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Google is an Error Message’s Best Friend

Today I had to help my father solve a problem he was having with a program he uses to catalog his DVD/Laserdisc collection. I tend to be the go-to person in the family and my circle of friends for computer issues. Some are easier to solve than others, sometimes taking just a few minutes to days of pulling my hair out. One thing I have learned is to search the web for others who have had the same problem and hopefully found a solution.

This particular problem my father had has been something he and a friend have been trying to work out with the software designer but they kept getting the same error code: 1720. None of the suggestions from the software designer worked so I was called in (expert me who sometimes finds the solution by mere accident…but I don’t tell anyone that).

I performed a few maintenance items including a disk cleanup to get rid of any temporary files and turning off his antivirus software in case that might be causing the error. Then I tried to install the updated disk sent to my dad. I still got the same error code.

So, on to the next best thing…Google. I copied the error message and pasted it into Google’s search box and got back plenty of results. I went through the first few and found the answer contained in the 6th result which sent me to downloading a file from Microsoft (yeah, it was their fault).

Now, before I did anything I made sure that documents were backed up and a system restore point set just in case we ran into any problems. No problems were encountered and it looked like I saved the day. Now my father can update his DVD/Laserdisc catalog with the many items he has purchased over the last few months.

Moral of the story: To look like a geek even when you are not let Google do the work for you and make you look like Queen (or King) of the computer world.

I find myself going to Google sooner and sooner as problems have cropped up either on computers or with other gadgets and have not been left wanting. I had a problem last week with an error message that kept popping up with this WordPress blog and I copied and pasted it into Google to find out quickly that it was a plugin that was not compatible with the new WordPress release. Once I updated to the newer plugin the error message vanished. I was very, very happy.

There are other ways of finding answers:

• Call technical support (though many times I find I know more than they do about the problem).
• Search website for the device or software, look under FAQs and Help sections. Sometimes it’s as easy as that and no more problem.
• Post and search on forums dedicated to the computer, software or gadget you are having problems with. I find that when I do a Google search many times the results come back from forum question and answers.
• Ask for help from friends on social sites like Twitter. I had a problem with Firefox one day just taking forever and ever to load and a few friends made suggestions and one fixed the problem and I was back up to speed.

If you have other ways you get support for that nasty blue screen of death on your PC or the dreaded days of “Fatal Error,” leave a comment and give us all a head start the next time computer problems arise.

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