Have you ever called your software vendor support only to end up solving the problem yourself or have the problem become even worse? Well you are not alone! As software systems have become more complicated the quality of support has seemed to decrease. Whether it be because of the poor attitude of the technician on the other end of the phone, or their inexperience, finding a solution to your problem can be tough.

In many cases software support from the vendor can be a painful ordeal. However, there are ways to improve your experience. Using just a couple of the tactics in this article can make your day run a lotsmoother.

When a support desk is implemented properly you’ll find that your problem is handled quickly and professionally. They take advantages of improved technologies, like using the internet to remotely connect to your computer. Also, they use advanced phone systems that give an estimated time until your call is answered and, just like our our world isn’t perfect, niether are support desks. We here have seen a very recent example of a poorly handled issue by Dexis. They seemed to have pulled every wrong procedure in the book. So let’s go over them.

First off you may find a technician to be incapable of handling your issue. This is due to insufficient training and your software vendor expecting the technician to be trained on the job. Training on the job is great for them and bad for you. It means that a staff member from your office will be tied up on the phone while the Tech figures out the solution.

Opposite to getting put through to a rookie Tech is that you’ll be connected to a experienced Tech. These Techs have a tendency to expect the user to have a working knowledge of computers and can become rude when confronted with a inexperienced user. These technicians may also make the user feel stupid while talking to them. This is the case that we found with Dexis. The Tech had a distintive  “I don’t care” attitude. While the user just wants their problem solved, the Tech just wants to close the support ticket.

Many support centers focus on number  the of support calls solved and the time it takes to close each call. The managers at the support desk want these numbers in their favour. This means that you get a lower quality of support.

Experienced Techs also have a tendency to push problems onto other vendors. In the case with Dexis, our client was told that it must be their computer hardware causing the issues, even though it was quite clearly a Dexis specific issue (and it turned out to be a direct issue of Dexis). The customer is then sent in circles attempting to find the correct person to fix their issue.

Another common problem is the Tech not accepting the fact that there is an issue they have never seen before. You may get a response such as “none of our other customers are experiencing this issue”. This type of attitude generally comes from a Tech that is not interested in actually solving your issue.

Many support desks do not assign responsibility for problem tickets. Your office may be able to call and talk to anyone about any issue even if it is a recurring issue. The benefit to this is that you don’t have to wait until the Tech you first talked to becomes available. On the other hand you have to re-explain the whole problem, again wasting your time. This type of system is also abused by many Techs as they can quickly close a support call ( increasing their performance numbers ) and allowing someone else to take the call when the customer calls back.

These are all very common situations and we have experienced them ourselves with the Dentrix and Dexis support desks among others.

With all these problems let us take a look at how you can attempt to get better service. I do say attempt because some support desks put procedures in place that just do not help you in anyway.

Two methods to cut down on having to call support in the first place to assign only one person within your office to call support and have them record the solutions to the problem. This person will soon be able to troubleshoot and know the solution to many common problems. The record book will allow anyone to fix issues without calling support and potentially sitting on hold. In the end it is all about the efficiency of running the software.

Next is to make a judgement call on the experience of the Tech. If they are struggling, don’t hesitate to ask for someone with more experience early in the conversation. You may even want to ask if they have worked through your issue before and if not then find someone that does. They don’t normally like to do this, however it’ll get you to an experienced Tech sooner. In our case it is common to call the Dentrix support desk and be talking to someone that has no idea what CDAnet is. This is extremely important for the Canadian offices. So don’t let a new Tech struggle through an iTrans and CDAnet setup, ask for someone that has done this before.

Don’t let them transfer you around or get off the phone without solving your problem. Always get the full name of the person and push the ownership of the issue on them. If they give you the option to call back after a tool is done running, or the next day, be sure you have them take care of your issue. Techs are more inclined to solve your problem thoroughly if they understand that responsibility lies with them alone.

If you find a good technician ask them if you can always contact them. Sure you may end up waiting a little longer to get your specific Tech, but you’ll receive a more personalized experience. This will avoid working with inexperienced Techs and the Tech will also learn your common problems which will allow them to solve future issues quicker. It’s similar to of if you were to changing the couch in your house every week. You’ll never get comfortable with the cushion support. It is important you feel comfortable and trust the help you are receiving.

The last point is to employ a on-site computer technician that is comfortable talking with your software vendor support desk. It makes no sense to have the meat and potatoes of your computer system not be on the same plate! When there is any confusion between software vendor or computer hardware vendor is to be responsible for a fix, always have the hardware vendor talk directly to the software vendor. Computer lingo can be very confusing and if you add a third person that doesn’t understand what they are saying you’ll all loose.

As most people know software support is a must but can be very tough to deal with. If you make your software vendor responsible for their issues and your experience with their software you’ll come out ahead. Use these tips to decrease your stress and increase your production.

We have installed dozens of machines this year with the Windows 7 and Dentrix. In a few cases, we installed the whole network with the newest software in Microsoft's lineup – Windows 7 Pro and Windows Server 2008 RC2. I am pleased to report there have been very few problems. The networks are functioning smoothly and most importantly,

the clients are happy and productive. The only issue we came across was installing Dentrix G Series on 64 bit editions of Windows 7. We first experienced an issue with opening the chart on the server. The chart would crash while trying to open it. We eventually found a solution that forced the chart to run in 32 bit mode. In the past few

months, Dentrix has released a 64 bit edition that seems to have resolved the chart issue.

Windows Server 2008 has a new backup utility which, in my opinion, is worth the upgrade alone. It supports multiple external hard drives, is very fast and supports bare metal restore. I do not miss the very outdated ntbackup at all.

One interesting feature of Windows 7 Professional is the ability to run Windows XP in a virtual machine on Windows 7 should you run an application that just won't run on Windows 7. It is quite a large download but very easy to set up. In less than an hour, you can have a completely virtual Windows XP desktop running like an application in

Windows 7. This is a cool feature. It will even run legacy applications in the background without having to open and boot into the virtual machine. You can boot these legacy applications right from the Windows 7 menu just like a regular Windows 7 application.

That's the good. The bad? We were quite disappointed to find out that Windows 7 has removed the windows repair option. Bad motherboard? Start over from scratch. Bad hard disk and windows will not boot? Replacing defective hardware and running a windows repair is a thing of the past. We found out Microsoft is under the impression that the repair option lead to instability issues in the operating system. This may have been true with some users of Windows XP but simply not the case with us. We have performed hundreds of Windows XP repair installs and had virtually no problems. We are currently trying to put together our own version of a Windows 7 repair install. The windows repair has been an invaluable tool. Some of the workstations we deal with have so many applications and settings, it would likely take days to get a machine back to the way it was before.

The Windows XP repair install allowed us to completely change the hardware and still retain all the user's data and settings. We were able to return a repaired machine to a user exactly as it was before. Our users really appreciated that. We hope that Microsoft changes their mind on this one and brings back the repair install in a future service pack. We are realistic and know there is virtually no chance of this happening.

Patterson Image and Dexis also had no installation problems. All in all, Windows 7 has been an all around positive experience in the first year.

Tired of listening to your modem screech while you wait minutes to submit an electronic insurance claim? Switching to iTrans can save you and your patients a great deal of time.

What is iTrans?
iTrans is a service that allows you to submit insurance claims electronically. While CDAnet has allowed Canadian dentists to submit claims via a modem for years, iTrans utilizes the Internet for transmission. The use of the Internet greatly decreases the wait time for submission.

Why Use iTrans?
First off, the staff will not need to learn anything new. The claim submission process is the same as with CDAnet.
iTrans can save your office and patients a lot of time. Claim transmission time is a fraction of what it takes to do over CDAnet or even manually.
Claim tracking has become extremely easy with the iTrans portal. Here you can view the status of all claims in the last 90 days. No more calling CDAnet to find the status on a stalled claim!

Issues With iTrans?
Alberta Blue Cross claims cannot be sent through iTrans at this time. Continovation Services ( creators of iTrans ) have been working for years to have ABC claims be accepted through iTrans. There is no agreement in sight as of this writing,
There is however, a solution through most management software providers. All ABC claims will be sent through CDAnet and all non-ABC claims are sent through iTrans. This is a fully automated solution and requires no staff intervention.
What does this mean for dentists in Alberta? It is now a safe and good move to start using iTrans.

What Does it Cost?
The cost is included with a CDA membership.
If you are not a CDA membership you may purchase the iTrans service for $585 +tax.

How Do I Get Started?
The first step is to get enrolled with iTrans. This can easily be done through their website:http://www.goitrans.com
Next you’ll need to obtain the proper iTrans software from your Dental Management Software provider ( eg Dentrix, Abeldent, Maxident ).
If you require assistance is the software setup please call us at any time.

Conclusion
Now is a great time to switch to using iTrans. After a short setup it’ll not only save you time but also be more convient. While iTrans sorts out issues with ABC, you can still use CDAnet to send claims electronically.

For  more information please give us a call.