Guidelines and reminders for those offering tech support

In light of some problems we've been having in the help forums with unhelpful posts and threads getting way off topic, I thought it would be beneficial to post some guidelines (and reminders) for those offering help in the Support Forums.


1. Number one most important rule: We want quality. We don’t want guesses. Trial and error is not guessing…that is troubleshooting. Googling is guessing. Linking to some obscure website you pulled up on a Google search is Not quality. We don’t want links; we want posts explaining in your words how the OP can fix their problem. Obviously, there are exceptions to this such as linking to a Microsoft Support page or linking to a manufacturer’s website with the specific info for a product, etc. Btw….Yahoo Answers…absolutely Not quality.

2. Read the whole thread before you decide to interject your advice. Sometimes advice you might give has already been tried because someone else suggested it. Sometimes questions that weren’t answered in the original post were answered in subsequent ones. Read the entire thread and make sure you are giving valid advice.

3. We want the asker to get advice on their specific question. When someone comes to Major Geeks for help, they do not care if you don’t like Windows XP, Vista, 7, etc. If they are running Norton Security and are trying to fix it, please help them fix it...don't tell them to switch to Avira, AVG, NOD32, etc. Telling someone to dump what they have for something else is not helping their immediate issue. If that’s all you have to say in answer to a question on how to fix something….Don’t post! That’s just an example. It can be anything. Your opinion just isn’t important to someone who is trying to fix something they have. Again, if you don’t have constructive advice…do not post. Obviously, sometimes the OP will ask for alternatives. If that’s what they are asking, feel free to give your opinion.

4. Do not assume anything about the person’s computer, their knowledge, or their intent. If you don’t know, it’s pretty simple….ask for more details. Example: everyone here asking about Keylogger software is not looking to do illegal things.

5. Check your ego at the door please (we have a lot of knowledgeable people here). More and more we have seen people barging in and jacking some poor person’s help thread just so they can tell someone else how wrong they are. They go on to say how knowledgeable they are, how much experience they have, how old they are, etc. (Sorry, but no one cares.) The thread then winds up being about ego and not the original question. If you think someone is giving advice that is detrimental to a person’s computer: Report it. If you have different advice, give it. Getting into an argument in the thread does not help anyone. If the thread has been completely thrown off kilter…report it. Don’t get involved and make more of a mess of things.

6. Be courteous to both the person asking the question and your fellow helpers.


I'll end this by saying we appreciate every single person who volunteers their time here. Without you all we could not have the type of forum Major Geeks is.