NO HELP FROM THE TRUCKER'S HELPER

[dhalltoyo]

Normally, I don't sweat the small stuff, but these guys really pushed my blood pressure to new limits!

They are trying to market a product. Great! And that what a free market system is all about. Of course, there should be reasonable expectations on both sides of any transaction.

I accepted their offer of a free and fully functional download. Remember, they offered this download as a tool to encourage me to purchase their software. Here is how it was presented on the web:
Download FREE FULLY FUNCTIONAL trucking software demo or take an online tour. The complete trucking software solution for drivers, owner/operators, truck fleets.

The download went smoothly, but everything after that was a joke! I had some difficulty with getting information placed on the TRIP SHEET to show in the accounting section. Their sales person contacted me to see how I was getting along with the program. I explained my concerns about the software and I was told that not all aspects of the demo program were fully functional. I emailed him on several occasions regarding the difficulty. He always replied that he could not understand my question.

I determined that the software was more time consuming when compared to simply using a handwritten weekly bookeeping format. Dome makes a really decent one for $6.95.

After determining that the software was not for me I attempted to remove it from my laptop. Here is where the real fun begins. NOT! I couldn't remove the entire program. I called the sales number because it was toll free. Hey, they offered me a free program so why should I have to pay for a phone call. I explained my problem to him and his pat answer was, "Uh, well, I am in sales, but you can call tech support at xxx-xxx-xxxx." I said, "That is not a toll free number and you be charging me for a phone call." Now he really ticks me off by saying, "Sir, we aren't charging you for the phone call; the telephone company is charging you." I hate it when people try to play semantic games with me.

My lovely wife reminds me that my cell phone is on weekend minutes and it won't cost me for the call. Aren't wives great! OK, now I call tech support. First call; busy signal. Second call; busy again. Third call; still busy. Finally after 15-20 minutes I actually get to speak with someone. That always makes me wonder about the quality of any product when their tech support department is constantly fielding phone calls. Tech support tells me that there is an uninstall feature in PROGRAMS. I explain that there is not. He says, "Just delete the folder." I delete the folder, but the programs still appear on the CONTROL PANEL under the ADD or REMOVE PROGRAMS section. I explain this to him and he replies, "They know that, there is a bug in the program." I explained that I wasn't very satisfied with having their FREE FULLY (NOT) FUNCTIONAL leftovers on my laptop. His pat answer was, "You can call back on Monday and speak to a supervisor." "CLICK."

My advice, DON'T download the demo program. Moreover, unless you have a team driver with plenty of time on their hands to play with this overly complex program, buy a Dome Record Keeping System and save yourself some grief, time and money.

On the other hand, if like people who insult your intelligence and try make you out to be the one who is at fault, then by all means, please help yourself.

 

[TeamCaffee]

We actually bought this software and I spent hours on it without getting any results. I also called them and came away from that conversation very frustrated. That has got to be among the worst software I ever tried to use. I have sure found that my own spreadsheets work a lot better then wasting money on Truckers Helper. At least I could unload the software from my computer without the problems you ran into. Sorry that had to happen to you, but I sure understand your frustration.

 

[Broompilot]

Dumb question here? What is the program suppost to do?

If it is record keeping I agree with the poster, do it by hand. I currently use the envelope system. Buy something I have a colum I put the receipt inside of an envelope mark which colum it belongs to mark the amount on the outside colum and add all colums at the end of the month. All fuel tickets, tolls, repairs etc... are inside of the envelope for my Accountant at the end of every month.

I even do my logs by hand even though others encourage me to do it by computer, somethings are just easier the old fashion way pen and paper....

 

[fxd hd8]

If you all are having trouble removing this program, And your not real PC savey, send me an email with your ph # an when a Good time to call, and maybe I can help.

 

[dhalltoyo]

Thanks for the offer.

I had to actually restore to a previous date to get rid of their flawed program.

 

[trkrhelp]

Hi, I'd like to make a few comments on this post, not that I wish to dispute the author but a few of these statements are incorrect -

[b>]"Their sales person contacted me to see how I was getting along with the program."[/b]

We do not make outgoing sales calls, so we would not have called to "contact" someone who downloaded the demo. He might have called us.

"I explained my concerns about the software and I was told that not all aspects of the demo program were fully functional. "

We have removed the Quick Books Export files and some of the Payroll Reports, W2, 940, 1099, etc. These are available as an additional download on the same page that the program download is available on. But since most people never use these pieces we thought it better to remove them from the required download.

"I emailed him on several occasions regarding the difficulty. He always replied that he could not understand my question."

Actually, unless he used different addresses on different occassions, he emailed me 3 times on 2/6/06 and said he was having difficulty entering miles on the Trip Sheet. I replied and ask him to upload his database so I could look at what he had entered. I never received the database or another reply.

Now he really ticks me off by saying, "Sir, we aren't charging you for the phone call; the telephone company is charging you." I hate it when people try to play semantic games with me.

I'm not sure where he got the impression that we provide toll free phone support - it doesn not say that anywhere, and the statement is correct, we do not charge for phone support during the demo or for 90 days after you purchase the program. Any phone charges, however, are the callers responsibility.

Finally after 15-20 minutes I actually get to speak with someone. That always makes me wonder about the quality of any product when their tech support department is constantly fielding phone calls.

Perhaps the fact that we have over 20,000 users and answer questions on everything from Windows to how to do basic accounting as well as questions on Truckers Helper may have something to do with the lines being busy. He also called on the weekend when our support department has one person on duty instead of the 3 people during the week.

Tech support tells me that there is an uninstall feature in PROGRAMS. I explain that there is not. He says, "Just delete the folder." I delete the folder, but the programs still appear on the CONTROL PANEL under the ADD or REMOVE PROGRAMS section. I explain this to him and he replies, "They know that, there is a bug in the program."

If we were "aware" of a bug it would have been fixed, so I doubt that he was told that, but I wasn't the person speaking with him so can't be 100% positive he wasn't told that - it's just not the way we work. To insure there isn't a bug, I setup a clean machine, downloaded the demo, opened it and made some entries, then removed it. It uninstalled, it did leave a couple files in the folder (which is by design). It also removed itself from the Add/Remove Programs folder, so I'm not sure why it didn't on his computer.

"I explained that I wasn't very satisfied with having their FREE FULLY (NOT) FUNCTIONAL leftovers on my laptop. His pat answer was, "You can call back on Monday and speak to a supervisor. CLICK."

If the support person is unable to help someone further then the only option left at that point is to ask them to call back when I'm in so they can talk with me about their problems. I was here the following Monday and didn't receive a call - or even an email about these perceived issues. Support reps also only hang up if the caller is being abusive, cussing at them, etc. So we'll let "CLICK" speak for itself.

My suggestion - if you have a problem with our program or our demo post your questions, comments or suggestions on our forum where we can deal with it directly or call our support and let us see if we can't help resolve the issue for you. Yes, we are busy, it's tax time and we have lots of tax questions, accounting questions and new users learning the program - but we're here 9am-9pm Mon-Thu and 9am-6pm Fri-Sun and we won't stick you on HOLD waiting for a person. You'll either get a busy signal or you'll get a support rep.

Thanks,

 

[chetjester]

Wow. Great response. Glad to see you monitor this forum so that you are aware of problems we drivers deal with.

I have Trucker's Helper. But, instead of putting in beginning and ending hub miles, is there anyway to just enter the miles I drive in each state? My Rand McNally Route Tools gives me a pretty good mileage listing by state.

Thanks.

 

[Tennesseahawk]

Chet... pcmiler is AWESOME for that application. All you do is put in each stop on your logbook, and it figures out how many miles between stops, and for each state you went thru. It's as simple a program as you can get.

 

[chetjester]

I have PCMiler Streets 18. I've never tried that. Someday I hope to finish reading the manual. Right now I just use it to verify that Streets and Trips hasn't put me on a restricted road.

 

[trkrhelp]

Chet - when you're entering the miles in the mileage section just skip the ENDING HUB box and enter the miles in the MILES box. The program will automatically fill in the ending hub for you using the miles you entered.

Truckers Helper also has a version with routing, using ProMiles Truck Routing, and it will export the miles to your mileage section for IFTA tracking. It will also do time and distance checking to validate your logs in the Log Master.

 

[trkrhelp]

Bob & Linda Caffee - I see that was back in 2004. I don't see a support call logged (the support reps are supposed to log every call) so I'm not sure what the issue you were having was.

Maybe you should give it another try. Reinstall the program from the CD you have, get the latest Online Updates (WEB TOOLS/ONLINE UPDATE) and then give us a call if you have any questions. If you don't get an answer that you feel is satisfactory ask for John or post a message on our forum with your concerns and I'll deal with them personally.

 

[terryandrene]

Kudos to John Ewing of The Truckers Helper. He has brought customer support to EO and for that we are thankful.

Terry

 

[TeamCaffee]

Thanks John but no thanks. I spent way to much time trying to get the program to work. From listening to the tutorial, loaded and unloading the software, to deleting my information and reentering my information, to trying little test trials, I finally gave up. I can get what I want and control what I need using spread sheets and Quicken. I do believe the software was a lot more then we needed and I could not get it to scale down and provide the answers we where looking for. We do appreciate your offer of help and to make things right.

 

[trkrhelp]

Bob & Linda - it's an open ended offer, so anytime. The program will do as little or as much as you want but some people do have trouble getting it to do what they want. Generally a phone call or two and we can get you on the right path.

Be safe out there and let me know if we can do anything to help you.

 

[dhalltoyo]

Please allow me to apologize for one incorrect statement regarding the snafu with Trucker’s No Helper.

John is correct in saying that he did not contact me. I just found out that it was a competing salesperson who had offered a free demo also. When I received that follow up call, I was just finishing up a 3 day orientation and my thoughts were not really focused on software programs. I stand corrected on that one point and I never want to be accused on disseminating misinformation.

Now as for the remainder of John’s comments….well, he is a salesman, isn’t he?

For example, I stated that I emailed him on several occasions. Several means more than twice, so it was appropriate syntax. John tried to lose my statement in the shuffle, but his reply only serves to prove the validity of my statement. Read where John said, “…he emailed me 3 times on 2/6/06…†Gee, three seems to equal several don’t you think?

Next, he tries to pass the toll free support comment back into my court. Wrong again John! I didn’t ask for free support. I ask that you get your flawed software completely off my system. Why should I pay for the phone when you have a defective program? That’s like taking a car for a test drive, having the engine malfunction and the dealership telling you it’s your responsibility to return the vehicle to their lot. Foul! And a two shot penalty.

Again, John pivots and turns seeking to score points with potential customers. He claims there product does not have a bug. Uh, John, I happen to be an old military intelligence guy, so I record every conversation. Grew up during the cold war era don’t you know. I have played it for a few friends and they will verify exactly what the service tech said. John goes on to tell you that he installed the program and then uninstalled without any difficulty. Of course, earlier on in that response he categorically admitted that he wasn’t privy to the conversation so he could be 100% sure of what was said. John, I am sure of exactly what was said. “THE PROGRAM HAS A KNOW BUG IN IT.â€

Finally, I really take offensive at John’s “Straw Man†defense tactic. He blatantly accuses me of being profane or abusive with the customer support person. I am a Christian man and I would never curse someone! Think not? I’ll give you a list of folks that know my character and would be more than willing to post their evaluation of my moral fiber. The list would include numerous pastors, missionaries, evangelists, police officers, newspaper publishers and neighbors. Of course, I am not selling anything…you are. I simply asked the customer support person a few tough questions that he really could not answer. He too tried to pass off the ball and told me point blank, “He couldn’t do anything about it and if I wanted to call back on Monday and speak to a supervisor; that was my choice.†CLICK! And I too will let the CLICK speak for itself. No, wait a minute. I am not in sales. I’ll let those who have previously posted testify as to the overly complex and flawed software. Their comments speak to the heart of the matter.

 

[trkrhelp]

My response is in bold so it's easier to follow.
>Please allow me to apologize for one incorrect statement
>regarding the snafu with Trucker’s No Helper.
>
>John is correct in saying that he did not contact me. I just
>found out that it was a competing salesperson who had
>offered a free demo also. When I received that follow up
>call, I was just finishing up a 3 day orientation and my
>thoughts were not really focused on software programs. I
>stand corrected on that one point and I never want to be
>accused on disseminating misinformation.
>
>Now as for the remainder of John’s comments….well, he is
>a salesman, isn’t he?
Actually, no I'm not. We don't "SELL" The Truckers Helper, we offer it to anyone who wishes to buy it. We do not send out "sales" letters or emails, we don't call people to sell our program, in fact when people call to make a major purchase, a fleet with routing for example, we usually suggest they get the demo first and be sure they like the program before they spend that much money on it. We provide a service to our customers most of whom seem to find our product a good value and are able to use it without problem.
>
>For example, I stated that I emailed him on several
>occasions. Several means more than twice, so it was
>appropriate syntax. John tried to lose my statement in the
>shuffle, but his reply only serves to prove the validity of
>my statement. Read where John said, “…he emailed me 3
>times on 2/6/06…†Gee, three seems to equal several
>don’t you think?
To me "I emailed him on several occasions regarding the difficulty. He always replied that he could not understand my question." implies that on several different days you sent emails and that I answered by stating I didn't understand your question. Since that impression is not what actually occurred I simply stated for the record what actually did occur. You asked a question and I told you I would need to look at what you had entered to provide you with an answer. That was as far as this went.
>
>Next, he tries to pass the toll free support comment back
>into my court. Wrong again John! I didn’t ask for free
>support. I ask that you get your flawed software completely
>off my system. Why should I pay for the phone when you have
>a defective program? That’s like taking a car for a test
>drive, having the engine malfunction and the dealership
>telling you it’s your responsibility to return the vehicle
>to their lot. Foul! And a two shot penalty.
I think a more accurate parallel might be to say you took the car out for a test drive, ripped out the ignigion wires and then expected the dealer to pay to fix the car. I tested the uninstall and it worked correctly - if it didn't work correctly for you I can only assume it's because of some problem with your system.
>
>Again, John pivots and turns seeking to score points with
>potential customers. He claims there product does not have a
>bug. Uh, John, I happen to be an old military intelligence
>guy, so I record every conversation. Grew up during the cold
>war era don’t you know. I have played it for a few friends
>and they will verify exactly what the service tech said.
>John goes on to tell you that he installed the program and
>then uninstalled without any difficulty. Of course, earlier
>on in that response he categorically admitted that he
>wasn’t privy to the conversation so he could be 100% sure
>of what was said. John, I am sure of exactly what was said.
>“THE PROGRAM HAS A KNOW BUG IN IT.â€
I would be real interested in hearing that recording so I could determine who you spoke with and exactly what was said. If you'd like to email me a copy as a sound file I'll be happy to listen - and to issue a public apology if someone at out support number told you that. I'll even be happy to pay the shipping if you'd like to make a copy of it and mail it to me.
>
>Finally, I really take offensive at John’s “Straw Manâ€
>defense tactic. He blatantly accuses me of being profane or
>abusive with the customer support person. I am a Christian
>man and I would never curse someone! Think not? I’ll give
>you a list of folks that know my character and would be more
>than willing to post their evaluation of my moral fiber. The
>list would include numerous pastors, missionaries,
>evangelists, police officers, newspaper publishers and
>neighbors. Of course, I am not selling anything…you are. I
>simply asked the customer support person a few tough
>questions that he really could not answer. He too tried to
>pass off the ball and told me point blank, “He couldn’t
>do anything about it and if I wanted to call back on Monday
>and speak to a supervisor; that was my choice.†CLICK! And
>I too will let the CLICK speak for itself. No, wait a
>minute. I am not in sales. I’ll let those who have
>previously posted testify as to the overly complex and
>flawed software. Their comments speak to the heart of the
>matter.
I believe you said above that you "taped" the conversation. I would assume that the tape would clear this issue up as well as prove that someone told you the program has a known bug. Again, send me a sound file or make a copy and mail it to me and I'll listen to it and issue an apology for that comment also should it prove to be inaccurate. We do not tape our conversations, so unfortunately I can't play back a tape to see what was said, I can only go by what is reported to me by my support people.

I will agree to letting the post of others here speak for itself. We have one post from someone else who had trouble with the program. But did you notice that they also said "At least I could unload the software from my computer without the problems you ran into."? Maybe that issue is not really a Truckers Helper issue as it doesn't seem to be happening to everyone and I believe a "bug" would be affecting everyone not just you.

There's also a post from another person who is using the program, apparently successfully, and who asked about how to do something. Some people like our program and find it very useful and some people don't. You obviously don't and have decided to take on a personal crusade to put us down. Aren't you glad you live in a country where you have the freedom to do that

Be safe out there
John Ewing
The Truckers Helper

 

[Lawrence]

For what it's worth - I just downloaded this program - and uninstalled it with a click of a button. Even checked the registery and all was clean. You may have a issue on your machine.

Lawrence,
Expediters Online.com


T.V. - Why do you think they call it programming?

No, YOU suck. - the mean people

"Americans are benevolently ignorant about Canada, while Canadians are malevolently well informed about the United States." - J. Bartlett Brebner

Te audire no possum. Musa sapientum fixa est in aure. - I can't hear you. I have a banana in my ear.

Become who you are. - Nietzsche


Whoever coined the phrase "Quiet as a mouse" has never stepped on one.




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[greg334]

Actually I have to add something here.

Many know that I worked in IT supporting large applications, large groups of people but an alter life I had was a lot to do with software development and support. Among a lot of things, I did scripting and testing of install packages.

First thing is that it may not be a ‘machine’ issue but an XP issue. Speaking from experience, the problem is Windows XP most of the time, not the program. The smartest thing that someone can do is to set a recovery point before installing any demo programs.

The other thing is that I also installed and uninstalled the program but before I did I also ran a comparison program that looked at the different files it installs. I won’t comment on the install, it looks good to me but I do recommend that John do some beta testing of the installs and eliminate as much as possible the ancillary files, i.e. OCX files that are not needed.

The last thing is I would love a way (I did not really get into the program too much other then adding a truck, driver and owner) to get a normal cursor, pet peeve.

As for support, I think John’s response speaks for itself, it is really not normal for this to happen, even in a niche market like this.

 

[trkrhelp]

"The last thing is I would love a way (I did not really get into the program too much other then adding a truck, driver and owner) to get a normal cursor, pet peeve."

On the Menu Bar at the top of the main page click UTILITIES/PROGRAM OPTIONS and on the options screen put a check in the box that says Truck Mouse Cursor Off and that will turn it off and revert to your standard cursor.

And thanks to both of you for taking the time to test the install and posting your results here. I would also second the advice on creating a restore point on WinXP, or using a program such as GoBack and setting a restore point before you install something new. I have had install programs go south on me and create havoc - a restore point gets you back where you were before the install with a minimum of fuss.

Thanks for your contributions to this thread and your good advice on this topic.

 

[Broompilot]

4 Sale one Truckers Helper Kit, open to highest bid. Detailed yes person put much thought and detail into getting this program to market, problem is I am to IGNORANT to use it.