Continue reading… »

I have an old friend on Skype that I sometimes call or send messages to. She always responds back quickly. So today, I decided to call her since Skype was not working. She did not answer, and I left her a message. She texted me back after about an hour, saying her Skype was not working and thus she could not talk to me. We always talk face to face when we meet, so on initial observations it may not be easy for many to realize why one cannot communicate easily on channels other than in person or through Skype, even though through Skype one usually either talks or simply types. I asked my friend if I could talk mention her situation on my site, and she laughed and told me “sure.” In this case, Skype facilitates and even allows the existence of many messages, specially for my friend.

An example of Skype crippling business communication

Earlier today, around 5 am, I get an international call from a distant friend that I also did business with long time ago. I know him for a few years, and thus once a year or so we like to keep in touch. He told me that his company support systems were down, as they depended solely on Skype and they needed any advice on how to communicate with about 50 of their big and only clients. Those clients were used to opening up Skype from anywhere and being able to reach the customer support for this company at anytime and to be connected live to an actual support person with a webcam, guaranteed. My friend knows a little bit about my background and enough about my skills, so he thought I could somehow come up with a solution that could fix their Skype-based customer support system for them.

Now that Skype was logging out not only my friend’s company but also customers repeatedly, my friend’s company could not simply say to customers “Hey, Skype is down, not our fault“, since the customers could say “Well, why did you choose Skype as your support system over which you have no control over in situations like these? We need support now. Not later, but right now, at this very instant.” The customers would be completely right in this case. So I asked my distant friend about how their support systems depended on Skype, and I told him that if I feel that the explanation will not help me come up with a problem, I will cut him off. He was really desperate for an immediate, so there was no time to lose with formalities or listening to everything.

He started explaining how their customer support systems worked, and after less than 3 minutes of him explaining things, I was really happy to know more about how Skype can actually help complex systems, but at the same time I realized knowing how Skype worked will not help me find the solution. I had to focus on alternatives immediately, that could do an even better job than Skype for the time being. I cut him off, rather abruptly, and told him I had a few solutions for him, and apologized for cutting him off. The way he told me with enthusiasm and delight that he did not mind being cut off showed me that things were really bad for him because of Skype not working. I told him of a few solutions and alternatives, and told him why one of the alternatives I think would work for him immediately, and how. After the entire thing was finished, I asked him if I could write about it on my personal site, since this is a topic that can affect all of us forever [more of it below]. He told me to wait a bit until later, and that he would call me again, at which time I could go ahead with writing about it while I also avoided mentioning any specifics, names or my exact solution [since he plans to use it from now on as the primary backup], so here is what I have on the entire topic.

Skype is a tool to help your message. Skype is not the message.

Skype is there to help you communicate in more ways. Let us read that one more time please. Skype is there to help you communicate in more ways. Skype is not the message; it is the medium. Let me repeat that again in a little bit more enhanced manner please. Skype is not the message; it is a technological tool. In order to communicate, you should at least have the message you want to convey, and you should what you want to convey through the message. If you know the message and know that you want to communicate something through the message, you can easily switch from one medium to another and from one tool to another in order to come up with alternatives to things like Skype.

Skype was known, until today, for almost never having any connection problems. The Skype platform itself is considered very robust and reliable by many, and thus even though it is a severe problem for many that is still happening at the time of this writing, this recent downtime in Skype communications will probably result in many companies and many people seeking out only alternative backups for the future, instead of seeking out complete replacements to be installed right away. Because of such issues, you should always use technology to only help you in communication, instead of define communication. Technology should rely on your message. Your message should not rely on technology. Technology should revolve around your message. Your message should not revolve around technology.

Control the message. Control the tool. Do not let the tool control you or the message.

If you know how to communicate with people, you will not depend on Skype to communicate with them. You will realize how to communicate and talk normally on mediums other than Skype when needed, so that you do not waste other people’s time and so that you do not bring conversations to a standstill, causing others to be uncomfortable and inconvenienced simply because you depend on Skype to feel comfortable when it comes to communication and simply because Skype is not working. For example, if you can communicate perfectly via Skype but do not know how to communicate via e-mail or phone or any other medium even when you are forced to, that means you have focused more on the medium and the tool, like Skype, instead of the message and the concept of communicating that message itself.

If you are used to asking people how their day was via Skype, you should know how to ask the same question via e-mail or over the phone. If you are used to sending information to people via Skype, you should know how to send the information via e-mail or via actual postal mail to people. If you are used to finding out more about people through Skype, you should know how to do the same via other mediums and tools like e-mail or other instant messengers. If you are used to providing help to others via Skype, you should know what the actual help consists of, and offer that help via other mediums and channels, including doing it in person.

Revolve the medium and technology around your message.

Revolve the medium around your message. Revolve technology around your message. Majority of the bloggers and majority of the people in the offline world revolve their message around other things so much, that if anything other than the message changes, the actual message gets affected and changes too. It is like 99% of all PowerPoint presentations at majority of the conferences, where the message revolves around PowerPoint. It is simply nonsense, and it is simply hilarious.

More and more people know how to communicate only through certain tools; they do not know how to communicate a message.

Is it a bad thing for more and more people to know how to communicate only through certain tools and to not know how to communicate a message? For me it is very bad, as it is more important for me to focus on the message and communicating that message, instead of focusing only or more on the communication tool provided. Otherwise, the message revolves around the tool, and thus the message gets limited and changes. As I said above, control the tools, instead of letting the tools control you or the message.

A great example of this? You do not send items that need shipping depending on how they will be shipped. You send whatever item you have that needs shipping. No matter what the item is, you ship it in a rugged piece of cover, whether it is an envelope or a box, so that shipping companies like UPS, DHL, Fed-Ex or USPS can deliver them via a truck, a train, a plane, in person or even on a boat. That is how much importance you should give to the message when it comes to realizing how much focus, compared to the message, you should put on the medium and the tool. The medium and the tool need a lot of focus, but that focus should be less than the original focus that you put on your message and the way you want the message presented or communicated.

What happened to my personal friend and my business friend?

As for my personal friend, Stephanie, if you are reading this, feel free to call me anytime, as doing a voice chat over Skype once a month can be the same as having a conversation over the phone.

As for my distant friend with the business issue, he called me again about an hours ago and told me that he is happy with the solution I offered and that it is helping keep all the customers around, even though Skype is still having issues. He said my alternate solution has literally saved him thousands of dollars per each customer, without considering the costs that the company might have experienced had any customer left the company in the last 12 hours or so. I told him “You better be happy, since it works and I didn’t charge you for it. ” Well, he is so happy, he offered to pay for my entire trip and accommodation if I ever decide to visit him and his company to see if I would want to work there in the future.

Those are some points of one of my small thoughts of the second. Thank you for reading about what happened in an hour or less of my life today. I really appreciate it.

« Show less..

Continue reading… »

Example of online communication hindering your ability to deal with interruptions

Take the concept of interruptions, for example. Some people I know are starting to get frustrated right away if someone interrupts them in any manner during discussions. If you are such a person, you probably used to be all right with interruptions before they dove deep into the world of online chats. Why do you get frustrated then? Because in the online world, you keep typing stuff while not feeling interrupted.

Even if someone types something while you are typing, you can probably still get full attention for your written words in an online chat window. However, when you say something in real life and someone disagrees or interrupts you, you feel offended, even if you usually interrupt others, even if you usually interrupt others, as you have probably gotten used to not feeling interrupted while chatting on different instant messengers.

Example of how having experience in online dispute management does not mean you are good at dealing with disputes in person

Similarly, take the concept of arguments and disputes. Some people have started to forget how to negotiate or how to make someone feel better. I met a friend recently who provides online customer support for a greeting cards company. He answers a lot of e-mails to calm down many upset customers, and to find a resolution to customer issues. While I was having lunch with him, he accidentally pushed back his chair to stand up to get more napkins, and caused a nearby woman to drop her soda on her clothes. She was furious, as she had to go back to office with those wet clothes. Even though my friend started apologizing, the woman kept getting more upset every second. I then realized why: my friend was saying only one word “sorry” again and again while looking around and at the floor, nervously.

Sometimes, people need to be looked into the eyes to be shown that someone is sorry for their behavior. Even my friend said later “I think it would have been better if I had looked her in the eye and acknowledged that I understand.” Now, even if that method had not worked, at least my friend would have tried something. Imagine someone who is experienced at resolving online disputes, but does not know how to calm down an upset person in person.

It is important to realize which skills are better suited for online communication, and which skills are better for offline communication

As more and more people dive into the world of blogging, we are slowly losing track of how our online communication skills are affecting and changing our offline communication skills, and vice versa. Some changes are good in my view, while others simply hinder effective communication as I am experiencing lately.

I am sensing that as people get more comfortable chatting online, some people are starting to confuse the thin line that separates the way we behave online and the way we behave in person. It may be all right to tell someone online “I am so sorry ” in an online chat window, but if you say that in the offline world, you facial expression, your body, your behavior and everything you control needs to reflect the sorry state that you just expressed to someone. Otherwise, you are probably going to look like a fool and may end up hurting someone unintentionally.

What is your opinion on this?

« Show less..

Continue reading… »

Advantage Rent A Car gave away my paid reservation to someone else

I landed at the LAX airport late because of my flight being late. The printed confirmation I had from Expedia mentioned that there will be an Advantage Rent A Car counter at the airport that would give me my reserved car right at the airport. At the airport, however, I found out that the counter was closed, and that I needed to take a shuttle to the Advantage Rental Car office. That took another half an hour or so. Once I arrived at their office, I was told that my reservation was given to someone else because I was late.

I was surprised. I told Advantage Rent A Car that even if I was late, I had paid for the car, so the car should be kept in the parking lot for me even if I was not driving it. They told me that I had paid Expedia, and not Advantage Rent A Car. Therefore, according to Advantage Rent A Car, I had not “completely” reserved a car with them. I was told to contact Expedia directly regarding this.

Advantage Rent A Cars’ only solution was for me to pay for the most expensive car

I asked Advantage Rent A Car what choices I had. They told me the only choice I had was to pay for a Chrysler PT Cruiser, which was around $50 more a day than what I had already paid. I tried reasoning logically that I did not need to pay anything more since Expedia makes reservations for Advantage Rent A Car, and that I had confirmed and paid reservations for a car through them already. I had been charged, and I could verify this with my bank, but Advantage Rent A Car did not bulge. They did not want to listen to what I said, and instead kept on insisting that I was misunderstanding the whole situation, and that I was mistaken that Advantage Rent A Car was required to keep a car for me waiting when I booked through Expedia.

I had a lot of appointments that day, and I felt as if I did not have any options. I was texting Valerie and SP back and forth, telling the whole story. I tried a few recommendations and suggestions, but nothing worked. Advantage Rent A Car did not do anything; they knew I was desperate for a car, and they wanted to make sure I paid them for the most expensive car available that day.

Advantage Rent A Car wanted me to buy car rental insurance through them even when I had that already

On top of that, I was told that I needed to buy extra insurance for the rental car. Expedia has previously told me that my current automobile insurance covered rental cars and that I did not need to pay anything extra, but Advantage Rent A Car told me that I was “wrong“, and that they did not honor any such agreements. Before this trip, I had never heard of a rental car company in California which required customers to buy rental car insurance even when they already had such a coverage through other insurance companies.

Nearby rental places had cars for almost the same price, or they were all booked

After they kept arguing for a few hours, Advantage Rent A Car told me clearly that they did not make any mistake, and that I should take up any issues with Expedia directly. I decided to check the neighboring car rental companies, and walked around for a while. Almost every place was completely booked, or the deals they had were for the same price as Advantage Rent A Car. I could have gone to more places and would have definitely found something cheaper, but I was running out of time. I had to meet a lot of people and visit a lot of places, and almost half of the day had already been wasted. I decided to go back to Advantage Rent A Car.

I had no choice but to pay Advantage Rent A Car, even though I had already paid Expedia

I paid Advantage Rent A Car for the PT cruiser and the supposedly required insurance coverage. I also paid for their gas as they charge a lot of money if one does not bring back the car with a full tank of gas. The lady at the counter who had argued all day told me that if I brought the car back with any gas left, I would be refunded for the entire tank. Since I knew I was going to drive a lot, that sounded better than paying almost $4 per gallon for a car that drank gas as if it was orange juice.

The car was fun to drive though

I drove the car around for around 6 days, and it was a lot of fun. The car handled nicely, and the seats were comfortable too. It did eat gas very quickly, though I was happy that the car was very comfortable. The PT Cruiser is like a box, so sometimes you cannot see nearby cars clearly if they are behind you by the sides. It took me a few minutes to get used to reversing and checking the roads, but once I got used to it, I was thinking that in the future I might rent similar cars for my travel needs. Also, the car was blue. I like blue!

I did not get any money back for bringing the car back with a full tank of gas

The day I had to leave, I drove back to Advantage Rent A Car. The car had a full tank of gas, but after it was checked back in, I was told that the company would not give me back any money for the tank of gas. I told the person who inspected the returning cars that someone at their office had told me before that I would get the money back if I brought back the car with any gas in the tank. I was told to come around noon to talk to that person directly, as that is when most of the employees that I had dealt with before would come in to start their workday. I had to check in at the airport before 10 am, so I simply left and decided to take care of it later via the phone.

What is the verdict? Advantage Rent A Car took advantage of a customer

I am still in the process of taking care of things. I do not think I will be renting a car from Advantage Rent A Car in the future, unless I make sure I get what I want beforehand and have something in writing from Advantage directly. Maybe I do not need to use Expedia in the future and instead need to contact Advantage Rent A Car directly. Maybe services like Expedia that act as connecting wires between customers and businesses can cause headaches. I am still trying to sort out things to figure out whether Expedia was at fault or if Advantage Rent A Car did not honor a binding contract. Expedia told me that they would refund me the money soon, after their corporate office looks into the matter.

Regardless of what happens, I now know that even if I pay for something online and have a printed confirmation, some companies still do not honor any agreements with customers due to various reasons.

Stay tuned for the next post that will tell you how Advantage Rent A Car contacted Expedia regarding my dilemma, which resulted in my hotel reservation being canceled completely!

« Show less..

Continue reading… »

Does PeoplePC ignore cancellation calls on purpose?

One of the main PeoplePC numbers, 1-900-285-8333, results in a “cannot be dialed” message most of the time. Calling 1-866-772-6277 is your best bet when canceling your account. However, I found something interesting when calling to cancel PeoplePC: when I called at certain times during the day to cancel my account, I heard a recorded message that said “PeoplePC is experiencing higher than expected call volumes. You will have to call back at another time when we are not experiencing such high volume of calls. We apologize for any inconvenience.” However, calling for any reason other than canceling connected me to a live person without any issues.

Is this a tactic used by PeoplePC to avoid or ignore cancellation requests by customers? I cannot tell for sure at this moment, and if they were using such a tactic, I am not sure how that would help in the long run.

Five steps to cancel your PeoplePC account

Make sure you backup your PeoplePC emails and settings before canceling. Follow these five steps to cancel your PeoplePC membership:

1. Call 1-866-PPC-MBRS [1-866-772-6277].
2. Press 1 to choose option 1, which means you are an existing customer. Then press 3 to choose option 3, which means you want to cancel your account.
3. If you hear the recorded message that tells you to call back later, try calling back right away and choosing any other option to either get to the technical support or new accounts department. Once you get connected to any person, tell them you want to cancel your account and see if they can help you. Also, try calling 1-900-285-8333 and see if you can get through.
4. Once you get connected to a person who is willing to cancel your account, you will be asked the reason for your cancellation. I said I was moving and got broadband at the new place. The PeoplePC staff told me that I could use PeoplePC service 3 months for free and see if I preferred the cable internet or the dial-up internet. Instead of laughing, I refused such a modest offer.
5. Ask for your cancellation number and write it down. Without this number, there is no proof that you canceled your account.

That is it. You may still be able to log into your PeoplePC account for a while. If you wish, you can go ahead and change your personal information like your billing information to something bogus to make sure your real information is not saved on the servers after cancelation or that you are not charged later on for any reason.

3 things to keep in mind when canceling your account

Remember the following 3 things when you call to cancel your account.

1. Be careful when accepting the “3 more months for free” offer. When the cancellation staff tells you to try PeoplePC for free for 3 more months, you will be charged for the 4th month automatically unless you call to cancel your account, at which time you will be asked to try another 3 months for free. People used to abuse such an offer with AOL by taking advantage of such offers repeatedly until AOL found out that people kept using the service for free for years.
2. Your account will take at least 24 hours to be deleted. It will take about two to three days before your account is actually canceled, and you can try to log into your account after that to verify your cancellation.
3. You will not get any refund. You should also know that PeoplePC does not prorate your billing, so if you paid on the 8th of January for the rest of the month and canceled on January 9th, you will not get any money back for the remaining 29 days that you did not use.

I hope that helps. Good luck! I will be keeping an eye for for any PeoplePC charges in the upcoming months to make sure the cancelation was permanent and thorough.

« Show less..

Continue reading… »

I thought the email was bogus, and ignored it. Godaddy, in my view, didn’t send notices without any links to log into the site and check for ourselves. After 6 days, the domain name in question stopped working. I checked everything on the hosting side to see if something had happened; everything seemed fine but the domain name didn’t resolve to anything. That also meant that any incoming email would either have to be delivered again in a few hours, or simply sent back to the original author of the message.

I called Godaddy customer support to ask about the invalid domain. They told me that they had some technical issues and would reset my domain name settings to fix everything. I was given about 24 hours as a time frame to wait for the changes to happen. The domain was inactive after about 12 hours from that time, so I emailed Godaddy just to ask for an update to see if things were progressing. Godaddy responded with the following reply:

Here I was, stuck between Godaddy and the problem. I manage the hosting myself, so I knoiw I hadn’t changed anything on the hosting side. I did some diagnostics via Dnsstuff.com, which showed that the nameservers for that domain weren’t found online. The nameservers were being managed through Godaddy, which meant that it was Godaddy’s problem that my domain name was down. I emailed Godaddy again, this time explaining to them how the nameservers weren’t loading and how it was Godaddy’s side of the equation. I also told them that Godaddy customer support over the phone had told me before that Godaddy knew the issue and would take care of it.

Godaddy replied to me a few hours later, telling me that the domain had been suspended because some of the whois information for that domain was wrong. I was surprised, as that meant that the original anonymous email that I’d received from a domain called secureserver.net was indeed from Godaddy. Why they would use an anonymous email and no Godaddy links in the email is a mystery to me. I changed the whois information for that domain and responded to the email, telling them that the whois information had been changed, even though the previous whois information was valid also and working well.

Godaddy responded within an hour saying that the domain was working again. Even though the domain is working now, I’m unsure as to whether Godaddy can be relied upon when it comes to communication with their customer support. Both their email and phone support had given me wrong information, and I had to waste time before Godaddy told me what the real issue was. I could’ve simply avoided this situation before it even started, had Godaddy sent an email that contained information to prove that it was a legitimate email.

Good night everyone. Hopefully I won’t have to worry about the whois information for my domain names anymore.

« Show less..