Lets Fix It!
Internet Based Technical Help

Surfing the World Wide Web and looking for troubleshooting information sites to help my in-laws (who are completely new to computer use) recently started me thinking that you may be interested in resources that can help you with computer problems. So, let's look at some of the information and resources available to help those of us who aren't comfortable with digging into the Mac OS depths on our own to try to fix problems.

First and foremost among Mac technical sites is the Apple Technical Information Library (TIL) at http://til.info.apple.com. This library has over 14,000 articles about all things Macintosh! Many of the reports are written in layman's terms and are understandable to mere mortals such as you and me, although some of them are so technical that programmers may have to get out the instruction manuals for interpretations.

Another great resource for troubleshooting information is the MacFixIt site at http://www.macfixit.com. This site has reports from readers about specific problems and fixes that they or others have found. Some of the fixes are rather easy to perform, but some involve mucking around in the innards of the OS.

MacIntouch at http://www.macintouch.com has a great collection of reports on different problems, with fixes or work-arounds for solving most of them.

If your problems seem to be associated with a specific software package, the Complete Conflict Compendium at http://www.quillserv.com/www/c3/c3.html is a great place to search for answers. It lists specific combinations of system add-ons (extensions) that cause problems when used together.

If you want to know what all those cryptic terms mean that you hear tech support people spouting, look at the Macintosh Guide at Yale University at http://www.cis.yale.edu/macguide/Guide.Index.html. In no time you will be saying and understanding things like "Blessed System Folder."

For those of you who want or need to know what all those system add-ons actually do, there is InformInit at http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/DEF/InformInit.html and ExtensionOverload at http://www1.pt.com.my/~tkting/thchome/eo. They will explain what these files do and which ones you really need and don't need.

But, many of you will not be comfortable reading about and trying to understand code fragments, MacsBugs, and APIs. So, for you, there are free support sites. One of the best free help sites, in my opinion, is NoWonder at http://www.nowonder.com/support/index.html. Post a question or explain your problem and you will usually have help within 24 hours. When you ask a question you can also tell the support volunteer your level of experience with computers. If you're new to computers, the volunteer who answers your question or problem report will be very explicit in his/her directions and explanation so you can understand how to fix the problem.

Another site that offers free technical support is Experts-Exchange at http://www.experts-exchange.com. I haven't visited this site, so I can't comment on how good it is.

It seems that every time the Mac OS is updated, some of our favorite software quits working. For those problems that may be caused by out of date software, visit Version Tracker at http://www.versiontracker.com. You can search for specific software packages to see if you have the latest and greatest release. For those updates that are available online, the site also includes links to the appropriate files for downloading.

I believe that should be enough to get even the most technophobic user in touch with a resource that can help with those annoying problems that crop up now and then, and are all designed to forestall or eliminate the costly last resort, that of contacting an authorized repair center and paying a professional to fix your headaches for you.

Next month we will start exploring educational resources.

And now, KnowledgeSpider's Knowledge/Information Resource recommendation of the month:

Troubleshooting: Get help with your computer problems by using the wealth of information available for free on the Internet.

Each month I will grab a knowledge or information resource from the web and share it with you. If you have a learning or knowledge resource or a teaching technique that has proven particularly useful to you, share it with all of us by tossing it into my web!

David E. Price
david@mymac.com