IT Support to Friends / Family

onlyroz

Well I'm glad you got it sorted, Fox, but I think you need to be firmer in the future. My husband works in IT and he's happy to help out immediate family and close friends (e.g. my parents give us babysitting and in return he fixes their computer) but anybody further afield would either get a polite "no" or a list of his hourly rates.

My mum has a friend who is brilliant with textiles - she got fed up of being asked to "whip up a couple of cushion covers for us" that she now refuses point-blank to do any work for free. And my brother has all the kit to make hand-made photo-frames. Most people don't realise how expensive they are to make and how long it takes to do - and keep asking for him for freebees. They usually rapidly back down when he tells them how much he will charge.

missprice

onlyroz wrote: »

My mum has a friend who is brilliant with textiles - she got fed up of being asked to "whip up a couple of cushion covers for us" that she now refuses point-blank to do any work for free.e.

my mate is an ex seamstress (is that right?)

and couple weeks ago OH fixed some electrical stuff for her and in return she fed and extra 3 people and shortened my bathroom curtains so they fit better
the jobs took all day and it worked for us as we each got something out of it

OP give your dad a list of mates rates even for phone calls and tell him to use as a guideline
and tell him that nothing on a puter takes 5 mins:) and even if it did its a hours charge
or they give you something useful back or they google it:A

DKLS

I used to get called upon a lot for free technical support, and on occasion was happy to help for a beer or two.
A few people spoilt it with unreasonable demands so now I remind them of my full day rate, the fact that I cannot support every version of software or hardware or the advantages of google.

Or I run a services swap, e.g

I fixed my vets CRM system and streamlined it in exchange for some credit if my cat needed his expertise.

I built a website for a mate who in turn wrote some copy for a website of mine.

peaceandfreedom

foxtrot_mike wrote: »

Then I get another person asking me to help them with how to work a GPS navigator, then on the next breath asking me to choose them an upgraded one with OS maps in because they cant work the basic one, they wouldnt ask me to choose a new washing machine or car for them would they?

I used to get asked to help people choose a new computer as well - and also get asked to help people choose their broadband supplier, or their anti-virus.

If I need a new cooker, I don't phone my gas-fitter friend and ask them which one to buy - I google stuff and research it all.

Thing is, buying something like a new computer, it takes ages to decide which one to buy, there's so many things to consider. Why on earth should I put in all those hours of research for nothing?

Now, if someone asks something specific - should I get an i5 or an i7 processor for example - I might look on that a bit more kindly - but someone who has done nothing at all to help themselves, well it just makes me go into Father Jack mode - F**k, A**e, DRINK!

peaceandfreedom

missprice wrote: »

my mate is an ex seamstress (is that right?)

and couple weeks ago OH fixed some electrical stuff for her and in return she fed and extra 3 people and shortened my bathroom curtains so they fit better
the jobs took all day and it worked for us as we each got something out of it

See, that's called give-and-take and it's an ideal scenario. It's like bartering, isn't it.

Now, if someone said to me, you build me a website and I'll build you that built-in wardrobe you've always wanted, now THAT's a plan!

Dan_Thunder

As an addition, as a keen amateur photographer, people often ask me to find a camera for them! They say something along the lines of "I'm looking for a new camera, nothing rubbishy and I've got £100 to spend" and then expect me to filter through the 50,000,000 different cameras out there trying to find one that's not a piece of tat because they're too lazy to even read Amazon reviews!

It's like saying "I want you to find me a new car, nothing rubbish and I've got £1000 to spend!"