A timely tip in anticipation of the inevitable.

Our Technical Support department reports that nearly 60% of all calls relating to 'faulty' equipment turn out to be interconnect problems. About half of these are faulty cables, and the other half are the result of having the equipment connected wrong.

What's even more frustrating is that a statistically significant number of these issues require multiple calls to resolve because some callers declare they have 'checked' the cables when they really have not. We've seen many problems over the years that one would never dream would be cable-related, yet turn out to be.

Rule Number One: If at all possible replace the cable before calling Technical Support.

Other Rule Number One: Consult your manual. We know they aren't enjoyable to read at the moment you are struggling with your new toy, but there's a good chance the information you need is in there. There is also a reasonably good chance you can work through the problem with a combination of the manual, trial and error, and a little perseverance.

All that said, we do want our customers to feel free to call us should you have problems and need help. We will have Technical Support staff here on Saturday, as always, and again on Tuesday. In order to get the fastest service, please have your invoice handy when you call, and have a list of specific problems (including any error messages) and what you've tried thus far. Good luck.