Buying a Computer this Christmas? Talk to Vera First!

Well, well.  The Holiday Season is upon us once again.  Feasts will be had, gifts will be exchanged and the festive attitude in the air will give us all an excuse to ingest a bit too much of EVERYTHING!!!   In case you live under a rock, I’m sure you can agree that over the years electronics have become the most popular gifts to give and receive.  Case in point is the new computer my daughter gave her sweetie.  However, what she, like most people, failed to think about when budgeting for such a gift is the cost of the antivirus and the initial setup.  As soon as she told me she was presenting the computer to her beau, I demanded that she immediately install a remote access program so I could remote in and set it up for him.  The purpose of this setup was so that a virus was not the first thing to get installed.  If you think this cannot happen to you, think again.  Yesterday we had a brand new computer come in for repair.  As usual, we began to back up the data and do all the other good and wonderful things conscientious technicians do.  As we were searching for the customer’s personal data, we saw that there wasn’t any.  The customer had absolutely ZERO personal files on the new computer.  What she DID have were three very nasty viruses.  YUP!  The poor thing turned on her computer and somehow mainlined three – yes, three – viruses.  

This is why I beg of you:  FOR GOD’S SAKE!!!  INCLUDE THE COST OF A GOOD ANTIVIRUS (and configuration for it) IN YOUR BUDGET FOR A “NEW COMPUTER!”  The free ones simply do not provide adequate and comprehensive coverage.  Further, the money you save by NOT purchasing Antivirus software is quickly consumed by the amount of money it costs to have your data, Operating System, and apps restored.  It just isn’t worth it to skimp on the purchase price of a good Antivirus, and is honestly, one of the most foolish mistakes a computer owner can make.  Now had this customer brought her new toy in to us to have an initial setup performed, as well as configuration of the free antivirus (which comes as a trial with every new computer) before going online, this would not have happened.  I felt so bad for the customer that I was motivated to write this article as a public announcement.

I, as well as anyone, can understand the excitement that surrounds acquiring a new electronic toy.  But I also understand the importance of taking good care of my toys by setting things up correctly and keeping myself safe online.  If in your excitement you don’t want to be without your new device for the twenty-four hours it would take us to perform an initial setup, imagine then how that customer feels who now has to be without her computer for up to three days!  Yes.  I will admit that sometimes we at Punto G get very busy and can’t perform complex repairs as quickly as we’d like.  But keep in mind the reason we’re busy is because we’re good.  Very Good!!!  If you take your computer or (other device) to another technician who completes  work in one day that should take a competent technician a minimum of three days to complete, you should ask yourself why.  Usually the reason is because their customers are not returning year after year, as our customers tend to do.  My point here is this: the best way to determine who to choose as your computer technician is to take a look at how busy the technician is.  So if you do decide to bring your new device to us, in addition to budgeting a bit of extra money for the purchase and configuration of an antivirus, it would also be a great idea to budget an extra day or two to give us time to set everything up correctly.  This should hold true whether you are giving or receiving a new device.

Regardless to whomever you choose as your Electronics technician, we at Punto G would like to wish you and yours a heart-warming Mother’s Day, a magical Holiday Season, and a fun-filled New Year.