Saturday, July 18, 2009

Acer support ... MORONIC!

Here are the messages exchanged between me and Acer support over six days regarding the very SLOW performance of my Acer netbook running WindowsXP. There are some common themes:

1. Acer does not respond directly to what a customer writes.
2. Acer does not know what PC I have.
3. Acer does not know whether my model PC is made by Acer or by one of its acquisitions such as Gateway.
4. Acer cannot provide solutions to its own problems, specifically, system recovery.

____________________________________

Customer (aaa Ken) - 07/11/2009 07:25 PM
Processors [Incident: 090709-000123]

Acer: Come on, come on! I sent this screen shot to you a day ago. It clearly shows TWO processors, both in device manager and in task manager.

Please explain the TWO processors.

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Ken
Date: Fri, Jul 10, 2009 at 9:08 AM
To: matinale@gmail.com


You are invited to view a photo from Ken's photo album: Tech View Photo
Message from Ken:

View the TWO processors in my Acer netbook. If you are having problems viewing this email, copy and paste the following into your browser:

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/sredir?uname=matinale&target=PHOTO&id=5356816930879671810

&aid=5356816224913769969&authkey=Gv1sRgCIXasL-0sPrGuQE&invite=CLSdjMsD&feat=email

To share your photos or receive notification when your friends share photos, get your own free Picasa Web Albums account.

____________________________________


Response (Rajesh P) - 07/11/2009 11:00 PM
Dear aaa Ken,

Thank you for contacting Acer America.This is Rajesh. I’ll be happy to assist you in this issue.

It is extremely hard to determine the exact cause from the information you have provided.
With this in mind, could you please give more detailed information about the issue/error message if any or any other information that you think may help us to help you.

For further clarifications please feel free to visit our web site http://Acer.com/

Have a great day!

__________________________________


from Kenneth Matinale
to Acer Technical Support

date Sun, Jul 12, 2009 at 9:16 AM
subject Re: Invitation to view a photo from Ken's Picasa Web Album - Tech [Incident:

090711-000847]

See attached file. It is a screen shot that clearly shows TWO processors in BOTH:

- device manager
- task manager.

Please explain why there are TWO processors and how TWO processors impact performance.

Thank you.
__________________________________

Response (Shefin) - 07/12/2009 08:54 AM
Dear Aaa Ken,

Thank you for contacting Acer America. I’ll be happy to assist you.

I understand that you can see two processors in device manger and task manager.

Please note that, if you are using Hyperthreading processor with your computer, it will shows two processors in device manager. That means there is one physical processor and two logical processors, it works like two but there is only one processor.

We are sorry that we'll not be able to pull up your computer records without the serial number. In order to assist you better we would like to have the Serial number of your system. We would recommend you to verify the correct Serial Number which is 22 or 13 character alphanumeric or 11 digit SNID number before sending the same to us.

You could locate the serial number:

On the bottom of a notebook
On the back or side of a desktop
Under the front sliding door on a desktop
On the original computer box

We would also recommend you to confirm whether you bought the system from US or Canada.

I will do the needful after getting the required information. For further clarifications

please feel free to visit our web site http://Acerpanam.com/

Have a great day!

__________________________________

from Kenneth Matinale
to Acer Technical Support
date Sun, Jul 12, 2009 at 12:54 PM
subject Re: Invitation to view a photo from Ken's Picasa Web Album - Tech [Incident:

090711-000847]

I sent all that info. I am away from the Acer netbook now.

I did not install hyperthreading. I never heard of it. Acer must have done it. Could that slow down my Acer pc?

__________________________________

from Kenneth Matinale
to Acer Technical Support
date Sun, Jul 12, 2009 at 3:20 PM
subject Re: Invitation to view a photo from Ken's Picasa Web Album - Tech [Incident:

090711-000847]

nvoice# 553430140
SSCC# (00)047182358002188744
LoadID: U21868-005,113


MFSG.DATE:0811 AOA 110-1588

S/N: LUS030B0438482A2972536

SNID: 84817269525

On Sun, Jul 12, 2009 at 9:54 AM, Acer Technical

__________________________________

Response (Shefin) - 07/12/2009 02:40 PM
Dear Aaa Ken,

Thank you for contacting Acer America. I’ll be happy to assist you.

I understand that the computer shows two processors in device manger and task manager. I have verified the serial number and found that the computer is in warranty.

Please note that Hyperthreading is an advanced technology for the Processors. If the computer is having a Processor with Hyperthreading, it will shows two processors in device manager. That means there is one physical processor and two logical processors, it works like two but there is only one processor. It will increase the ability of the Processor. There is nothing to worry about it.

I sincerely hope the above information will help you with the issue. Please make a note

of the service request number, 1-51GV7G for further assistance.

For further clarifications please feel free to visit our web site http://Acerpanam.com/

Have a great day!

__________________________________

from Kenneth Matinale
to Acer Technical Support
date Sun, Jul 12, 2009 at 4:05 PM
subject Re: Invitation to view a photo from Ken's Picasa Web Album - Tech [Incident:

090711-000847]

1-51GV7G

OK, if two processors is not the problem, then why is it so slow? I added only a few new programs:

- google Chrome, Updater, Desktop
- Skype
- Norton Internet Security (turned off everything)
- VZ Manager (for mobile broadband) - not used

Removed MS Office
Deleted MS Works (would not uninstall)

On Sun, Jul 12, 2009 at 3:40 PM, Acer Technical
__________________________________

Response (Shefin) - 07/12/2009 04:27 PM
Dear Aaa Ken,

Thank you for contacting Acer America. I’ll be happy to assist you with the system performance issue.

Please go to the link given below and follow the instructions to resolve the performance issue with your computer.

http://support.gateway.com/s/Checklists/Q42006/ck2006110918.shtml

I sincerely hope the above information will help you with the issue. Please make a note

of the service request number, 1-51GV7G for further assistance.

For further clarifications please feel free to visit our web site http://Acerpanam.com/

Have a great day!
__________________________________

from Kenneth Matinale
to Acer Technical Support
date Sun, Jul 12, 2009 at 5:45 PM
subject Re: Invitation to view a photo from Ken's Picasa Web Album - Tech [Incident:

090711-000847]

1. It's an ACER, not a Gateway!

2. Don't you know how much RAM is installed? It's YOUR PC! One gig.

3. I do the rest. It's boiler plate junk.

This PC stinks. How do I return it?

RSVP

On Sun, Jul 12, 2009 at 5:27 PM, Acer Technical
__________________________________

Response (Praveen_GWSI407) - 07/12/2009 07:42 PM
Dear Aaa Ken,

Thank you for contacting Acer America. I will be happy to assist you with the system performance issue.

After verifying your information, we found that your product is in warranty.

Please go through the provided the link to resolve the system performance issue.

Would you please provide us with more detailed information about the issue/error message if any or any other information that may you think would help us would be a welcome.

Your service request id is:- 1-51GV7G

It's been a pleasure assisting you.

For further clarifications please feel free to visit our website:- http://Acerpanam.com

Have a great day!
__________________________________

from Kenneth Matinale
to Acer Technical Support
date Tue, Jul 14, 2009 at 6:42 PM
subject Re: Invitation to view a photo from Ken's Picasa Web Album - Tech [Incident:

090711-000847]

Refund!

I'm sick of this Acer!

How do I get my money back?
__________________________________

Response (Anoop_GWSI352) - 07/14/2009 08:44 PM
Dear Aaa Ken,

Thank you for contacting Acer America. I’ll be happy to assist you with the system performance issue .

As per our records, your computer is in warranty .

I am really sorry for the inconvenience that you have experienced .

Please go to uninstall the Norton anti-virus and then check whether the issue is resolved or not. You could uninstall the Norton software by going into control panel- add or remove programs-click on Norton anti-virus and then click on remove .

Please do reply with the result .

The service request number for this issue is 1-51GV7G .

For further clarifications, please feel free to visit our web site http://acerpanam.com/

Have a great day !
__________________________________

from Kenneth Matinale
to Acer Technical Support
date Tue, Jul 14, 2009 at 10:01 PM
subject Re: Invitation to view a photo from Ken's Picasa Web Album - Tech [Incident:

090711-000847]

I turned off Norton. I want a refund!

REFUND!
__________________________________

Response (Chaithra) - 07/15/2009 01:03 AM
Dear Aaa Ken,

Thank you for contacting Acer America. I’ll be happy to assist you.

For resolving the issue you may please perform a system recovery.

For performing the issue you may go through the following link:

http://www.acerpanam.com/synapse/data/7117/documents/Acer%20eRecovery%20Management.pdf

Note: Please note System recovery completely erases the C partition and reinstalls factory-shipped files from the recovery partition. All your personal data files and applications will be lost. Be sure that you have your data files backed up before performing this option.

Service Request: 1-524JJQ

For further clarifications please feel free to visit our web site

http://www.acerpanam.com/

Have a great day!
__________________________________

from Kenneth Matinale
to Acer Technical Support
date Wed, Jul 15, 2009 at 6:38 AM
subject Re: Invitation to view a photo from Ken's Picasa Web Album - Tech [Incident:

090711-000847]

1-524JJQ

How can I set it up for dual boot with two partitions:

1. WindowsXP
2. Linux Ubuntu?
__________________________________

from Kenneth Matinale
to Acer Technical Support
date Wed, Jul 15, 2009 at 7:50 AM
subject Re: Invitation to view a photo from Ken's Picasa Web Album - Tech [Incident:

090711-000847]

Service Request: 1-524JJQ

"burn the factory image (from the hidden partition) to an optical disk."

This is a NETbook. There is no optical disk!
__________________________________

Response (Alvin_GWSI662) - 07/15/2009 07:12 AM
Dear Aaa Ken,

Thank you for contacting Acer America. I’ll be happy to assist you with the issue regarding your system.

While going through your system record in our database, we came to know that your system is in warranty.

You can also perform the system recovery using recovery CD.

You may use an external USB CD drive to perform the system recovery.

Below are the steps to rebuild your computer back to factory configuration. Please note that the instructions that appear on the screen when they start to reload the HDD have a small typo.

The instructions referenced Recovery CD 1.
They should have referenced Recovery CD 2.
1) Power up your system
2) Press the CD-ROM eject button and insert the System CD
3) Close the CD-ROM tray
4) Press CTRL-ALT-DEL to reboot the system.
5) Press F12 to select the boot drive option when you see the Acer splash screen
6) Select Boot from CD option
7) The system will boot from the System CD (CD 1)
8) Follow the on-screen instruction to restore your system.
9) When the restore from CD function is complete and the system is booted into Windows,

re-insert the System CD and let the CD auto-play.
10) Click the "Restore to factory default"
11) Remove the System CD and insert the "Applications CD". Re-install the desired applications from this CD.

You can restore your computer and operating system to factory settings using this recovery CD. It will install the Operating System, all the pre-installed Software and all the drivers of your system. Recovery disc configures your system to the factory defaults. There would be a data loss if you are using RCD. So please take back up of your data before you do a recovery.

Please make a note of your updated SR(Service request) No# mentioned below for further reference
SR No# : 1-524JJQ

For further clarifications please feel free to visit our web site http://Acerpanam.com/

Have a great day!
__________________________________

from Ken:

07/16/2009 01:18 PM
http://www.acerpanam.com/synapse/data/7117/documents/Acer%20eRecovery%20Management.pdf

Using Acer eRecovery Management

"By pressing the hotkey Alt + F10 during the boot-up process, or at any time when you are running Microsoft® Windows®."

This does not work.
__________________________________

Response (Sumesh_GWSI673) - 07/16/2009 04:30 PM
Dear Aaa Ken,

Thank you for contacting Acer America. Ill be happy to assist you with this issue.

I understand from your mail that you have an issue with system.

In order to resolve the issue please perform system recovery using Recovery Disk. Please refer the previous mail to get steps for the same.

Below are the steps to rebuild your computer back to factory configuration. Please note that the instructions that appear on the screen when they start to reload the HDD have a small typo.

The instructions referenced Recovery CD 1.
They should have referenced Recovery CD 2.
1) Power up your system
2) Press the CD-ROM eject button and insert the System CD
3) Close the CD-ROM tray
4) Press CTRL-ALT-DEL to reboot the system.
5) Press F12 to select the boot drive option when you see the Acer splash screen
6) Select Boot from CD option
7) The system will boot from the System CD (CD 1)
8) Follow the on-screen instruction to restore your system.
9) When the restore from CD function is complete and the system is booted into Windows,
re-insert the System CD and let the CD auto-play.
10) Click the "Restore to factory default"
11) Remove the System CD and insert the "Applications CD". Re-install the desired applications from this CD.
You can restore your computer and operating system to factory settings using this recovery CD. It will install the Operating System, all the pre-installed Software and all the drivers of your system. Recovery disc configures your system to the factory defaults. There would be a data loss if you are using RCD. So please take back up of your data before you do a recovery. To take a back up, you can contact Answers by Acer which is a paid support or else you can take the system to any local store nearby.

Please make a note of the service request number:1-524JJQ

For further clarifications please feel free to visit our web site

http://www.acerpanam.com/

Have a great day!
__________________________________

from Kenneth Matinale
to Acer Technical Support
date Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 5:08 AM
subject Re: Invitation to view a photo from Ken's Picasa Web Album - Tech [Incident:

090711-000847]

I just told you that Alt F10 does NOT bring up recovery program. Are you sure that works on my netbook?
__________________________________

Response (Santo JohnE) - 07/17/2009 05:18 AM
Dear Aaa Ken,

Thank you for contacting Acer America. I’ll be happy to assist you…

After verifying your email I came to understand that you are facing issues related to recovery.

If you dont have recovery cd please follow the steps below to purchase it.

You may restore your computer and operating system to factory settings using this recovery CD. It will install the Operating System, all the pre-installed Software and all the drivers of your system. You need to back up the entire data before using the RCD. You may either place an order for a recovery CD online or if you are interested we may send across one for you. If you need us to place an order for the CD, you will need to provide a method of payment. The Restore CD cost approximately $19.95 including shipping and handling on your Credit Card. FedEx would deliver the CD at your door steps and may take 7 - 14 business days to arrive, depending on the availability of the recovery disc. Recovery process resets your system to the factory defaults. Please be advised that there would be a data loss if you are using Recovery CD. So please take back up of your data. Acer disowns any kind liability in account of Data Loss.

Alternately, if you are skeptical on giving your credit card information, you may place an order for recovery online. Please visit the following link, which would help you purchase an RCD online.
https://secure.tx.acer.com/RCDB/Main.aspx?brand=acer

Below are the steps to rebuild your computer back to factory configuration. Please note that the instructions that appear on the screen when they start to reload the HDD have a small typo.

The instructions referenced Recovery CD 1.
They should have referenced Recovery CD 2.
1) Power up your system
2) Press the CD-ROM eject button and insert the System CD
3) Close the CD-ROM tray
4) Press CTRL-ALT-DEL to reboot the system.
5) Press F12 to select the boot drive option when you see the Acer splash screen
6) Select Boot from CD option
7) The system will boot from the System CD (CD 1)
8) Follow the on-screen instruction to restore your system.
9) When the restore from CD function is complete and the system is booted into Windows, re-insert the System CD and let the CD auto-play.
10) Click the "Restore to factory default"
11) Remove the System CD and insert the "Applications CD". Re-install the desired applications from this CD.

You can restore your computer and operating system to factory settings using this recovery CD. It will install the Operating System, all the pre-installed Software and all the drivers of your system. Recovery disc configures your system to the factory defaults. There would be a data loss if you are using RCD. So please take back up of your data before you do a recovery. To take a back up, you can contact Answers by Acer which is a paid support or else you can take the system to any local store nearby.

Please make a note of the service request number:1-524JJQ

For further clarifications please feel free to visit our web site

http://www.acerpanam.com/

Have a great day!
__________________________________

from Kenneth Matinale
to Acer Technical Support
date Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 11:18 AM
subject Re: Invitation to view a photo from Ken's Picasa Web Album - Tech [Incident:

090711-000847]

This Acer netbook does NOT have a CD drive. Do you want me to buy that too?

The Alt and F10 keys are supposed to start the recovery program, which is supposed to be stored on Acer solid state memory but that does not work as I have written TWICE before.
__________________________________

Response (Santo JohnE) - 07/17/2009 11:45 AM
Dear Aaa Ken,

Thank you for contacting Acer America. I’ll be happy to assist you…

After verifying your email I came to understand that you are facing issue related to

recovery.

Please arrange an external optical drive and do the recovery as prescribed in the previous mail.

Please make a note of the service request number:1-524JJQ

For further clarifications please feel free to visit our web site

http://www.acerpanam.com/

Have a great day!
__________________________________

from Kenneth Matinale
to Acer Technical Support
date Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 2:55 PM
subject Re: Invitation to view a photo from Ken's Picasa Web Album - Tech [Incident:

090711-000847]

Arrange how? What happened to the recovery program that Acer is supposed to have on my PC?
__________________________________

Response (Vinay MV) - 07/17/2009 05:13 PM
Dear Aaa Ken,

Thank you for contacting Acer America. I would be happy to assist you with the eRecovery management software cannot be loaded issue.

As per our records your system is in warranty.

Have you installed any other Operating system?

Have you deleted the Recovery partition, usually D:/ partition?

Please get back to us with the relevant information regarding the above questions.

We will do the needful after getting the information.

Your SR number for this issue is: 1-524JJQ

For further clarifications, please visit our website http://www.acerpanam.com/

Thank you for contacting Acer,

Have a nice day!
__________________________________

from Kenneth Matinale
to Acer Technical Support
date Fri, Jul 17, 2009 at 6:21 PM
subject Re: Invitation to view a photo from Ken's Picasa Web Album - Tech [Incident:

090711-000847]

No other OS installed on Acer.

D drive is the SD card. You should know that.

Is the recovery partition something that I can see? I thought it was hidden.
__________________________________

Response (Chaithra) - 07/18/2009 12:16 AM
Dear Aaa Ken,

Thank you for contacting Acer America. I’ll be happy to assist you with this issue.

Please try performing system recovery using recovery disks. For that you need to purchase external CD drive.

Service Request: 1-524JJQ

For further clarifications please feel free to visit our web site

http://www.acerpanam.com/

Have a great day!

__________________________________

from Kenneth Matinale
to Acer Technical Support
date Sat, Jul 18, 2009 at 6:49 AM
subject Re: Invitation to view a photo from Ken's Picasa Web Album - Tech [Incident:

090711-000847]

You want me to "purchase external CD drive"? This is not acceptable.

What happened to the recovery program that my Acer netbook is supposed to have on it? Please address that and do not ask me to spend any more money on this Acer PC. Thank you.
__________________________________

Response (Akash PRamesh) - 07/18/2009 07:08 AM
Dear Aaa Ken,

Thank you for contacting Acer America. I’ll be happy to assist you with this issue.

I am glad to inform you that as per our record your product is in warranty.

Having reviewed your email, I understand that your netbook is having some issues with its performance.

Aaa, the only way to improve the system performance is to do system recovery. You can do it either using the recovery partition or CD. And about how to set it up for dual boot with two partition since this issue involves third party software, we fall short of resources with which we could better diagnose and resolve it for you. However Acer technicians are bound to support its customers with the removal or installation of any hardware or software shipped across with Acer machines. But they are not trained on all the advanced features of the software or hardware Acer sells.

Because this calls up on a higher level of expertise the advance troubleshooting, we only have support over the phone on these issues and it is chargeable. You may avail this support on 1-866-621-2237 at a rate of $2.95 per minute with the slots 30 minutes ($59.99), 90 minutes ($129.99), or 15 issues ($199.99) and the validity will be 1 year which can be billed to a credit card.

Note: Items from the Acer Accessory Store are fully supported by the manufacturer of the hardware or publisher of the software that you purchased.

I sincerely hope that one of these options provides a resolution for this issue.

Your service request has been updated, please make a note of the SR number:1-524JJQ for future references.

For further clarifications please feel free to visit our web site

http://www.acerpanam.com/synapse/forms/webpage.cfm?website=acerpanam.com&siteid=7117&areaid=2

Thank you for contacting Acer,
Have a great day!
__________________________________

from Kenneth Matinale
to Acer Technical Support
date Sat, Jul 18, 2009 at 8:16 AM
subject Re: Invitation to view a photo from Ken's Picasa Web Album - Tech [Incident: 090711-000847]

Just tell me how "to do system recovery ... using the recovery partition". Instructions in the pfd file have not worked.
__________________________________

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