The Acer Guy

Just when you thought I was back up to speed…

We’ve just found out that my son suffers from celiac disease and I’m going into hospital with him for three nights while they perform a biopsy and heaven knows what else on him. I will have my trusty TravelMate with me but I’m going to be limping for the remainder of the week.

So if I haven’t got back to you yet, or if you don’t see a million new posts up here after the success in Vienna, this is why.

UPDATE: We’re back. It was a rough night (or two) but we’re both in one piece. Looks like we’re going to become friends with the local pharmacy but at least we know what’s been bothering him.

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OK, most if not all of the managers and employees are all heading to Vienna, the speeches are all signed off (expect one), the stage is set…. I wish I knew a blogger who was going to the event. Scoble? Richard? Nah…

Still, it gives me a chance to catch up on some of the backlog of brochures that have been put on hold. I think one may no longer be in production. Oops.

Ah and another thing. If you’re wondering when I’m going to reply to your mail(s), well, today I’ll go through those too. Apologies all round.

Today’s the day I finally get round to ordering a new video camera in an attempt to get my little enormous project off the ground. In the end I decided on the Canon HV20 as I’m not convinced that the AVCHD is ready for prime time just yet. Besides all of the short films are going up on YouTube anyway so quality’s compromised from the start.

I’ll keep you posted on how I get on.

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It looks like I’m about to go down with my fifth flu this winter (no, I am not kidding) but before I do, I need to ask if there’s someone out there who knows his or her way around iTunes under Vista.

Got a mail from Liz who’s having problems burning CDs which is one of the main reasons she bought her Extensa 4620Z in the first place.

In her mail, Liz writes:

When I go to burn a disc using iTunes I get a message that reads “attempt to burn a disc failed unknown error 2131″ & it ejects the disc automatically. After some research on Apple Support and reading user discussions it seems that many Dell users that have the same cd drive as I do have had the same problem. Some were able to get Dell to provide new cd drives for them and now Dell has made a patch that you can download to fix the problem and burn cd’s.

I e-mailed Acer Technical support yesterday and am yet to hear a response.
I phoned Geek Squad at Best Buy where I purchased the Acer and they couldn’t help me. I then phoned Acer Technical Support and was told Vista and iTunes are not compatible and there was no patch coming from Acer and nothing that could be done so I can burn cd’s from iTunes. I asked if downloading the Dell patch would work and if it would void my warranty and I was told that if I did that and had a hardware malfunction it would void my warranty (I’m not even sure the Dell patch would work just grasping at straws here).

It is very frustrating that burning cd’s from iTunes was one of my primary reasons to buy a computer and this computer doesn’t do what I want. Any help or suggestions you can give would be greatly appreciated!

Now I’m relatively familiar with iTunes but have never heard of this particular problem. Also Simone doesn’t have access to an Extensa model so he suggested trying to burn using NTI CD-DVD maker / MPlayer or any other burning software by changing the settings within iTunes so that it imports audio files in the MP3 format which you can then burn with NTI CD/DVD Maker but it’s a long-winded solution…

Liz is toying with the idea of downgrading to Windows XP and I’d really like to help her out before she does. Anyone out there with suggestions?

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There’s a bit of a lull over at The Acer Guy HQ.

Guess that’s the price for working flat out over the entire Christmas period.

The buzz here at the moment is all about the kickoff event in a week’s time. If you ask me I think they should re-invent the name and bring it up to date (AcerWorld… Acer-Insight… Acerinteraction…?), open it up to members of the public and stream it on the main website. It’s an event dammit, invite some friends, crack open a few glasses and let’s have a party!

Whatever. “Kickoff” does the job.

This year of course there will be a lot of new faces staring at each other for the first time and my own personal contribution this time around was to change the style of language and welcome everyone on board. Of course anyone following my Twitter page will know I lost a not inconsiderable battle over how far I was allowed to change the language but it’s early days and these messages grow throughout the year.

One great thing that a merger like this does is shake things up a little. You get to consolidate your position in some areas and explore new ground with new ideas, concepts and products and that’s where I’m looking right now. Thought the original Gemstone was good? Watch this space…

Another plus is the possibility to differentiate your messages to new markets and customers that the one-size-fits-all school of marketing never allowed you to do. That requires new insights, new ideas and - yes! - a new language medium. Could this be the year Acer gets its digital mojo going? If it does, you know where I’ll be sitting

Blogging still isn’t a major priority but at least I haven’t been reigned in so there’s still a conversation going for those of us who believe that dialogue is the best form of communication.

While I’m on the subject of communication, I’d like to congratulate Dell on it’s latest idea. I’m not sure how far I think they’ll be able to brand an entire generation but at least it’s a worthy cause. So much so I’ve joined up. Anyone who can read my dedication on “The Wall” can read a damned sight faster than me. I’m interested to see at what point the idea tips.

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I’d like to change this graphics of this site completely but can’t find the right theme. Anyone have any ideas?

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I’d like to take a few minutes out to talk about one of the most important elements of this blog. Simone.

The success and dare I mention it authority of this blog is due in no small part to his generosity, his own particular skill and, most important of all his belief that he can do a lot more for Acer’s customers.

If you look at blogs from other IT brands, there are always personalities behind them that believe in the value of the medium.

At Dell, without question the leader in this particular form of communication, it’s the chemistry between Lionel Menchaca and Richard Binhammer that has set the blogging world alight and helped transform public opinion of the company.

At HP, there no fewer than 52 corporate blogs in addition to 9 “Personal Interest Blogs”, although I’m not sure which one represents the company most.

Lenovo, of course, has David Churbuck who strikes up more interest and involvement than your average presidential debate (except this year’s).

OK, The Acer Guy is hardly a mega-site and there is no comparison between the way feedback gets absorbed into the company ethos from those sites and mine but the indefatigable willingness of Simone to roll up his sleeves and answer every single question I (you) throw at him puts him up there with the greats.

I’m sure all of you who’ve written to thank me for solving your numerous problems will agree.

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OK so I’m a day late, but I’m going to start by wishing you all a very happy, serene and prosperous 2008.

2007 was a pretty amazing year for me, first and foremost because of the arrival of my son, Alex, but professionally speaking, I have never felt so close to the purpose of my job. What on earth do I mean by that? Well up until the arrival of this blog, everything I did for and on behalf of Acer was “safe”. There were no questions, no interruptions and no objections. It was as if everything I did was great, absolute. I was an invisible superstar

But then last Christmas, Edelman played a little party piece that put Acer under the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. I have spent 10 years putting Acer’s products into words and seeing them transformed into political weapons wasn’t exactly how I’d expected it to turn out.

So I started to listen and, not being able to keep my mouth shut (or my hands still) participate in the conversations and from that moment on, nothing was the same. From absolute and untouchable, my words became relative and accountable.

Have any of you noticed a subtle change in presentation and attitude of Acer ever since the launch of the 5920 Gemstone back in May? If you have, you have yourselves to thank for it.

So here’s to a wonderfully productive 2008 full of conversation, collaboration and - fingers crossed - change.

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