"Our Survey of a thousand Americans says that on average they're wasting 12 hours per month due to problems with their home computer... the majority's most recent experience is one of anger, sadness and alienation": Hmm... which home computer would that be, I wonder?

Home > Community thoughts > "Our Survey of a thousand Americans says that on average they're wasting 12 hours per month due to problems with their home computer... the majority's most recent experience is one of anger, sadness and alienation": Hmm... which home computer would that be, I wonder?

Date Created: 23 Jan, 2007, 12:49 PM

Slightly more than a year ago, in the period between the 2006 CES and Macworld (yes, they ran on different schedules) I blogged an entry of patience and stiff-upper-lipness to my fellow Mac users as the media fawned all over CES's many products.

It literally was a deluge of words and pictures and nascent podcasts and vodcasts. Scoble still worked at Microsoft, and the rumour mills were quiet about what Apple could be releasing.

So I reminded readers to remain patient while the sun shone over Las Vegas, for their turn would come soon. And it did.

In 2007, the story is a little different. Actually, a lot different. Macworld and CES ran simultaneously, blogging and vlogging and You had become Time's person of the year. And Apple squashed CES with the iPhone - sucked the oxygen right out of its coverage like a backdraft.

The world has righted itself now, with Wall Street doing its usual revision of Apple's fortunes, and the iPhone the subject of its own revisionist theories offered by those who know no better (and can't be bothered to think any differently as their various masters demand obedience).

Well, that period of normality is about to change in a few days' time as the countdown to the end of the month release of Vista on a suspecting (or is it suspicious) public occurs.

The usual suspects will queue all night (actually, my guess is they will simply slink into the retail shops attempting to make whoopee or yippee or some such gaiety) to be the first to get their hands on one of the many flavours of Vista. Here in Australia, the premium version will approach AUD800, although one guesses a little discounting will occur.

You also have to wonder if videocard makers are getting ready for brisk business, or if purchasers will perform their own Aero bypass and save a few hundred dollars.

So folks, get ready for much hullabalooing in the tech universe while all and sundry who can be bothered pay homage to Vista and write of their experiences, from installation, through activation, through restarting, through locating new drivers, through ringing tech support, through once more looking at those Mac Vs PC ads and wondering if maybe they're both funny and true.

But I jest of course. Most early reports from those who write reviews for a living say that installation is as sure footed as its ever been on Windows, and things do work fine, if a little or a lot like Panther or Tiger on OS X. Which is a pretty good compliment for an ageing system, as one tech pundit has recently put it.

So while Vista takes the spotlight for now, Mac users can spare a thought for the millions who won't be upgrading, and who have chosen to wait while others engage in Microsoft's version of Extreme Sports. No, they'll stay with Xp, or Me, or 2000 or NT or 98 or 95 (with USB) even.

When they dump their PCs to purchase another, it will come with Vista pre-installed and with all the installation woes a thing of the past.

But as Gartner reports, that might not be for a few years yet.

So for now, the vast majority of Windows users will stick with what they increasingly know to be a flaky and frustrating system. Vista's improvements kinda rubs salt into those wounds if those early reviews remain positive even if a little ho-hum about it.

Which means I pricked up my ears today when a PR Newswire press release raced into my RSS reader (yeah, I get to qualify as a journalist in some places but I'm not quitting my day job) from a mob called Supportsoft.com

Dated January 22, here is its header:

65 Percent of Americans Spend More Time with Their Computer than Their Spouse
- 8 in 10 Americans More Dependent on their Computer than 3 Years Ago -

Now that's a PR headline no psychologist with an interest in technology could avoid! So in the pursuit of science and merely out of curiosity and no sense of schadenfreude whatsover, I proceeded further into the PR release with salt on shoulder and at the ready.
Let's get into the body of the article:

"REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Jan. 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- 65 percent of consumers are spending more time with a computer than with their significant other, according to new independent research commissioned by support.com.
Conducted by independent research firm Kelton Research, the "Cyber Stress" study confirmed consumers' growing relationship with technology in their everyday lives. In fact, more than 8 out of 10 Americans (84%) say they are more dependent on their home computer now than they were just three years ago."

I'll save you the trouble, but it seems from the available material that about 1000 Americans over 18 were surveyed during December 2006 and January 2007 all of whom had "PCs and broadband connections".

Now, like me, you'll be asking "Is that a generic use of the term "PCs", thus including Windows and its flavours, Macs and their flavours, and Linux setups of all kinds? Or are we just talking Windows?"
Actually, it's not revealed in the press release whether the survey restricted itself to Windows or any personal computer as compared to a thin client or some other enterprise setup.

Let's continue with the press release, because it gets a little metaphoric, as you'll soon see when I show you the YouTube movie link the release contains (the pictures above and below are from the video):

"Like any relationship, the test comes not when things are going well but when times are tough. And unfortunately in the case of their computers, things aren't going so well for Americans.

-- The average consumer has experienced computer troubles eight times - about every four months - over the last three years.

-- The average American is wasting 12 hours per month - the equivalent of half a weekend - due to problems with their home computer.

-- A majority of Americans (52%) describe their most recent experience with a computer problem as one of anger, sadness or alienation."

Ok, then! I think we now start to get a clue about what kind of setup those 1000 surveyed volunteers have, don't we. That last line is most telling, especially in the context of those darned ads from Apple, but also the >50% new to the Mac purchasers we heard about at the Macworld Keynote.

Not to mention the number of blog entries swirling around on this homepage discussing Windows "dumpers" and those seeking a "Seachange".
Now the next part of the media release was likely done with Supportsoft.com's resident psychologist advisor:

"We empathize with consumers about the emotional nature of dealing with computer problems. As the leader in computer problem resolution for nearly 10 years, we have a distinct advantage in helping consumers quickly and conveniently solve their frustrating computer problems," said Josh Pickus, CEO of SupportSoft. "For these reasons, we will be launching support.com, a service that speaks to consumers without talking down to them and uses proven, patented technology to resolve their frustrating computer problems - guaranteed."

Ah, good, get to the sales pitch nice and quick, no beating around the bush. Survey masses, identify problems, prioritise, offer affordable, easy to achieve solutions. Guranteed (unless your hardware is truly stuffed).

More from their resident psychologist (I'm guessing):

"Considering the large role computers play in people's lives today, experts agree that computer problems can sometimes cause significant emotional distress, similar to what happens when a problem occurs between spouses.

"As computers become increasingly pervasive in our lives, our relationships with them can begin to seem almost as important as a relationship with a significant other. When problems then occur with the computer, it often leaves people feeling frustrated or helpless," says Dr. Robi Ludwig, renowned psychotherapist and host of TLC's reality series "One Week to Save a Marriage."

"On my show, I teach couples that they don't have to be an expert in resolving tough marital problems, they simply have to know whom to turn to for support. With the introduction of support.com, consumers can have a trusted advisor to turn to for technology relief when they experience frustrating technology problems."

Oh, dear. You have to know who to turn to for support - for "technological relief"? As if it's that easy...

So let's go and have a look at how easy it is (please buckle up - tongue may remain firmly implanted in cheeks) and check out the video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGU74QoMH_g

or just click here

Actually, the whole thing's kinda cute, in a rather "let's stretch the metaphor as far as we can take it" kind of way. Hey, as a psychologist, I'm very happy for people to acknowledge how technology plays a role in their emotional status.

Mind you, the report, while somewhat self-serving - OK, a lot self-serving - does break new ground. Most news reports of a nasty intersection between people and PCs comes either from hysterical reports of infidelities, getting hooked on gambling, shopping or other internet excesses, or those-who-should-know better being caught with material deemed inappropriate by employers.

Not too many people have actually suggested up front like the Supportsoft.com that one of the sources of "cyberstress" are PCs themselves.

Actually... we have, haven't we? It's what all those Mac vs PC ads have been about, and no doubt inspired Supportsoft.com to help those poor PC-types with their emotional distress.

You know, (time to get a little serious here and earn my Google Adsense cents) in my work with couples, you'll never hear me give clear indications about relationships staying together or breaking up, even when the couple want me to do so. It's simply not my job. The job is to help them make some tough adult decisions which will have great impact on themselves and others and does require careful deliberation. Exceptions are domestic violence and forms of family abuse considered illegal where I practise.

Once the couple decide what they want, I work with them as much as possible to support that decision and find ways to live with it. That's often the hard part that goes unnoticed initially, after the relief of having made a decision is felt. Occasionally, one is left scratching one's head about the decision's fallout, but telling a couple what to do will get you in front of Registration Boards with a complaint pronto.

That's as far as the metaphor goes with regards to PCs and couple therapy.

When someone comes to me now and complains about their PC, my answer is, "I use a Mac and my ability to empathise with your situation is very limited. You do have my sympathies however."

If they should observe my Windows box in the therapy room, and ask how I can't muster any empathy - stand in their moccasins so to speak - since I too operate a Windows PC, my reply is simple:

"The PC you see is partitioned into two hard drives. On one are drivers and connections to access the internet. It has free anti-this and anti-that installed, but frankly if it falls over, I really don't care. I use it to watch videos dumb mainstream media outlets won't make available on the Mac. And also for overnight downloading of BitTorrent stuff.

On the other partition, is my mission critical software, the reason I bought the Windows PC in the first place. It has never been upgraded or connected to the internet in two years - ever. It purrs like a kitten. It's absolutely bare minimum, and represents a step back in time for most Windows users to how it felt to get their new PC home and start it up. After that, for them, it's all downhill. For me, that experience is frozen in time. It's a great Windows experience."

That's when they can no longer empathise with me.

(For a little fun, go see someone actually enamoured enough with her chosen platform to sing a love song to it - Happy Slip's "Mac Beautiful" here.