As I work on peoples computers, I am sickend by the decrepid state of their system enviroment. From un-needed programs, collossal system trays, and countless spyware, their machines are a mess. So, Ive decided to help them. Every machine I work on, I offer to clean of this crap. For free. No charge. Ill sit down with them and explain what this stuff is and why its a problem. I wont accept that they dont want to know how it works, because they need to. I figure, yeah, it might take away some buisness, but I wouldent wish those systems on anyone.

Anyone else ever do stuff like this?

 

I would be curious how many of your calls originate because of the overall decrepid state and not some other true hardware/software problem.

 

That's very good of you to do that free of charge. You should say that in exchange of this "free" service they should tell their friends about you. It would be like free advertising.

I fix friends and family computers free of charge. Hell, I gave my friends Dad free RAM for his computer cause it was slow and badly needed it! Then I installed all the spyware programs and stuff like that to protect it and speed it up.

 

please will one of you move to hawaii!!! aloha laurie

 

I do something very similar at my work. Though I am amazed at how often somebody will turn around and put the same junk right back on their computers and ask you to fix it again.

 

yeah, making them tell a friend is a great idea!

 

even if my intention is to let them live with it as they dont know better... if i am forced to use a machine for any extended length of time, i automatically clean it up, and the user is nothing less than shocked by the near double performance they gain when things are done right... its really fun to watch

 

Well, ahem, hrrmph, hack, koff! I am a professional computing consultant, and I charge a reasonable fee for advising people about running a lean, mean, CLEAN machine. I do give it away sometimes, to people who really can't afford help, but for the most part, it's abunchabucks per hour, take it or leave it, and most of them take it. But here's the thing:
You said, "Ill sit down with them and explain what this stuff is and why its a problem. I wont accept that they dont want to know how it works, because they need to."

And that's what computing consulting is all about: You teach people to do things with computers that they don't know how to do, and you show them how to make their computers behave the way they want them to. The difference between being a computing consultant and a computer technician is in my newspaper ads, where I tell 'em I don't pack screwdrivers. If they need memory, or a new modem, or a new hard drive, I'll tell 'em, but I don't DO it.

It's patient, careful teaching, pure and simple, that makes a real difference for the average computer user.

 

I'm with Wiz.. I do it all the time for people who can't afford to have it taken to a shop.