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Habit Solutions - Liphook computer shop - Alex Cameron (5th Apr 2004 - 20:18:37) I just wanted to blatantly plug the wondrous chaps at Habit Solutions in Midhurst Road. These men did what no other engineers could do without ripping me off blind - took my broken, battered laptop and worked for weeks to make it useable again. All that for a **very** good rate, complimented with friendly service and sound advice. I was initially sceptical as i rarely saw many people in there, but things are really picking up. Its about time Liphook had its own computer shop - very handy for us nerds as we no longer have to go all the way to PC World in Guildford for the smallest things. Personally i think it would great if they did an advice column on liphook.co.uk (Allan & Co - no more shift key problems!) However great the service, the website still sucks: http://www.habitsolutions.co.uk/ 01428 722796 - opposite the old 'Alldays' and next to the poncy hairdressers....

Re: Habit Solutions - Liphook computer shop - Steve (6th Apr 2004 - 08:48:51) So tell me what they actually do in there then because their website is dire. I often find myself driving to PC world on a Saturday morning to get cheap parts/spares/upgrades at high prices. I usually only use them if I need something straight away otherwise I mail order off the net.

Re: Habit Solutions - Liphook computer shop - Alex Cameron (6th Apr 2004 - 14:55:07) Well Steve, the clue is in the title :) They're just a little local shop with a range of useful computer things - wires, USB devices etc. They have time to talk that bigger retail outlets don't. I was told by my laptop's manufacturer (*coughs* *splutters* *spits bile*) that it would be 2 weeks and £150 to look at the thing without any guarantee of a fix. Apparently all they do is replace the internal parts without looking at them as its quicker. For those of us who don't have that kind of time, money or patience, Habit is a boon. Just good old fashioned human advice.

Re: Habit Solutions - Liphook computer shop - Steve (8th Apr 2004 - 09:26:00) Yeah but PC World is fun. I love talking to the techies in there, I think up the hardest question then watch them talk rubbish for minutes. According to PC World a few years back the only networking solution was Ethernet and IBM's Token ring never existed. He told me that there was no such thing and you could not get Token Ring NIC's, imagine my suprise only to find a Token Ring networking topology in one of the offices where I was doing some consultancy. I had to ask if they made it up.

Re: Habit Solutions - Liphook computer shop - Alex Cameron (8th Apr 2004 - 13:16:38) As if those guys don't have it hard enough ;) Not sure if they are still doing it, but i remember that there was always some poor sap sitting by the swing doors at the entrance whose entire job description was to say "Hi! thanks for visiting PC World!" to every customer entering the store. And that was it - all day, every day. What a sad, sad life.

Re: Habit Solutions - Liphook computer shop - Paul Robinson (11th Apr 2004 - 08:37:42) Being a non techie, I freely admit I do not understand half the 'jargon' used in this thread, I had the misfortune of having to revisit PC World at Guildford with the Sony Vaio laptop that I had purchased from them. In short it would not start. I followed the scant problem solving instructions given with the machine but after repeated failed attempts I schlepped off to PC World and took my place in a long queue at the 'Support Surgery' a glass box full of kit and morose looking operatives. It took over three quarters of an hour to shuffle up to the counter whereupon the bored techie snapped open my laptop, pressed start and, yes you guessed it, it fired up first time. I had a Basil Fawlty moment and I looked round for a branch from a tree with which to beat the machine. In the event they believed my account of non starting and in a matter of minutes they took the hard disc from my machine and put it into a new laptop and off I went. The point I want to make is that for me, and I suspect the great majority of their customers, visiting PC World is an intimidating experience. The staff, who all look like junior school kids who are doing work experience, seem to take a vicarious pleasure from explaining and demonstrating equipment at the speed of light using as few adjectives as possible leaving the poor customer gaping slack jawed. Tip: Seek out the guy with peach fluff on his acned chin. He is the one approaching puberty and is probably the manager. PC World are missing a trick here. For those attending the "surgery" they should provide a couple of chairs and, like the meat counter at Sainsburys, they should issue queue tickets so that instead of standing in a line that throbs with anger and frustration, customers can browse for more gear that they either don't want or can't understand until their time to be humiliated is due.

Re: Habit Solutions - Liphook computer shop - Steve (12th Apr 2004 - 18:56:57) Was that you? ;o)

Re: Habit Solutions - Liphook computer shop - Mike Grimes (13th Apr 2004 - 23:19:50) Can't help thinking you were not actually in Sainsbury's when you sat in a chair waiting for your number to be called, I cannot recall either chairs or numbers in Sainsbury's . Are you sure that you had not unwittingly entered the Royal Anchor meat raffle? Or maybe, even, bought a Bobby Davro ticket?

Re: Habit Solutions - Liphook computer shop - Jim (28th May 2004 - 08:43:31) Token Ring network - A way a network is organised Ethernet - A way to connect the the network. PCworld was right on this one! You cant buy "token ring" equipment. as an IT consultant myself, i do agree that they employ chimps at PC world.

Re: Habit Solutions - Liphook computer shop - Mike Grimes (28th May 2004 - 17:00:52) Not quite, token-ring (small letters) is a network topology where computers are arranged in a 'ring'. Token Ring (capitalized) is a network protocol (IEEE 802.5) developed by IBM and is an alternative to ethernet (IEEE 802.3) Token Ring products are still available but probably not at PC World.

Re: Habit Solutions - Liphook computer shop - Alex Cameron (30th May 2004 - 17:21:11) PC world is officially useless. My girlfriend's laptop broke so after a period of consultation (with Brad from Habit Solutions) we arrive there to be told they don't do spare parts. We ended up going to Tottenham court road to get a hard drive. I'm not surprised people find it intimidating - they have no time for personal service. Token ring - never heard of it. Sounds like something out of Tolkien? Obviously not the most successful innovation of all time ;) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Token_ring

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