Got A Mac Or OS X Problem? Share With Others.

Got a gripe with your Mac? Can’t get something to work right in OS X? Your iLife ‘05 suite isn’t so sweet? That new iPod is causing you grief?

Share the pain and try Apple’s new technical support message boards: now personalized.

I’ve been a Mac user for a long, long time. Worse, I’m an early adopter to new Apple toys so I’m on the bleeding edge for what’s new and what’s painful.

New today is Apple’s improved technical support message boards. Think of it as a Mac360 forum for a few million more Mac users.

Remarkably, message boards are utilized by but a small fraction of Mac users (or internet users on any forums, bulletin boards, message boards) to obtain technical support.

Even with the new and improved Mac360 Forums, the number of registered users remains small, relative to the readers, and smaller relative to the number of daily visitors to the Mac360 site.

That’s the way it usually is with forums and message boards.

That said, most forums/message boards/bulletin boards (generally, functionality is the same) can provide a wealth of timely information, tips, suggestions, and plain old ‘emergency help’ when you’re in crisis mode.

Apple’s so-called Discussion Boards have undergone a bit of a face lift. They look similar but Apple’s added some excellent new functionality.

First, why should you read message boards or even share in the discussion? Most Mac users don’t read; even fewer participate. Why?

We’re a society of instant gratification, and discussion boards (let me stick with that term since that’s what Apple uses), take some effort to search for and find relevant information.

Got a problem with your iPod? Most of us want to call someone or drop it by a service center and have someone fix it or show us what’s wrong.

The same holds true with problems on our Macs, right? Ditto for an issue that crops up with one of the iLife applications.

Amazingly, Macs and Mac OS X and Apple applications are complext beasts and require periodic maintenance, and, when problems crop up, they require solutions. The discussion boards help.

Apple’s ‘discussions’ often have the very same helpful information you’d get from someone at the Apple Store Genius Bar.

Instead of waiting in line, browse the discussions. You will learn something new that could help you with your next problem.

If you’ve looked through message boards or forums in the past, you know they function pretty much the same way. Once you register and login, you can post a message in a given category, and others, either with the same problem or a solution, can post a response.

You don’t even have to register to read the discussion groups or search for specific topics. Asking questions, though, usually gets a response.

New in the udpated Apple Discussion Boards is an improved search function. We can’t tell if the servers are Mac OS X or not, or if some version of Spotlight is being used, but the new search function is faster and adds features like numbers and proximity searches.

Also new for Apple is RSS support. This is a superb feature (also available in the Mac360 Forums) works great with Safari.

With the Apple version of RSS, you can select and track specific topics, so when a user posts a response, you’ll hear about it without having to visit the Apple Discussion Boards.

For those of you who wish to register, login, and post questions and responses, you’ll now be able to edit your own posts, add bold, italics, and other ‘emphasis’ components. Your posts are also set as to your local time.

A huge improvement is the ability to post a question, then to mark the question as answered after you receive appropriate responses, or simply find the right answer yourself.

When you register for a user forum such as Apple’s Discussion Boards (and the Mac360 Forums), it’s usually done anonymously. Other users will only know you by your ‘alias’ name. Email addresses are usually hidden.

In the Mac360 Forums you can communicate privately with other forums users by the Control Panel, which lets you send private messages. Again, privacy is important.

The Mac360 Forums allow avatars (cute photos of who you’d like to be known as), though the Apple Discussion Boards do not.

The reading is always interesting on the Apple Discussion Boards. You’ll find very knowledgable users who post regularly and assist other users. Of course, there’s a few whiners here and there, too.

If you’re not a regular Mac360 Forums reader, and haven’t checked out the Apple Discussion Boards, either, do so. As with anything new, it takes a bit to get used to the ‘online style for discussion’ of most user forums.

Apple’s Discussion Boards are an excellent location for new information. Click Here and you’ll see what I mean.

There are tens of thousands of messages posted, and responses posted, on all Apple hardware, iLife, Mac OS X, even select applications within Mac OS X (iCal, iChat, iSync, Safari, etc.).

Summary
Apple’s new Discussion Boards offer quick support for learning about Apple’s products and for getting something fixed or working. It’s free, but requires a bit of patience.

Bambi Hambi
I love the new RSS feature. Gone are the Bookmarks, though. Being able to subscribe and bookmark a topic discussion was handy. Better yet is the RSS link which notifies you on a per-Topic basis.

Jack D. Miller
I’ll miss the bookmarks. RSS is great. I’ve noticed the search is faster. Even pro users have a section for Logic, Final Cut, DVD Studio Pro.

Carol Mary Miller
I’m not an early adopter and I usually have more questions than answers. Apple’s discussion boards are an excellent way to find information about a problem without having to pay someone to tell you.

How about you? Got an Apple discussion boards experience? Gripe? Complaint? List of kudos?

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