Pizzo
Computer Consulting
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About Us:We are a husband and wife team. We also have a network of other support professionals who can assist us during emergencies. We provide personalized computer support for Macs and PCs in Port Townsend, Bainbridge Island, Poulsbo, Kingston, Silverdale, Kitsap County, and Jefferson County and beyond (via phone and internet). Who is John Pizzo?I started out as a High School science teacher and a scientist. I started using computers in 1984 after seeing a 6 year old kid sitting at a Macintosh and working with Mac Paint. I thought “that’s the level of complexity that I want in a computer!” At the time I was the Quality Control Manager for a medical device plant. I got the computer for work and have been keeping up with computers ever since. Having started in computers very early on, I found myself having to solve my own computer problems and I realized that I’m not only good at it but I enjoy it too! I use computers for productivity and creativity. One of my special skills is that I’m “bilingual”: I can speak both “computers” and English. I’m more of teacher and technician than a geek. I continued to use computers professionally in Sales, Marketing, and Production management until 1998 when I took a position at Microsoft. I worked at Microsoft for 6 1/2 years. I worked on Mac Office 98, Publisher 2000 and 2002, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. I created training materials and taught the Product Service and Support professionals who answer your calls when you phone Microsoft (back when Microsoft had people in the United States to answer your questions.) I left Microsoft to start Pizzo Computer Consulting in July 2002. My goal was to provide the technical support to small businesses and individuals that large corporations like Microsoft, Apple, Dell, HP, AOL, MSN, Earthlink … can’t provide. One of the services that I provide is the ability to speak on your behalf to those companies when things go wrong. They’ll listen to me long after they have dismissed you and told you it wasn't their fault (when it often is their fault!) I also have the ability to stay calm and focused when you and your computer are “in crisis”. My wife says that I have the patience of a saint. Who is Susan Grant?Susan Grant, my wife, is the creative inspiration and partner behind the scenes. For better or worse, she talked me into starting my computer consulting business. She coined the phrase “Taming your computer nightmares with patience, humor, and years of professional experience” and many of the clever explanations that I use. Susan helps me understand what normal, everyday people and small businesses need to know about computers and how to explain technical things in plain English. The wonderful portrait that I use on my letterhead and business card were photographed by her. Dream City Photography is her primary business (I’m the technical guru for her business and helped create her digital darkroom, etc.). What is our philosophy?As I mentioned, I believe that the computer (Mac or PC) is a tool for increasing your productivity. Computers have become necessary components in virtually every business and most households. With that in mind, I don’t believe in always upgrading to the “latest and greatest” gadget or program or upgrade or update out there. The question is, “Will this make my life better?” If not, then wait. My wife, the normal computer user, says “Buy everything all at once: the computer, the printer, the software, the scanner, and so on because they will all be compatible. Then, hold on to that whole system for as long as it works well for you. Do not upgrade piecemeal. Then, when a strong enough need to upgrade comes along, replace the whole system.” You might get laughed at, but this approach will save you thousands of dollars and uncountable headaches over the long run. I stand by my work. If something that I did isn’t right, I’ll work with you to make it right. If a product that I told you to buy doesn’t work, I’ll work with you (for free) to make it right. For example, one customer ordered an expensive server from Dell. It came in and I had spent 20 hours setting it up when the server died. I did not charge the customer one penny for the time I spent working with Dell to replace the defective server or the time to set up the replacement computer when it came in. Equipment and software purchasesWe do not have a storefront, nor do we stock computer equipment or software. Occasionally, I purchase items for my customers. More often than not, I spec out what my customers need and tell them the best places to make their purchases. I do work closely with a company called CDW that provides a wide range of PC and Mac products. I work with them because they stand by their sales and support better than most of the manufacturers. CDW offers me a discount because of the volume of business I send their way. I pass this discount directly onto my customers. Unfortunately, hardware product quality has diminished for all manufacturers. Too high a percentage of computers, printers, scanners, cameras, modems, and monitors fail in a short period of time. It’s a sad statement, but true. I do not recommend that you purchase hardware or software “deals” on the internet. I’ve never had a customer get a “deal too good to be true” that didn’t cost more in support than the customer “saved” versus buying from a more legitimate source. I do not recommend buying “demo” hardware from anybody. Most demo units have been “rode hard and put away wet” and will never perform like a brand new unit. I do not condone pirated software. While I agree that the price of many software programs is too high, pirating software puts you at risk. I have seen the Business Software Alliance come to companies with as few as 5 computers. The fines for having pirated software are very steep. Also, pirated software puts you at risk for not being able to get necessary patches and updates to keep your computer safe and secure. |
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