Windows XP Pro: The Missing Manual, Second Edition

Getting Help from Microsoft

If you run into trouble with the installation—or with any Windows XP feature—the world of Microsoft is filled with sources of technical help. For example, you can consult:

Figure 4-10. You, the guru, have just received a .MsRcIncident ticket—an invitation to help somebody whose PC needs troubleshooting. Lucky you! And by the way: If the novice, a trusting individual, has sent you a Remote Assistance ticket that doesn’t expire for a very long time (99 days, for example), keep it around on your desktop or in your Start menu. From now on, both of you can skip all of the invitation-and-response rigamarole. Now, whenever he needs your help, he can just call you up or email you. And all you have to do is double-click your ticket and wait for the OK from the other side.

• The Microsoft Help Web pages. Direct your Web browser (if, indeed, your computer works) to http://www.microsoft.com/support. There you’ll find a long list of help resources that handle many of the most common questions: a database of help articles that you can search, a list of known glitches that Microsoft has published, newsgroups (Internet bulletin boards) where you can post questions and return later to read the answers, and so on.

• Free phone help. If you bought Windows XP (that is, it didn’t come on your computer), you can call Microsoft for free phone help during business hours. The company ...