Archive for February 9th, 2009

Have you visited Microsoft’s Help and Support web site, lately?

Noticed anything different?

Microsoft now offers a ‘Fix it’ option for a growing number of common issues. Instead of laboriously working your way through a 15-step procedure to solve a problem, you can click the Fix It button and Microsoft will fix the problem for you while you wander down to the kitchen for a snack, walk the dog, or cuddle the cat. (Sorry, my freelance lifestyle is getting in the way again. That should read: “wander down to the break room for a snack, go to the copier, or send the latest management memo to a colleague as a paper airplane over the cube wall.”)

I tested a few of the Fix It buttons, on knowledgebase articles I frequently use to troubleshoot clients’ problems with Outlook and Microsoft Word. They worked as advertised, quickly and correctly running the whole process with — so far — none of the gotchas I occasionally run into while manually managing the same procedure.

Personally, I’m always a little nervous when my computer hares off on its own to fiddle around under its own hood. But, this time, my fears weren’t justified. It remains to be seen how well the process will work with more complicated problems, though. Restoring Word toolbars and missing IE desktop icons isn’t rocket science, after all. But, it’s a good start.