Help! I plugged the thingie into the thing, but it still doesn't work; Gadget explosion leads to niche business where tech-savvy make house calls

USA Today Information Network
By Jon Swartz

When Stacie Ratliff won a digital camera last year, she couldn't wait to snap photos, download them onto her personal computer and e- mail them to family and friends.

But her elation soon turned to frustration when she discovered the camera's software didn't work with her computer's Windows XP operating system.

Her options? The instruction manual was incomprehensible, she says, and the customer-service phone number was like a black hole. She shelved the camera.

A few months later, she broke the camera trying to use it. Her photos were never downloaded. She's shopping for another camera.
"The experience made me feel dumb," says Ratliff, 31, a Princeton graduate who is an information-technology recruiter for a major insurance company in Los Angeles. "And I know this stuff."

Imagine then, the angst of millions of Americans who took years to finally feel comfortable programming their VCRs. Such a task now seems elementary, as more and more tech gadgets connect -- turning living rooms into entertainment centers, PCs into video- and audio- editing hubs and tiny MP3 players into the front end of vast music libraries.

But while consumers have never had so many tech options, getting them to work together isn't easy. Consumers are fumbling through thick manuals, holding on customer-service phone lines, searching for tech experts or driving themselves mad.

On consumer Web site PlanetFeedback, 84% of consumer postings about electronics makers complain that the technology is too hard to install, doesn't work or doesn't work well.

Frustration runs so deep, in fact, that it's spawned a cottage industry of handy, tech-savvy men and women who go into homes to help consumers with their gadgets -- just like companies have long had visiting technicians.

"People are looking for somebody who can hold their hand, a one- man shop," says Avi Rosenthal, 35, a self-described "electronic architect" for CompUSA in Boca Raton, Fla. He charges $50 to $125 an hour, depending on the job. "The last thing they want are three guys trying to solve three different problems."

In fact, demand for digital handymen prompted the non-profit Internet Home Alliance and trade group CompTIA to launch a certification program for them late last year. So far, it has certified nearly 100 people nationwide to make house calls to install or repair electronic devices.

"This stuff is supposed to make life easier and more enjoyable, so why is it so hard?" sighs Al Strong, CEO of Commercial Programming Systems, a high-tech contractor, and a flustered high- tech user.

It is an oft-asked question, most often answered by the fact that technology:

* Constantly evolves. That means it's constantly new, and new things take getting used to.
Consider the PC. It started decades ago as a glorified typewriter, but now it's also a database, post office, VCR, stereo, game console and more.

It can take four hours of training to master even semibasic software programs such as Microsoft Word and Excel. Every two or three years, Microsoft rolls out a new version, with new features.

Those who finally got comfortable with making a phone call via a cellphone, now can learn to use more new features, such as sending text messages and accessing the Web.

The same thing happened with camcorders years ago, when video recording got richer when manufacturers added editing features -- and consumers learned how to take advantage of them.

"As technology gets richer, the learning curve gets longer," says tech consultant Joe Procopio, 33, of Chapel Hill, N.C.

* Does more so it's more complex. The PC has transformed into a multipurpose instrument because, in large part, there are so many other devices built to extend its functions. There are digital cameras that turn it into a photo studio. CD drives that turn it into a stereo system. Wiring and routers to create a home PC network. Virtual-reality helmets and gloves to add a 3-D experience.

A simple device designed to send e-mail, such as a BlackBerry, now lets users make phone calls and access corporate e-mail networks. At the same time, portable devices have gotten smaller. That means more functions need to take up less space, requiring users to learn new tricks.

* Enables ever more devices to connect. Even if consumers understand the inner workings of various devices, how do they link them?

Not only must they grapple with a dizzying array of wiring, they must make sure the connected products share compatible hardware and software operating systems. Add to that new versions of products every six months or so, and you have two moving targets, industry experts say.

"Anytime you add a device to smart electronics, you're adding complexity," says analyst Jonathan Gaw of market researcher IDC. "Imagine, then, someone in customer support for a PC maker trying to answer a customer's questions about why their PDA doesn't work with their PC."

Dell says there has been a shift in the nature of customer- service calls the past year, from "What's wrong with my PC?" to "How can I burn CDs and use a digital camera with my PC?" says Ricky Rodrigue, Dell's director of customer assistance resolution team.

"There are so many different widgets with so many idiosyncrasies, it's frustrating to patch it together," says Ross Lichtenstein, 58, an Ohio engineering consultant. "And computer equipment is so absolute. If you don't do it exactly right, it doesn't work."

Consumers press on

While many consumers blame tech companies for failing to make technology easier to use, tech companies continue to pour millions annually into simplifying products and making them work with peripheral devices.

They also provide tips on their Web sites and documentation with products so consumers can troubleshoot on their own. If all else fails, there are toll-free customer service call centers. Tech firms are expected to spend $156 million on call centers this year, up 4% from 2002, market researcher Datamonitor says.

Consumer-electronics stores, meanwhile, such as CompUSA, service what they sell. It offers free installation for any purchase of $199 or more and comprehensive three- to five-year service plans. "Customers aren't likely to come back if we don't offer them post- purchase service," says Sammy Saloum, director of business development at CompUSA.

Despite the aggravation, consumers seem willing to wade through the hassle to get the benefit. Consumer-electronics sales in the USA are expected to improve 3.5% to $99.5 billion this year, the Consumer Electronics Association says. Digital camera sales are expected to jump 26% to 11 million this year.

By comparison, the domestic economy grew 2.4% in 2002. CompUSA installs 8,000 to 11,000 home computer networks a month, compared with 1,500 a year ago. It performed 2.2 million service calls last year, up 18% from 2001.

Sometimes, the best solution is a lot of tech expertise, help from experts and some patience to reap the rewards of cutting-edge electronics.Rick Hammerl, 48, a district manager at a major telecom company with nearly 30 years of technical training, spent six weeks conceiving, building and tinkering with a home-computer network. With the help of several co-workers, who had already installed home networks, Hammerl was able to connect four PCs that share a printer and cable modem. Now he works in his home office while his son Paul, 14, burns CDs in his bedroom. They exchange e-mail and files.

"It works, and it's great," he says, hastily adding, "I pity the poor layman who tries to do it alone."