How long does customer support take to respond?

mand · 03-27-2009, 01:07 PM

I submitted a ticket nearly 48 hours ago and have only had the auto email acknowledgement. This problem is seriously affecting my use of the iLiad. (I've also got a list of more minor questions to ask one at a time!) How long would you expect to wait for them to come back to me?

I can't phone Germany.

In case someone here can answer sooner, this is my question:
When connected by usb, the pc hangs. At first this happened after the iLiad had been connected for a while, and not every time. Today it happened when i'd only had time to move half a dozen text files off the iLiad. So tonight i can't load files onto the iLiad, nor free up space by moving files off it.

First the iLiad folder (open in Windows) freezes, the pointer showing hourglass when over that folder, but i can still do other things on the pc. Eventually i use Windows Task Manager to close that folder, and the whole pc freezes - blank screen (same colour as my Desktop is normally but no icons, taskbar, or anything). Sometimes i can recover the pc by using Task Manager to open a different folder from the hard drive, but sometimes have to reboot.

Usually after this, the iLiad screen continues to show 'connected to pc', but touching a button or the flipbar often recovers it without having to startup again.

I have iLiad Book Edition with software 2.12.1. Not using the companion software as it is easier to drag+drop between folders. The iLiad is fully charged.

I miss my easy-to-use iLiad!

Shaggy · 03-27-2009, 01:16 PM

Response times vary. They're a really small company, and don't have a huge tech support department like Sony/Amazon, etc. If they're really busy it can sometimes take a few days. If you haven't heard something after another day or so, I'd update the ticket or open a new one to make sure you got their attention.

As far as your problem, I haven't heard that one before. It almost sounds like the PC is mounting the iLiad as a removable drive, and then the iLiad stops responding after some period. The freezing is probably just a side effect of that. Are you exporting the internal memory via the USB connection, or are you having it use a memory card? Any chance the memory has just become corrupt? Maybe you need to reformat it (FAT32).

mand · 03-27-2009, 01:47 PM

Fair enough; i didn't know they were a small company. I'll give it till the middle of next week.

Not using any kind of card, and yes the usb connection.

Reformat - eek. My instinct was saying defrag. But reformatting would lose everything on the iLiad, wouldn't it?

Shaggy · 03-27-2009, 01:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mand

Reformat - eek. My instinct was saying defrag. But reformatting would lose everything on the iLiad, wouldn't it?

Yeah it will. I don't know for sure that's your problem, I'm just guessing. I'd save it as a last resort. See what iRex says first.

Adam B. · 03-27-2009, 02:13 PM

Try running a scandisk (or chkdisk) on the drive when it's plugged into your computer. Right click on the drive letter and go to properties.

mand · 03-27-2009, 03:39 PM

Thanx, Adam - it will have to wait till tomorrow but i'll do that and see what it shows.

This thread is getting itself duplicated at http://forum.irexnet.com/viewtopic.php?p=17455#17455 so probably no point continuing here if that's ok with you too? (Even though the smileys are better here.

)

Terminal Illness · 03-30-2009, 03:15 AM

Its been a week for me with no reply and mine arrived faulty. Incredibly frustrated at the moment.

rhari79 · 03-30-2009, 04:34 AM

Hi mand,
You have requested to continue this thread in irex forum. But since I frequent this forum, I have a suggestion that i can post here quickly.
Hope you dont mind. Please do excuse if this is not appropriate..

When this problem occurs on your pc(windows?),

Could you check your windows event viewer messages?
usually if there is some sort of hardware etc., access error, these get logged in the event viewer (eventvwr in windows run).

Another option is to connect the iliad into linux and check if you are seeing errors on doing a mount/file transfer.

Further, have you tried to connect other usb devices to your pc and do they work normally?
Also have you tried to connect your iliad to another pc?

Based on the type of errors, you can proceed further.

Excuse me if these are silly. But narrowing down the problem to focus only on the iliad and then in some more detail helps a lot.

I feel any tech support(or forum support) will move faster if you can provide additional helpful details.
Hope this helps.

Thanks
hari

mand · 03-31-2009, 09:15 AM

I'm glad of your help wherever you give it, hari!

Eventvwr (thank you - i didn't know about this) showed a few errors last night - some aren't showing today. (Is it normal for them to vanish from the list?)

The only one that mentions the iLiad by name was on 7 March - Event ID: 1000
'Faulting application iliadcompanionsoftware.exe, version 1.1.4.0, faulting module iliadcompanionsoftware.exe, version 1.1.4.0, fault address 0x00003530.'

The ones i saw last night were event 11 and 51, i think. I had to stop before i could copy them or reply on here.

The pc has been having some timeouts and some usb problems too, but i'm not sure that's it. The camera has always connected fine by usb. Day before yesterday, a pendrive started to freeze (just as the iLiad has been) and my husband did something clever(!

) to the port; after that the pendrive was fine, and the iLiad connected fine yesterday morning but went back to the old problems of freezing in the evening.

Today i've had an email from iRex Support (that's 6 days including the weekend, Terminal Illness fyi) saying:
'I suspect the iliad user memory is corrupted i.e some files are corrupt (and basically lost)
'Please drag folder by folder from you \r ilaid to a location on your PC.
Likely one or some files will fail.
'Then format the iliad when connected to the PC - same as any USB stick.'

This echoes what my instinct was saying. But i'm going to scandisk the iLiad before i remove all files.

rhari79 · 03-31-2009, 11:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mand

(Is it normal for them to vanish from the list?)

I am not sure. In my Vista laptop, I can see events since many days back.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mand

The ones i saw last night were event 11 and 51, i think.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/154690
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/244780
I hope I have got the correct evenids in the previous links; Both are kind of dubious. The error can be in the USB controller(means PC usb port) or the device connected to the usb port(the iliad).

Quote:

Originally Posted by mand

some usb problems too.

This again could be a bad usb port or due to a bad device.
Only way to confirm(as a layman that I am) is to connect to a known good usb port and check for errors.

Quote:

Originally Posted by mand

I suspect the iliad user memory is corrupted i.e some files are corrupt (and basically lost)

Personally, I hate to loose data; I always put off the urge to format/delete data when seemingly forced by hardware issues.

I would suggest: change usb port->Backup->scandisk->wait for next error then format; else let the iliad off the hook

Shaggy · 03-31-2009, 12:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mand

Today i've had an email from iRex Support (that's 6 days including the weekend, Terminal Illness fyi) saying:
'I suspect the iliad user memory is corrupted i.e some files are corrupt (and basically lost)
'Please drag folder by folder from you \r ilaid to a location on your PC.
Likely one or some files will fail.
'Then format the iliad when connected to the PC - same as any USB stick.'

This echoes what my instinct was saying. But i'm going to scandisk the iLiad before i remove all files.

That's what I was afraid of (formatting the memory and losing your data). Hopefully a scandisk will make that unnecessary, although it would be nice if it really was just corruption since that can be easily fixed.

Just a note, I always keep backup copies of any files I put on the iLiad (or my wife's ebook reader). That way if something does happen, I can put the files back on again. Whether or not you have to format your memory, I think backups are always a good idea.

mand · 04-02-2009, 05:58 AM

I'm not asking a question yet, just saying thanx for the time being - cannot do much today, if anything, except answer your points. Hoping to investigate tomorrow.

Hari:
I can see events going back days and days, but the second time i looked, i couldn't see the ones i saw the previous evening.

Today i can see for 31 March: 'An error was detected on device \Device\Harddisk3\D during a paging operation.' - 4 times in 4 minutes. (Event ID 7000.) I'm sure this is the iLiad.

Thanx for finding those events - i hate going into Microsoft support! I will try and use that info this afternoon or tomorrow.

I haven't got access to a good usb port that i can use for long enough to check this - unless maybe... i'll have to see if i can borrow.

I hate losing files too!

Shaggy: i have been backing up but if some files are corrupted, i've been backing those up too (or failing to) of course.

I had been thinking to use the iLiad as a kind of backup disk itself, as i do a pendrive, but have changed my mind on that!

Copying them off the iLiad one folder at a time, i did find half a dozen of my pdfs corrupt incl one merged pdf which i may or may not be able to merge again, plus some mobipocket files.

Then i lost my nerve and didn't delete from the iLiad - was very tired, not feeling strong

- and haven't had a chance yet. This morning (nowhere near the pc) i found i can't delete files on the iLiad. Including some i could have sworn i had already deleted, while it was connected to the pc.

Just noting what stage i'm at. I still have to:
- connect and see about those files that i thought i deleted before, and can't delete using the iLiad
- delete everything off the iLiad, being sure i have it all backed up
- something else...

No-brain hitting - and i'm in a hurry at this moment - at least i have this 'log' here now to refer back to. Thanx for your ideas so far...

03-27-2009, 03:39 PM	#6
mand Zealot Posts: 112 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Wiltshire, UK Device: Kindle Paperwhite 7th gen; Kindle Keyboard; iRex iLiad	Thanx, Adam - it will have to wait till tomorrow but i'll do that and see what it shows. This thread is getting itself duplicated at http://forum.irexnet.com/viewtopic.php?p=17455#17455 so probably no point continuing here if that's ok with you too? (Even though the smileys are better here.)

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Smashwords customer support	amoroso	General Discussions	10	09-21-2010 01:56 AM
Classic How is Customer Support?	delphidb96	Barnes & Noble NOOK	4	08-01-2010 01:22 AM
Why not asking IREX customer support?	CoolDragon	iRex	37	02-26-2010 03:11 PM
Sony Customer Support	kcnightfang	Sony Reader	4	12-24-2009 11:32 PM
Amazon's horrible customer support/service	jswinden	Amazon Kindle	25	05-15-2009 01:30 AM

03-27-2009, 01:07 PM	#1
mand Zealot Posts: 112 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Wiltshire, UK Device: Kindle Paperwhite 7th gen; Kindle Keyboard; iRex iLiad	How long does customer support take to respond? I submitted a ticket nearly 48 hours ago and have only had the auto email acknowledgement. This problem is seriously affecting my use of the iLiad. (I've also got a list of more minor questions to ask one at a time!) How long would you expect to wait for them to come back to me? I can't phone Germany. In case someone here can answer sooner, this is my question: When connected by usb, the pc hangs. At first this happened after the iLiad had been connected for a while, and not every time. Today it happened when i'd only had time to move half a dozen text files off the iLiad. So tonight i can't load files onto the iLiad, nor free up space by moving files off it. First the iLiad folder (open in Windows) freezes, the pointer showing hourglass when over that folder, but i can still do other things on the pc. Eventually i use Windows Task Manager to close that folder, and the whole pc freezes - blank screen (same colour as my Desktop is normally but no icons, taskbar, or anything). Sometimes i can recover the pc by using Task Manager to open a different folder from the hard drive, but sometimes have to reboot. Usually after this, the iLiad screen continues to show 'connected to pc', but touching a button or the flipbar often recovers it without having to startup again. I have iLiad Book Edition with software 2.12.1. Not using the companion software as it is easier to drag+drop between folders. The iLiad is fully charged. I miss my easy-to-use iLiad!

03-27-2009, 01:16 PM	#2
Shaggy Wizard Posts: 4,293 Karma: 529619 Join Date: May 2007 Device: iRex iLiad, DR800SG	Response times vary. They're a really small company, and don't have a huge tech support department like Sony/Amazon, etc. If they're really busy it can sometimes take a few days. If you haven't heard something after another day or so, I'd update the ticket or open a new one to make sure you got their attention. As far as your problem, I haven't heard that one before. It almost sounds like the PC is mounting the iLiad as a removable drive, and then the iLiad stops responding after some period. The freezing is probably just a side effect of that. Are you exporting the internal memory via the USB connection, or are you having it use a memory card? Any chance the memory has just become corrupt? Maybe you need to reformat it (FAT32).

03-27-2009, 01:47 PM	#3
mand Zealot Posts: 112 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Wiltshire, UK Device: Kindle Paperwhite 7th gen; Kindle Keyboard; iRex iLiad	Fair enough; i didn't know they were a small company. I'll give it till the middle of next week. Not using any kind of card, and yes the usb connection. Reformat - eek. My instinct was saying defrag. But reformatting would lose everything on the iLiad, wouldn't it?

03-27-2009, 02:13 PM	#5
Adam B. Addicted to Porting Posts: 1,697 Karma: 7194 Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Indianapolis, IN Device: iRex iLiad, Nokia 770, Samsung i760	Try running a scandisk (or chkdisk) on the drive when it's plugged into your computer. Right click on the drive letter and go to properties.

03-30-2009, 03:15 AM	#7
Terminal Illness Junior Member Posts: 9 Karma: 10 Join Date: Mar 2009 Device: iLiad Book Edition	Its been a week for me with no reply and mine arrived faulty. Incredibly frustrated at the moment.

03-30-2009, 04:34 AM	#8
rhari79 Addict Posts: 375 Karma: 2200000 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Chennai Device: .*	Hi mand, You have requested to continue this thread in irex forum. But since I frequent this forum, I have a suggestion that i can post here quickly. Hope you dont mind. Please do excuse if this is not appropriate.. When this problem occurs on your pc(windows?), Could you check your windows event viewer messages? usually if there is some sort of hardware etc., access error, these get logged in the event viewer (eventvwr in windows run). Another option is to connect the iliad into linux and check if you are seeing errors on doing a mount/file transfer. Further, have you tried to connect other usb devices to your pc and do they work normally? Also have you tried to connect your iliad to another pc? Based on the type of errors, you can proceed further. Excuse me if these are silly. But narrowing down the problem to focus only on the iliad and then in some more detail helps a lot. I feel any tech support(or forum support) will move faster if you can provide additional helpful details. Hope this helps. Thanks hari

03-31-2009, 09:15 AM	#9
mand Zealot Posts: 112 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Wiltshire, UK Device: Kindle Paperwhite 7th gen; Kindle Keyboard; iRex iLiad	I'm glad of your help wherever you give it, hari! Eventvwr (thank you - i didn't know about this) showed a few errors last night - some aren't showing today. (Is it normal for them to vanish from the list?) The only one that mentions the iLiad by name was on 7 March - Event ID: 1000 'Faulting application iliadcompanionsoftware.exe, version 1.1.4.0, faulting module iliadcompanionsoftware.exe, version 1.1.4.0, fault address 0x00003530.' The ones i saw last night were event 11 and 51, i think. I had to stop before i could copy them or reply on here. The pc has been having some timeouts and some usb problems too, but i'm not sure that's it. The camera has always connected fine by usb. Day before yesterday, a pendrive started to freeze (just as the iLiad has been) and my husband did something clever(! ) to the port; after that the pendrive was fine, and the iLiad connected fine yesterday morning but went back to the old problems of freezing in the evening. Today i've had an email from iRex Support (that's 6 days including the weekend, Terminal Illness fyi) saying: 'I suspect the iliad user memory is corrupted i.e some files are corrupt (and basically lost) 'Please drag folder by folder from you \r ilaid to a location on your PC. Likely one or some files will fail. 'Then format the iliad when connected to the PC - same as any USB stick.' This echoes what my instinct was saying. But i'm going to scandisk the iLiad before i remove all files.

04-02-2009, 05:58 AM	#12
mand Zealot Posts: 112 Karma: 10 Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Wiltshire, UK Device: Kindle Paperwhite 7th gen; Kindle Keyboard; iRex iLiad	I'm not asking a question yet, just saying thanx for the time being - cannot do much today, if anything, except answer your points. Hoping to investigate tomorrow. Hari: I can see events going back days and days, but the second time i looked, i couldn't see the ones i saw the previous evening. Today i can see for 31 March: 'An error was detected on device \Device\Harddisk3\D during a paging operation.' - 4 times in 4 minutes. (Event ID 7000.) I'm sure this is the iLiad. Thanx for finding those events - i hate going into Microsoft support! I will try and use that info this afternoon or tomorrow. I haven't got access to a good usb port that i can use for long enough to check this - unless maybe... i'll have to see if i can borrow. I hate losing files too! Shaggy: i have been backing up but if some files are corrupted, i've been backing those up too (or failing to) of course. I had been thinking to use the iLiad as a kind of backup disk itself, as i do a pendrive, but have changed my mind on that! Copying them off the iLiad one folder at a time, i did find half a dozen of my pdfs corrupt incl one merged pdf which i may or may not be able to merge again, plus some mobipocket files. Then i lost my nerve and didn't delete from the iLiad - was very tired, not feeling strong - and haven't had a chance yet. This morning (nowhere near the pc) i found i can't delete files on the iLiad. Including some i could have sworn i had already deleted, while it was connected to the pc. Just noting what stage i'm at. I still have to: - connect and see about those files that i thought i deleted before, and can't delete using the iLiad - delete everything off the iLiad, being sure i have it all backed up - something else... No-brain hitting - and i'm in a hurry at this moment - at least i have this 'log' here now to refer back to. Thanx for your ideas so far...

Advert

Advert