That's the start of the phone call.  We've gotten several of them, years worth.  There is a problem with our computer.  >click< we hang up.

Today was different.  I asked, "Oh?  What operating system am I running?"  (actually 5 of them, if you count the servers).
The guy is speaking broken english - so I ask him again, "What operating system am I running?"  My next question was going to be something that identifies the actual computer - which I know he cannot.  I suspect it's a scam or salesman.

Anyone else getting these calls?

Quote from: Hoofer on October 14, 2015, 07:31:04 AM
That's the start of the phone call.  We've gotten several of them, years worth.  There is a problem with our computer.  >click< we .

Today was different.  I asked, "Oh?  What operating system am I running?"  (actually 5 of them, if you count the servers).
The guy is speaking broken english - so I ask him again, "What hang upoperating system am I running?"  My next question was going to be something that identifies the actual computer - which I know he cannot.  I suspect it's a scam or salesman.

Anyone else getting these calls?

Yep about once a month.   I now tell them they can fix the problem in there next down load IF they are from Microsoft.  Then I hang up.

I also enjoy saying just a min. I have to get my hearing aids.  Then I set the phone down until they hang up.   If there on the line there not making other call.   

Quote from: walkstall on October 14, 2015, 07:53:42 AM
Yep about once a month.   I now tell them they can fix the problem in there next down load IF they are from Microsoft.  Then I hang up.

I also enjoy saying just a min. I have to get my hearing aids.  Then I set the phone down until they hang up.   If there on the line there not making other call.    

LOL

Before there was the do-not-call list, everyone called my business line, which was everything about mid-large business PBXes.
Naturally, I owned what I sold/serviced, and had a house full of extensions.. no phone was more than 10' away, they were everywhere.
Multiple phones, means transferring calls, music-on-hold, etc...  you get the idea, now the fun starts.

"Hello, yes this is..."
blah, blah, blah...
"Really!?  You caught me away from my desk, could you hold on?   Yeah, great!"  hit the "HOLD" key.
Music-on-hold was a Crow calling tape.
The record hold was 22 minutes...


"Hello, yes this is..."
blah, blah, blah...
"Oh, hold on, let me go get the boss, we were just talking about that!"  hit the "HOLD" key
dead silence - I mean digital dead silence - zilch, zip, nothing.
2-3 minutes later, pick up the phone, "Oh good, you're still there, the boss will be RIGHT HERE, hold on."  "HOLD" key
dead silence
5 minutes later, "I see 'em now, here you go... opps!"  >click<  fake dialtone, I'm muted but can hear them cussing when they hear dial tone.  ... and hang up.
- record was +5 transfers till we dropped 'em.


"Hello, no, you want ... hang on, I'll transfer you, hold on."  "HOLD" 
... stupid elevator music...
pick up the phone, call a coworker, "we got a live one, can you take it?  Yea, OK, he she/he comes!"  Transfer the call.
Coworker picks up, "who?  what?  Oh... you want the supervisor, hold on, I'll transfer you..."  "HOLD"
pick up the phone, call another coworker, "we got a live one, can you take it?..."
Coworker picks up, "who?  what?  someone transferred this call, hold on, let me get you to the RIGHT person..."  "HOLD"
repeat - repeat - repeat.
- our record was over 35 minutes, in excess of a dozen transfers, the guy hung up.

If the salesperson was a woman ....  well, I wouldn't participate in the actual conversations, but when the saleswoman would finally get around to, "I'm going to call your boss!   You pervert!"
He would answer, "You're speaking to him, now where were we...."
>click<


"Hello, yes this is..."
blah, blah, blah...
Set the cheap phone receiver on a hard metal desk, not on hold ... cheap phones are good for feedback, like a hearing aid squealing.
But, sometimes, they need a little noise to get the feedback started...
bang stuff around, slam doors, get the dog barking, put a purring cat next to the receiver, crying baby, play head banger music, etc.

Quote from: Hoofer on October 14, 2015, 09:46:04 AM
LOL

Before there was the do-not-call list, everyone called my business line, which was everything about mid-large business PBXes.
Naturally, I owned what I sold/serviced, and had a house full of extensions.. no phone was more than 10' away, they were everywhere.
Multiple phones, means transferring calls, music-on-hold, etc...  you get the idea, now the fun starts.

"Hello, yes this is..."
blah, blah, blah...
"Really!?  You caught me away from my desk, could you hold on?   Yeah, great!"  hit the "HOLD" key.
Music-on-hold was a Crow calling tape.
The record hold was 22 minutes...


"Hello, yes this is..."
blah, blah, blah...
"Oh, hold on, let me go get the boss, we were just talking about that!"  hit the "HOLD" key
dead silence - I mean digital dead silence - zilch, zip, nothing.
2-3 minutes later, pick up the phone, "Oh good, you're still there, the boss will be RIGHT HERE, hold on."  "HOLD" key
dead silence
5 minutes later, "I see 'em now, here you go... opps!"  >click<  fake dialtone, I'm muted but can hear them cussing when they hear dial tone.  ... and hang up.
- record was +5 transfers till we dropped 'em.


"Hello, no, you want ... hang on, I'll transfer you, hold on."  "HOLD" 
... stupid elevator music...
pick up the phone, call a coworker, "we got a live one, can you take it?  Yea, OK, he she/he comes!"  Transfer the call.
Coworker picks up, "who?  what?  Oh... you want the supervisor, hold on, I'll transfer you..."  "HOLD"
pick up the phone, call another coworker, "we got a live one, can you take it?..."
Coworker picks up, "who?  what?  someone transferred this call, hold on, let me get you to the RIGHT person..."  "HOLD"
repeat - repeat - repeat.
- our record was over 35 minutes, in excess of a dozen transfers, the guy hung up.

If the salesperson was a woman ....  well, I wouldn't participate in the actual conversations, but when the saleswoman would finally get around to, "I'm going to call your boss!   You pervert!"
He would answer, "You're speaking to him, now where were we...."
>click<


"Hello, yes this is..."
blah, blah, blah...
Set the cheap phone receiver on a hard metal desk, not on hold ... cheap phones are good for feedback, like a hearing aid squealing.
But, sometimes, they need a little noise to get the feedback started...
bang stuff around, slam doors, get the dog barking, put a purring cat next to the receiver, crying baby, play head banger music, etc.

You do a lot of work just to have fun.   

Quote from: walkstall on October 14, 2015, 09:55:12 AM
You do a lot of work just to have fun.   

Well, I have to admit, living in Wisconsin, on the farm... the middle of winter, a white-out snow, windy, the furnace is going full blast for 3 days ... and then the phone starts ringing, heh... quick, slap in the Crow Call music-on-hold tape.!   

At work, we call that "a team building exercise" - like passing the baton from one to the next.   LOL


This guy is a tough one.  He's called 3x today, wifey took the last call, and he hung up.
He has an Asian accent, I think he's pissed off and put my number into some kind of rotation.

I checked with "donotcall.gov" and low and behold, it had expired!  re-registered our phones ... unfortunately it'll take a little bit to kick in.
One of sons said we're gonna get calls, because it's automatic with Professional & Enterprise customers.

Quote from: Hoofer on October 14, 2015, 01:14:29 PM
Well, I have to admit, living in Wisconsin, on the farm... the middle of winter, a white-out snow, windy, the furnace is going full blast for 3 days ... and then the phone starts ringing, heh... quick, slap in the Crow Call music-on-hold tape.!   

At work, we call that "a team building exercise" - like passing the baton from one to the next.   LOL


This guy is a tough one.  He's called 3x today, wifey took the last call, and he hung up.
He has an Asian accent, I think he's pissed off and put my number into some kind of rotation.

I checked with "donotcall.gov" and low and behold, it had expired!  re-registered our phones ... unfortunately it'll take a little bit to kick in.
One of sons said we're gonna get calls, because it's automatic with Professional & Enterprise customers.

Trust me "donotcall.gov" is not worth the power to blow it to hell.  For two year I registered a compliant on 4 phone numbers every time they called.  It did not help even on one number. 

What I did find on the net was a phone number I could call and register a compliant.  I call that number and got a real person and she was even talking in English.  The young lady took all my information.  The calls stopped coming, I also got a letter from the young lady in less then two weeks covering what we talked about.  At the end of the letter she ask to please let her know if I have more problems. 

This is the phone number I call 1 888 225 5322  then press 0 and you should by pass all the BS and get a real person. 

All registering with donotcall.gov does, is verify for telemarketers what are valid phone numbers.

Since the list is published and sold.

I was told that by the phone company one time, when I called them to have them change my number.

First thing they asked me, did you register there? I said Yep, and the lady at the phone company says "that's why you're getting the calls now all of a sudden" your number is now showing up on their list of "verified numbers" which they sell to telemarketing firms.

So now I get a private, unpublished number, don't sign up on donotcall.gov, and thankfully, don't get telemarketing calls from absolute strangers. :)

Quote from: daidalos on October 17, 2015, 08:33:26 PM
All registering with donotcall.gov does, is verify for telemarketers what are valid phone numbers.

Since the list is published and sold.

I was told that by the phone company one time, when I called them to have them change my number.

First thing they asked me, did you register there? I said Yep, and the lady at the phone company says "that's why you're getting the calls now all of a sudden" your number is now showing up on their list of "verified numbers" which they sell to telemarketing firms.

So now I get a private, unpublished number, don't sign up on donotcall.gov, and thankfully, don't get telemarketing calls from absolute strangers. :) 

Interesting...  We have 2 land lines, the first is listed, the second is not per this phone company, we have to pay to be unlisted, but the second line isn't published.  100% of the sales calls come on the listed number.   Line an AOL email account, "You've got SPAM!".   We do.. get these calls asking for Auntie Mary or Frieda by her old friends.   She's probably dead or in some retirement community.  Of course, it doesn't matter we've had the number for over a dozen years, "Wha...?   How did you get HER number?  This telephone number belongs to Frieda, she's always had this number...!"  etc, etc, etc.  We can live with those occasional calls.

Oh, we did have the opportunity to choose HOW our number is listed in the phone book.   My wife's name starts with "S" and mine "B" - so  we chose "BS".  Any snail mail that comes in, addressed to "BS ...." is fire starter.

I actually called MS Support last week. I had been waiting weeks for Windows 10 to download. It never did.

They ran a Remote Session for me, and installed it.

It was free, the Tech spoke passable English, it took me one short call to receive service. Very pleased overall.

Quote from: SalemCat on November 11, 2015, 09:13:37 PM
I actually called MS Support last week. I had been waiting weeks for Windows 10 to download. It never did.

They ran a Remote Session for me, and installed it.

It was free, the Tech spoke passable English, it took me one short call to receive service. Very pleased overall.

Good luck...

http://www.computerworld.com/article/2968288/microsoft-windows/windows-10-makes-...

http://www.howtogeek.com/224616/30-ways-windows-10-phones-home/

http://www.adls.org.nz/for-the-profession/news-and-opinion/2015/9/4/windows-10-%...

I wish they'd call me. I use a Mac running Mountain Lion. I'd have such fun with them :)

The BASTARDS are pretty clever.

I pray when they are old and senile they succumb to some blood-sucking bastard like themselves.

Quote from: walkstall on November 13, 2015, 10:18:49 AM

Good luck...

http://www.computerworld.com/article/2968288/microsoft-windows/windows-10-makes-...

http://www.howtogeek.com/224616/30-ways-windows-10-phones-home/

http://www.adls.org.nz/for-the-profession/news-and-opinion/2015/9/4/windows-10-%...

Dont'cha love the way early-adopters get ALLLLLLL the grief we avoid by waiting for something better? 

Quote from: quiller on December 11, 2015, 10:07:12 PM
Dont'cha love the way early-adopters get ALLLLLLL the grief we avoid by waiting for something better? 

I clung to Windows 98 for a log time.

XP cost too much !

In retrospect, I should have latched onto XP much earlier.

But when it come to SO many other Microsoft "offerings", waiting was a wise move.

I do like Windows 10, though. That it was free has something to do with it.