Too many frustrations

Discussion in 'Acronis True Image Product Line' started by Xpilot, Mar 15, 2007.

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  1. Xpilot

    Xpilot Registered Member

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    In the absence of any Acronis reply to this recent post
    [​IMG]Re: Does the update for TI v10 fix everything?

    I decided to go ahead anyway and replace build 4940 with build 4042 in TI version 10

    The reason I went ahead was not that there was anything I could not cope with in 4040 but I wanted to keep up to date and possibly contribute to help others in this forum.

    All previous recent updates have retained my backup schedules and they have run without a stutter when the new build was installed. 4942 did not keep my scheduled backup and it did not run. So I edited the task and started it manually.
    The backup task then started but it was running much more slowly that under the previous build.

    At this point the end of my thether had been reached. I removed Build 4942 and went back to 4040.

    Until Acronis can start treating their customers like adults and provide and provide them with meaningful change lists as each new build is published I will no longer waste my time contributing to this forum.

    Xpilot
     
  2. foghorne

    foghorne Registered Member

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    This makes my blood boil. It is page 1 stuff.

    Ignoring, deleting or corrupting user configuration from the previous build is absolutely unacceptable.

    I am sorry to hear it is still going on. I seem to remember all my eight or ten schedules were bolloxed-up when I upgraded from v8 to v9. Unthinkable that this might happen between builds of the same version.

    I'm so cross :oops:

    F.
     
  3. Ralphie

    Ralphie Registered Member

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    I wonder if we all stopped putting in our "two bits" if users would eventually stop coming to the forum for help. The official help seems to be about two or three weeks behind in answering users if they do answer at all.
     
    Last edited: Mar 15, 2007
  4. techtype

    techtype Registered Member

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    A strike until we get decent changelogs, I'm for it!
     
  5. seekforever

    seekforever Registered Member

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    Count me in, or is that out? I have said previously that I am spending too much time answering Acronis' questions when I have other things to do but seem to get drawn back in.

    If Acronis had to answer all the questions that many on this forum do they might do something about the changelogs, weak new-user documentation, and poor quality control like new features that never work as intended until at least 2 later builds have been released.
     
  6. bobdat

    bobdat Registered Member

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    I remember back in the early days of TI8 that Acronis Support would at least try to reply to most posts within a day or two. Of course, most of their replies back then were questions - cryptic, redundant, canned script, misleading and relatively useless in content.

    Now, Acronis Support is completely absent from this forum. When they do make a token late reply, it is laughably worthless either linking to a previous outdated user response or to some previous official request for a user to chase his tail and supply more details to be forwarded to the nonexistent Acronis Development Team.

    I haven't spent a dime on Acronis software since TI8 nor have I recommended it to anyone since Acronis' promises to me proved absolutely worthless and timewasting.

    Nor, have I and some of the other formerly dedicated regulars contributed much to the ongoing user pleas posted here lately.

    Fellas, until you all get your heads out of your butts and stop answering the very questions that Acronis Support is obligated to answer for their paying customers right here in this OFFICIAL ACRONIS SUPPORT FORUM, Acronis will continue to avoid their responsibility to their paying customers and palm it off on suckers like you (and I used to be) who have unwittingly turned this into a SELF-HELP USER GROUP instead of an ACRONIS OFFICIAL SUPPORT FORUM.

    I'm all for helping my fellow TI user but I learned that Acronis doesn't deserve to continue to get away with their constant non-delivery on promises, updates, upgrades, functionality and a host of other shortfalls.

    Acronis has a HUGE integrity problem and it has gotten worse in the last two years that I've been around....

    I'm sorry to sound bitter toward Acronis but they earned it many, many times over right here in this forum by the way they treat their most dedicated, paying customers - you and me.
     
  7. fphall

    fphall Registered Member

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    Makes sense to me... let acronis sink or swim on their "customer support", either way, they will get what they deserve.

    JMHO.
     
  8. CatFan432

    CatFan432 Registered Member

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    No argument with any of the sentiments expressed here, except the one that suggests I’m a sucker with my head up my butt.

    That being said, of course you all contribute to this forum because you find helping people rewarding and the forum interesting, not because you’re looking out for Acronis. Most people find this computer stuff an uninteresting necessary task; I think a large percentage of those truly, deeply, hate having to learn anything about it. This forum benefits those people greatly when they are faced with problems learning new software.

    So, my request as a minor contributor to this forum, who has learned a great deal from each of you, please have a tall glass of your favorite and consider reconsidering. The chances Acronis will change their behavior is probably remote, that your input will be missed is a sure thing, and that you’ll miss contributing is a strong possibility.

    Highest regards, CatFan
     
  9. MudCrab

    MudCrab Imaging Specialist

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    I agree with CatFan.

    I have learned a lot about the Acronis products and making & restoring backup images, the pitfalls, and the eventual successes (in most case). While I currently use TI and DD and will probably continue to do so, I agree that Acronis support is extremely lacking on the forum and usually unhelpful when it arrives. I can't imagine posting a question and waiting two to three weeks for the answer and I doubt that most the posts that Acronis makes ever get read by the original poster because they've long since given up, switched to something else or got help from a regular poster.

    That being said, out of all the backup programs I've used over the years (and it's been quite a few) NONE of them have worked as advertised. This has been and continues to be the unfortunate state of the software world.
     
  10. Antarctica

    Antarctica Registered Member

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    Agree with you, but it's understandable people are getting frustrated and mad. Acronis is using you and me as "beta tester" and yet they don't contribute much to their Forum.o_O
     
  11. CatFan432

    CatFan432 Registered Member

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    Oh yeah I understand the frustration, I more or less count on having to wipe TI completely from my system and do a totally clean install each time I upgrade or update. We're more like Alpha Testers, as beta testing involves recruiting willing participants to troubleshoot prior to general release.
     
  12. Colvin

    Colvin Registered Member

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    Hmmm, I guess I'm one of those "black sheep", eh? I've been using Acronis products for 6 years, including True Image and rarely have I had a problem. When I did, Tech Support has always provided me with a speedy answer. In the beginning, it was within hours. But with the increased customer base, it is understandable, (evidently only to me a a few others of the 'silent majority') that wait times will be longer. In fact, e-mailed Acronis 2 days ago and got a response early this morning. No complaints here.

    That a few, and they ARE the minority, albeit the most vocal, have problems is unfortunate. But it is still true that True Image is one of the best, if not THE best backup software on the market for the home user. Since I have no experience in using their corporate versions I cannot speak to that nor offer an intelligent and informed opinion.

    So, I say.... give Acronis a break, will ya? They aren't perfect and in fact I have never read anything in their literature that even implies that they are. Being a business, Acronis is more than aware that unhappy customers result in hurting the proverbial "bottom line". So, if you actually think that Acronis is using its customer base as guinea pig beta testers, or any of the other pejorative remarks tossed out here, then may I suggest that you see your doctor and demand he examine you to see if you are suffering from "Cranial Rectosis". :D
     
  13. foghorne

    foghorne Registered Member

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    I'm not convinced they are. They don't appear to give a toss.

    I disagree. They take money for software knowing that it may not work, on the basis that the customer will spend time helping them resolve the issue.

    Apart from the money and the NDA this is pretty close to the spirit of beta testing IMV - and I have witnessed this intentional philosophy since V1 of True Image Deluxe in 2002.

    F.
     
    Last edited: Mar 16, 2007
  14. Ralphie

    Ralphie Registered Member

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    With your total posts in the forum of 68 since joining in 2004 you should be the last person to make that statement. Eh! :) But for me too, True Image has worked well once you understand its limitations.
     
  15. jamiep0143

    jamiep0143 Registered Member

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    Well I am about fed up with the lack of response from Acronis support team. On issues that require a relatively fast response it may take days if at all. Are there only 2 people in this company ? I for one can not afford to backup data only to not able to recover it. Well I for one will not recommend Acronis to anyone , if for no other reason than if you have a problem.. you are SOL.
    JP
     
  16. Acronis Support

    Acronis Support Acronis Support Staff

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    Hello everyone,

    Thank you for choosing Acronis Software.

    Please note that the main reason for the release of build 4942 of Acronis True Image 10.0 Home (both English and German version) is Windows Vista certification. In addition, several changes were made to standalone version of Acronis True Image (certain drivers were added), back up of MS Outlook e-mail account, functionality of Acronis True Image under Windows Vista.

    The list of changes for build 4942, which is available in "Product Update" section does not reflect all the changes, which were included into than build. Please note that this was done by mistake and we will certainly correct it with the next build. In the future the list of changes will provide more detailed information.

    We are really sorry for the inconvenience you have encountered with this situation.

    As for the situation with response time, please note that we will definitely do our best and put more efforts in order to decrease the response time.

    Thank you.
    --
    Aleksandr Isakov
     
  17. seekforever

    seekforever Registered Member

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    Well, "Compute with confidence" sounds a little more perfect than non-perfect to me. I have to admit you are right we are not beta-testers since the following would be fixed before even alpha testing:

    "direct DVD burning" that does not work on any system until a couple of builds later.

    "back up your email" that does not work on any system.

    Then we go to things like:

    Needing all differentials in a chain to do a validation that his been around since they were introduced.

    Double validation when restoring the active partition with validate before restoring selected. Been reported for several builds.

    Inadequate warning message about using things like Snap-restore that will wipe out any partition not contained in the image.

    If you have read my previous posts you will see I cut a PC software developer a fair bit of slack because it is a nightmare environment to develop software for due to the variety of hardware and software configurations of varying degrees of quality. However, there is no excuse for releasing features that just plain don't work at all or continue to be ignored after a mountain of evidence shows there is a problem.

    I have also several times drawn attention to the fact that this forum contains a gold-mine of information on what needs to be fixed and improved on the product. Obviously, there is a (not uncommon) disconnect between the people doing the support and the development team.
     
  18. Acronis Support

    Acronis Support Acronis Support Staff

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    Hello Xpilot,

    Thank you for choosing Acronis Disk Backup Software.

    Could you please clarify what do you mean by "did not keep my scheduled backup and it did not run"? Was the scheduled task deleted after the update to the build 4942 of Acronis True Image 10.0 Home? Were you able to start the task (if it was not deleted) without editing?

    Please be aware that we have not heard about such a behavior of Acronis True Image you have described and so we would like to investigate this one with your assistance, if you have time for this of course.

    If you could reproduce the issue and perform the actions described in this previous post of mine to collect schedreport.txt and schedul2.log files we would investigate the issue. In addition, create Windows System Information as it is described in Acronis Help Post.

    Then submit a request for technical support with the subject indicating that you want to contact Aleksandr Isakov. Attach all the collected files and information to your request along with the step-by-step description of the actions taken before the problem appears and the link to this thread. We will investigate the problem and try to provide you with a solution.

    Thank you.
    --
    Aleksandr Isakov
     
  19. ShellyR

    ShellyR Registered Member

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    Re: Too many frustrations...hold on!

    Please! Don't stop helping out those of us in trouble at least until after I get my problem solved! :D :D :D

    Yeah, it's regrettable that Acronis can't answer sooner, but that is why they sponsor the forums...so users can help each other and they can get feedback on their products. This is a GOOD idea, especially since many of the questions answered here are not really technical support questions, but educational requests.
     
  20. Colvin

    Colvin Registered Member

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    So, one only has a warrant to say something positive about Acronis if the quantity of posts on this forum exceeds some arbitrary number? http://www.the-highway.com/Smileys/uglystupid.gif. As I stated in my risky reply above, I have not found True Image to be problematic on any of my own machines nor on the dozens of my client's machines. So why would I need to participate on this forum more than I have? As ShellyR wrote, due to the "educational" (informative) nature of this forum, I do visit occasionally for input. Now I do realize that "bashing" Acronis, Microsoft, et al is the in-thing to do. And I also realize that those who take a more thoughtful approach are deemed "odd" or as in your estimation unworthy to speak. Since I am a Systems Tech I get to listen to complaints, gripes, moans and groans day in and day out. But perhaps the quality of my clients is a step above some here as they rarely get in my face but geniunely appreciate my expertise and help regardless of how long it takes me to resolve their issue, which btw in 90% of the cases, is by their own doing. ;)

    Thus, if my presence and/or positive remarks are deemed overly offensive or unworthy, I'm sure one of the Moderators will remove my account from this Board. :D
     
  21. dbknox

    dbknox Registered Member

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    I rely on the good people on this forum for help. I know that Acronis has been a little lax in their response ( to put it mildly) There is so much that can go wrong with imaging software and the operating system,drives etc.
    In my case, when I purchased TI, no matter what I tried ( using win98se) I could not get True Image to backup an image in the windows environment, I was only able to mount an image (after creating one using the "rescue" disk). Because I was able to create an image in the Linux environment, I came to the conclusion that my trouble was not with true image, but probably with my operating system. I eventually reinstalled windows 98se and everything now works fine. There are just too many variables, hence the importance of the the expertise of so many of you people on this forum. Don't please don't quit on us, we need you.
     
  22. shieber

    shieber Registered Member

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    This forum seems to me to be pretty tolerant of negative posts. You should see some other companies' forums. In the extreme, Symantec gave them up altogether. Some others, folks will just shout you down if you naysay the product -- e.g., some zone alarm gurus can be quite snotty to critical users at times and those forums automatically censor mere mentions of other products (although not with consistancy).

    Do to the economics involved, Tech support for any software company amounts to some hired help working from a Symptoms and Solutions Manual -- sometimes things get elevated to actual software engineers at the company. So the so-called tech-support might be a high school student in Arkansas, a housewife in New Delhi, etc. Forums, especially ones with knowledgeable, courteous, and open-minded participants are so much better than general "tech support". So I'd hate to see these forums ended for any reason.

    Having said that, there are some chronic issues in the ATI software that deserves resolution from Acronis development. It's one thing to alienate some of the users directly with chronic problems, but when the company begins losing the support of it's best representatives, the mavens on the forums, it's like stabbing itself from two directions at once -- not only does the software confound some folks, but those confounded and seeking help will not be suitably helped without the forums and its unpaid crew



     
  23. BobJ

    BobJ Registered Member

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    I am a moderator on an Antivirus forum, and I can say from personal experience that this is VERY true. In addition to product flames, some of the posters flame each other regularly. We as moderators try to be tolerant because we can understand user frustration (even if it's caused by the users themselves - which happens in about 90% of the cases), but when they use foul language (and a lot do) or repeatedly violate the TOS, then we usually end up deleting their posts.

    But this forum is comprised of mostly mature and responsible individuals - something that's rare these days in forums. My compliments to the contributors on this board.


    Very true . . .


    I've gotten the most satisfying and accurate help from forums, NOT Tech Support.

    So would I. I've gotten quite an education here. And another poster mentioned that issue of "education" versus actual tech support. A lot of the posts here are just seeking to get "educated" on what to experienced users is trivial. They would not be questions suitable for tech support.

    Clearly Acronis has stepped over this line. My suggestion to Acronis: LISTEN UP!!!! AND DON'T PISS OFF YOUR BEST ADVERTISERS!!

    One of the things the Antivirus company (that sponsers the forums I participate in) did was to give tee shirts and some logo trinkets to the regular contributors. Admittedly, not real compensation or a big deal, but nevertheless a nice touch that made a lot of people feel appreciated. And they even sent everyone an email asking their mailing address and Fedexed the stuff. Acronis: LISTEN UP!!!


    I would be one of those people that are "confounded" by the software, so PLEASE, guys (especially you experienced users), keep up helping us confounded users!!!
     
  24. BobJ

    BobJ Registered Member

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    Just had another thought on this . . .

    You Acronis Tech support folks (Aleksandr seems like the only one) need to bump this thing up (maybe email this entire thread) to your managers.

    No offense intended, but Tech Support "worker bees" don't pack much clout. So, it's probably frustrating for you Tech Support folks when in fact you can't really do anything about this particular gripe. The Acronis "Big Shots" CAN. So bump it up to them, PLEASE!!!
     
  25. BobJ

    BobJ Registered Member

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    I want to expand on my thought about bumping this up to the Acronis Big Shots, and this seems VERY IMPORTANT to me so I'll be doing a lot of SHOUTING and bolding in this post.

    I don't think the problem is with the Acronis Tech Support folks (hope you didn't take offense at me calling you "Worker Bees", but you are), but rather with the resource allocation and staffing of Tech Support by middle and upper management (I'm assuming the Acronis Corporate structure is like most - worker bees and then middle management and then upper management).

    Now I may be wrong on my thought about allocation, but if so then there are a lot of Tech Support people just sitting on their thumbs instead of looking at this board. I really don't think that's the case however. And I really don't think there are a lot of Tech Support people dedicated to this board, if any. In fact, my suspicion is that the few Tech Support folks that look at these boards have a lot of other stuff put on their plates by middle management, consequently there is not much attention paid to these boards BECAUSE the Tech Support folks are busy doing other tasks that their bosses give them.

    Tech Support, correct me if I'm wrong.

    And I doubt very much that any of the Acronis middle managers or Big Shots regularly read these boards, if any at all do. They're likely too busy attending marketing meetings and looking at sales figures. But they should have their ears to the ground and be listening to their customers. If they're not, they're a bunch of morons because it's just plain bad business NOT to listen to your customers.

    So when Xpilot says "Until Acronis can start treating their customers like adults" and I say "LISTEN UP", we're adressing those remarks to the middle and upper managers, not the worker bees. (Well . . . I can't speak for Xpilot, but I think that's what he meant - I know I did)

    So, our predicament either is "handled" by Tech Support, or is handled by the Acronis middle managers or Big Shots. Now this isn't meant to insult Tech Support folks, but they just flat out aren't "authorized" and "empowered" to handle philosophical or marketing issues - WHICH I THINK IS WHAT THIS IS. It's really not a technical issue that can be solved by Tech Support. Yes, there are some technical components to it, but in the big picture I think it's a philosophical and marketing issue. It can't be solved at the worker bee level, it has to go much higher.

    But Tech Support CAN do something on it. They can run this up the corporate chain-of-command.

    And then I envision the managers pushing it back down to Tech Support, saying something like "This is a technical matter, so what did we hire you for??" (Yes, some managers are smart a**es). And pushing stuff back down the chain to get it solved is what managers spend a lot of time doing. Sometimes things get solved - in which case the managers usually take credit for solving the problem. However, if they don't get solved, then the managers usually tell their bosses that the worker bees are incompetent and should be canned.

    I'm very familiar with the corporate routine, so this isn't a rant against Big Shots necessarily. I was one of those Big Shots with a large corporation in my working days, so I know the drill and I've "seen the movie".

    So, Tech Support, tell your managers about this. Since I expect that they'll try to push it back down to you, as I've said, try throwing it back up to them - be persistent. Now I'm not suggesting that you be persistent to the point of being insubordinate - I don't want you folks getting your butts canned over this. After all, you need to keep a tight roof and put three squares on the table, so I want you to keep your jobs. But at least try.

    And another thing, It would help if you told us that you "referred" this mutiny of us customers to your managers. So, if you can make a post on this thread that you've done so, PLEASE DO!!!

    And if it gets pushed back down to you, tell us that too. And then at least we'll be able to make a judgement about the Acronis management (and I, for one, would then think, as I've said too, that they're a bunch of morons BECAUSE THEY DON'T LISTEN TO THEIR CUSTOMERS AND THAT'S BAD BUSINESS!!!).

    Now I don't want to reduce this to a finger pointing match between worker bees and management (worker bees will always lose that contest), but I'd like to at least see that this effort to resolve the issue has been made by Tech Support.
     
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