Re: A Door, A Burglar Alarm and Insurance - All you need for Computer Security!

[Guest]

[scoutnshout]

I recently decided to look for a different provider of antivirus and malware, etc, and decided to consider Comodo as a possibility however, after installing your Malware and AV-Beta v2.0.17.58 (most recent vers) and then getting an error that I tried to report I was told to use the forum for support.  Below is his and then my response.

From Comodo Support:
Hi Stephen

Thanks for your mail.

We provide the support for the beta version of product on comodo
 forums.
http://forums.comodo.com/

Please register and submit your query here that will help us to serve
 you better

Regards
Gordon
Technical Support

My response to the CEO:

I'm quite surprised that your personnel would respond this way.

Beta versions (free or not) are typically testing platforms where programmers expect and need feedback in order to correct problems with the programming.  To say to use a forum to try to find out or report a bug hardly reflects well on Comodo and I would very much think long and hard before I would buy or recommend any Comodo products.  I did enlist the forum about this Comodo problem with the AntiVirus BETA version and was told to dump Comodo and use AVAST.

I'd read where you as CEO voiced the opinion that even your free products would receive support and as I indicated, BETA versions are viewed as a primary means of finding out where weaknesses and issues with the products exist. 

If I wanted to make my products better than my competitors then I certainly wouldn't ignore BETA issue reports and never ever leave the impression that my company doesn't stand behind its products - but hey - perhaps that's why I'm going to do as that forum person advised and use Avast.  Probably even become a loyal supporter and look at their products for my needs before I would consider a company that disregards bug reports and leaves users looking elsewhere for answers and at a different company.

Thanks (for nothing it appears)

[eXPerience]

Stephen ,

The forums here are made to help you by mods and normal users. Their experiences could resolve the problem as they have probably had this themselfs. It's sad that you think like this about the Comodo Support, but from what I've noticed they're pretty ineffective (some tickets from september 2007 or something are still on hold ).
So, you're here, why not ask for help at the same time, that's what it's all about not?  In any case, I would advise you to use another antivirus until the new V3 of CAVS is fully tested. 

Xan

[Melih]

I am sorry that you feel that way.

The process we have setup for beta testing and have been following for last few years is through forum. Support personnel have no procedures to follow for free products under beta. We have successfuly utilised the forums, user support, dev support and tried to integrate dev guys with users and it worked with great success so far.

I think the issue here is you don't fully appreciate that our forums are watched and engaged by our dev team and we have some amazing mods who funnel all the bugs found in the forum to our internal bugzilla for devs to act upon.

So the advice the support guy gave was the best way to handle that bug at the end.

Anyway, i am sorry you have felt that way and I really hope you can see what we are trying to do here in this great forum where we have created one of the most friendly, useful and speedy forums that only helps users with answers but helps product development process.

thanks

Melih

[scoutnshout]

I can appreciate that you and any company wouldn't provide direct tech support for a FINALIZED product - BUT for BETA? - I would especially expect that if a user is willing to use and try out a BETA product then the company should be willing to (and desire to) hear all issues and provide support to the user while the product is listed and posted as BETA.

I've been  a programmer, analyst, tech support, system administrator and IT/IS manager over the course of my career and I've evaluated products for purchase where my recommendations resulted in adopting a product or system or not.  I've evaluated commercial products and given the CEO or the President of the software company several legal sized pages of bugs that I'd found so that they could improve their product but my question to them was "why can't your own people find these problems" instead of you charging annual support fees for new versions that are also filled with bugs?".

I applaud you for offering FREE software that you could charge for but part of that approach is also a common marketing tool to get consumers to look at your products and hopefully become customers of one or more of your products.  Again, I disagree that the use of the forum is suitable for BETA or FINALIZED-commercial products.  If a user is willing to risk their system and invest their time to use your BETA version which typically is expected to have problems then YOU should be willing to provide tech support while it's posted and available as BETA.

I did well in my IT career and advanced over others because I provided quality results that resulted in stable IT/IS systems and programming with very few bugs, usually minor and easily fixed which meant lower maintenance costs, less tech support calls and more satisfied users with clients that asked me to look at fixing their other bug filled systems that never seemed to do what was advertised.  My approach to any aspect in the IT environment was always different than the typical programmer or IT director who always seemed to keep turning out bug filled systems and backlogged requests.  So when you indicate that you're sorry I feel that way about your methods I just shake my head as yet another example of a software provider that is really no different than the other companies I've found deficient when I used one of their products.  

You can dispute me if you like, but I know from my experiences and successes in outperforming others in every position I've held and demanding quality from myself as well as others that my demands for higher standards and unyielding striving for quality was never approached by others.  This means I've seldom found a company that goes above and beyond what everyone else provides in a product and service.  As a result, I'm usually disappointed although I keep hoping (to no avail it seems).  

Ask yourself how many other companies software products you've used and found lacking and why.  Ask yourself if you weren't involved with your products would you also find them lacking?  Would you think these products outclass any competitors products and if not, how come?  Perhaps you'll take my criticisms for what they should be, an opportunity to see if you can do things differently and better.  

Anyways, thanks for your time and I hope I find that Comodo software someday meets my simple demand for what others consider unrealistic quality.

Steve

[Melih]

Thanks for taking the time Steve, I really appreciate it.

The point I was trying to make is: you have the lead developers here in the forum helping our beta users. This forum is a different kind of forum where Comodo employees work together with our mods and end users. So the support you get is directly from the lead developers for the beta product! it won't get better than that!

thanks

Melih

[Tags:]