Following a recent CBC Marketplace story “Getting Gouged by Geeks” which showed essentially a sting operation with a computer with blown RAM calling in the various computer support companies to troubleshoot and repair the issue.

Needless to say, the program was not very complementary towards the technical support industry as a whole. Some of the criticism was well warranted (the privacy / ethics), some of it was not (trained competent people don’t work for free – think of how much the mechanic on your car charges.)

The biggest concern I saw (and that is very well warranted) is the point Marketplace raised about techs copying data to a device that they would take with them and not return to the customer (ie, an external hard drive or laptop) without first asking for authorization from the customer. While it is very commonplace to copy data off of a defective machine before working on it to prevent losing data the fact remains, you could have someone’s sensitive digital data on your hard drive, financial data – pretty much everything to steal someone’s identity and ruin their life.

1) Never copy data without authorization and explain how you are going to remove that data once you are done (yes, once you delete in Windows it can be recovered with some data loss but it’s harder to recover. Overwrite utilities can help there)

The second big concern was the dramatic “fear” tactics used to upsell more products / services. In some cases, replacement of a computer is cheaper than repair. Note some. Often it’s a quick and easy repair and unless the customer wants an upgrade, just fix it. As I see it, ensuring techs are primarily techs who focus on revenue from support not sales is critical to the reputation of the repair firm. Some companies get it, some do not.

2) Support is to fix, not to upsell

Many of the people who are calling these companies don’t know anything about computers and rightfully so. I have no clue how my car works and truth be told, I don’t care. The core issue is that qualified people don’t work for minimum wage or anything close to it. Half the problem is that people expect IT to be cheap “any kid can do it” and in order to meet the prices, some companies have gone for the cheap (often unqualified) person to meet that price expectation.

Maybe it is time for regulation and a code of ethics in the IT sector. Granted the fact that those in front of a computer or administering a server can access pretty much any content (including executive / confidential files) there is just too much to lose with a rogue tech. The hard part, there’s no way to determine who is competent – the certifications many techs have often involve passing a test which may test “learn and dump it on the test” knowledge, not practical skills.

So, for now, maybe a standardized code of ethics by a professional association which can publicly embarrass those who agreed to abide by it’s ethics but didn’t. It’s not perfect but it’s a start.

The latest rage on the ‘net is the Facebook application – essentially a bit of software which uses Facebook (the social networking site) as it’s sole medium. One cannot simply go to myapplicaitonname.com – no, you can only access it if and only if you have a profile on Facebook and login to the Facebook.com site.

Jason Calacanis explained Facebook’s motives for offering an platform that anyone can access

1. get free developer labor
2. generates tools for their platform and users
3. get free research into which features their users wants

(http://www.calacanis.com/2007/10/09/should-you-trust-facebook-with-your-business/)

Naturally, this has attracted hordes of developers who will generate apps because it’s relatively easy to do and it’s a way to gain “fame” among peers (“hey look, my app has 10,000 users!) Indeed, many of the apps that exist on Facebook have very limited potential for making money and exist as labours of love.

Now, a very select group of developers is basing their entire business (and financial future) off of a Facebook app. While I use Facebook regularly and use it for it’s core features (ie, social networking) it’s not the holy grail of the world. The barrier to entry and exit is pretty low, for all we know, Facebook could lose as many users a day as it is gaining right now. For a while, MySpace was the giant that couldn’t be beat, now look at where it’s standing in comparison to Facebook. Another day, another site could come along (offer an easy “import from Facebookâ€? feature) and dominate market share. Your application wouldn’t work with this new platform and bam, your revenue stream drops dead.

Not only does the “Facebook app” developer face two issues namely being having their fate determined by a third party which may or may not have any loyalty to you, the lowly app developer. One also has the issue of there being too many Facebook applications which can ruin someone’s Facebook experience.

Facebook gained a loyal following for being a lot “cleaner” and “more private” than it’s biggest competition MySpace. With too many apps, Facebook is starting to lose its edge on the “clean and simple” department. It’s not that you have apps on your profile, it’s everyone else. If I want to leave a message on someone’s wall, I really don’t want to scroll through 50 application sections to do so. Chances are I will get fed up with all the clutter and app invites and go somewhere else. Too many Facebook apps diminish the value of Facebook

Facebook should be commended for opening their platform – there are many good applications out there. On a business level however, I wouldn’t dream about basing my entire income on a third party that I don’t control. Facebook apps are great for simple “funâ€? gadgets and promotions (a great extension for a lot of web apps) but is a pretty big risk for someone’s bread and butter.

Facebook is a high risk stock. It’s fine to play around a bit with some high risk “money� – just don’t bet your entire life on it. While you’re thinking about it, stop sending me 5 million Facebook app invites. I really don’t want a cluttered up profile.