August 2007 General Meeting
Program Review:
Staples Easytech™

by Chris Novell

Need some help with your PC?

Andy McVey, coordinator of Staples Easytech™ program at its Newtown Road store came to the DACS General Meeting to assure us that help is closer than one might think. In fact, he and Gabriel Maccio, one of the Staples mobile technicians, first showed the audience a humorous video account of someone taking extreme measures to get their computer fixed.

Staples started offering the Easytech™ service earlier this year. The scenario that is likely to be typical at most of its stores is that there is one technician on the premises, a mobile technician for in-office or home visits, and a myriad of additional resources that can be called upon. Staples has partnered with other companies to make their coverage more encompassing. One of these partnerships is with Seagate for data recovery. Another partnership is with PrivacyGuard to protect against identity theft. PrivacyGuard has been endorsed by Frank Abagnale. Complex system? Talk to Staples. Have a Mac? Staples has a place it can send it for care.

Even if you don’t need more specialized expertise for things like data recovery, the Staples representatives reminded the audience that basic measures can go a long way.
You might already know that dust can spell doom for a computer,
And heat could wreak havoc as well. But what about water?
Well, you just know it can’t be good for those wires and chips,
But the audience did seem surprised to learn that if a system
somehow does get water logged, it’s actually better to leave it that way until a knowledgeable person (read: Staples Easytech™ technician) comes to its rescue.
Apparently, funny things start to happen if the unit gets exposed to air.

Some other good measures include keeping the computer off the floor (the dust, remember?) and giving the box two inches of breathing room on all six sides.

Staples has a recycling program to help people get rid of old PC’s, UPS batteries, and cell phones. For the large items, such as a PC, printer, or monitor, there is a small fee, although the fee may be waived with a purchase.

DACS members and visitors each received coupons for discounts on services and purchases at Staples. The computer coupon for a “spring cleaning,” i.e., Windows Maintenance, System Analysis, and Virus/Spyware check, was priced at a very generous discount. To get further details about Staples Easytech™ services, visit www.staples.com/easytech.

The evening finished with the most fascinating of raffle ceremonies.
Several odds were beaten.
Who do you think won the first selection?
Clue: someone sitting in the first row.
Andy was totally floored by his own off-the-cuff prediction.
What prize do you think was selected first?
Nope. Most of us were fooled by that one.
But the raffle winner was happy, and that’s what counts, right?
What prize do you think went next? Nope. Wrong again.
To find out what happened, come to the next meeting so someone can fill you in!
And, be sure to stop at the Easytech™ kiosk at Staples to thank Andy for introducing us to their services.

Door Prize Winners at the August 2007 General Meeting
Patrick Libert - Executive Desk Chair
Thomas McLean - Wireless Router
Fiona Nicholson - Wireless Router

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