We have the answers

NETWORK WORLD NEWSLETTER: DAVE KEARNS on
NOVELL NETWARE
01/15/02
Today's focus: We have the answers

Dear Wincenty Kaminski,

In this issue:

* Give Novell online support forums a chance
* Links related to Novell NetWare
* Featured reader resource

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Today's focus: We have the answers

By Dave Kearns

Last week's Network World included an opinion piece titled
"Finding grief instead of answers" by Shari Loback. In general,
it was about all vendors' online tech support, but she led
with a diatribe about Novell's online support forums that
included both inaccurate and misleading information.

Loback - who holds MCSE, CNE and CCNA certifications - is a
network engineer at InPro and formed her impressions of
Novell's online forums after using only the Web-based front-
end. Most veterans of that forum, as well as other support
venues, will tell you that using the network news interface is
much easier to read and follow.

She's also mistaken in "recalling" that Novell's forums
"...provided timely, helpful responses from Novell technicians
who seemed to have a solid grasp of the products." In fact,
Novell's support forums haven't been staffed by Novell
employees in almost 15 years - since the very early days of
NetWire on Compuserve.

The forums at http://support.novell.com/forums/ have always
been staffed by volunteers - a motley, but knowledgeable, group
of dedicated professionals formerly called the "NetWare SysOps"
and then later called the "Novell Support Connection Volunteers."
The group is now officially known as "Novell Technical Support
Volunteer SysOps" (but only by one or two people at Novell).

The volunteers form an eclectic group of individuals with
experience in almost all areas of networking. Most importantly,
these folks actually use the products they are supporting -
they aren't just recent college grads reading an infobase.
Check the sysops' bios at
http://support.novell.com/forums/sysop_info.html and you'll
find a fascinating group whose members are scattered around the
world. While often disagreeing with each other about most
things, these folks are united by their desire to deliver the
most accurate and complete support information to the many
users of the forums.

Loback does make some good points. There is no longer a
"search" function for the Web interface (one is being
developed, but is not yet available. Until then, you can use
Google Groups (http://groups.google.com/ ) to search the forums.

Threading of messages also leaves a lot to be desired when
viewed through the Web interface, which can make it difficult
for you to know when a reply to your question has been posted.
But if you are only an occasional user, searching at
http://groups.google.com/advanced_group_search?hl=en using your
own name as the author quickly returns your original question
as well as any responses. Even better, use a newsreader (like
those built into Internet Explorer or Netscape) and have all of
the messages properly threaded for you.

Novell's Support Connection forums are a great buy (they're
free) and provide great information as well as accurate (i.e.,
no marketing allowed!) support. The volunteers aren't afraid to
suggest non-Novell solutions where appropriate. If you aren't
using these forums, then you aren't providing the best support
for your network.

Disclaimer: Dave Kearns was a founding sysop of NetWire on
Compuserve and still volunteers his time to help out on the
Novell Support Connection forums.

Editor's corrections: Lindsey Johnstone works for the City of
Seattle, not Novell and it is the city of Brampton in Ontario
that has bought into ZenWorks for Desktops (see last week's
"Novell picked for massive e-government project").

_______________________________________________________________
To contact Dave Kearns:

Dave Kearns is a writer and consultant in Silicon Valley. His
most recent book is "Peter Norton's Complete Guide to Networks,"
published by SAMS. Dave's company, Virtual Quill, provides
content services to network vendors: books, manuals, white
papers, lectures and seminars, marketing, technical marketing
and support documents. Virtual Quill provides "words to sell
by..." Find out more at http://www.vquill.com/ or by e-mail
at mailto:info@vquill.com
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RELATED EDITORIAL LINKS

Finding grief instead of answers
Network World, 01/07/02
http://www.nwfusion.com/columnists/2002/0107loback.html

Novell support forums
http://support.novell.com/forums/

Novell adding portal punch
Network World, 01/14/02
http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2002/129015_01-14-2002.html

Breaking Novell and NetWare news, updated daily:
http://www.nwfusion.com/news/financial/novell.html

Archive of the Novell NetWare newsletter:
http://www.nwfusion.com/newsletters/netware/index.html
______________________________________________________________
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