And if you're calling about an online problem and you only have one phone line, for heaven's sake don't try to log on in the middle of your phone call thereby disconnecting from tech support. Have your serial number or other appropriate identification handy. While you're at it, gather up any customer ID numbers, warranties or service agreements relating to the troublesome product or service. Right-click your My Computer icon and select Properties. In the case of hardware, especially operating systems, be prepared to provide a list of any peripherals attached to your computer and any programs running in the background.
Details are crucial.
Copy down the precise wording of any error messages you received while experiencing the problem in question. Though these cryptic messages may not make much sense to you, they were designed to tell the company's techie types exactly what's going on. Tell me what to do. Depending on the level of irritation you provoke in your tech support person, you may be advised to reformat your hard drive and reinstall all your software again. That type of question has a much greater chance of eliciting a helpful response.