User  Friendly  Computing
Fast Efficient Service from People Who Care

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By Jay Olson

Dave Grijalva, General Manager of User Friendly Computing, says there are two kinds of computer owners, those who have lost data, and those who haven't lost data, yet.  Grijalva believes that many computer users are naive to how easy it is for systems to crash and critical data to be lost, possibly forever.

"One of the benefits to hiring a small company to work on your computer is that we understand how important data can be," he said.  "Data is our focal point.  We really care about retrieving data delicately, and implementing measures to protect your data from loss in the first place."

The emphasis on concern for individuals and small companies' importance has helped to build a reputation for User Friendly as one of the county's top computer consulting companies.

Like many computer businesses, User Friendly Computing had its start in a spare room more as a hobby than a business.  Peter Huemer ran small ads in local papers offering to soothe troubled hard drives and help frustrated computer users make peace with their computers.

Now Huemer is the owner of one of the area's most effective computer service companies.  User Friendly repairs, upgrades, tests, builds, sells, and networks.  They offer onsite services, and guarantee a 24-hour response time.

"We have a customer base of about 2,000 to 3,000 people," said Grijalva.  "For this area that is pretty big.  Of course out 24, 7, 365 guarantee helps attract new customers and keep old ones."

That guarantee means that if you call with a complaint any day of the week or year, a User Friendly staff member will be at your home or place of business within 24 hours.  This means that if a computer you just received for Christmas is giving you fits and threatening to ruin an otherwise perfect holiday season, one call will put your worries to bed.

It's All About Data

It's the data protection that Grijalva insists is so important that gives User Friendly its edge.  After all, data storage and easy retrieval is one of the primary functions of computers.  Information it used to take an entire staff weeks to compile, collate, sort through, and file can now be done within seconds by the crown jewel of 20th century technology.

But computers do have their own unique problems.  A twenty-foot by ten-foot file case is an item pretty difficult to lose.  But it can take half a second to lose hours, weeks, or even years' worth of work on a computer.

"One of our clients runs a tax service and we were really worried about the safety of his data," says Grijalva.  "We tried to get him to implement a backup system but for some reason he didn't seem as concerned as we were.  In fact, we were to paranoid we actually gave him one because he was such a good customer."

Unfortunately, the day before Grijalva was scheduled to install the backup system, the client's entire system crashed, taking with it the detailed tax information of hundreds of customers.  needless to say, he was a little worried.

"He was very stressed.  Believe it or not, it was in the middle of tax season, and we worked around the clock to get his files back.  Luckily, we were able to retrieve every ounce of data with a minimum amount of cost," said Grijalva.  "It could have been a lot worse.  Now he's got a backup system."

Grijalva was able to save the data by using software, a technique that can be much less expensive than others.

Y2K Common Sense

Data retrieval is not the only service offered by User Friendly.  They are on the cutting edge of Y2K problems and offer testing and Y2K proofing services.

"We are really focused on Y2K problems," said Grijalva.  "In fact, we consider ourselves Y2K specialists."

Grijalva says that the latest figures show 60 percent of small businesses are not prepared for problems that may arise when the calendar turns over to 2000.  He points out that some banks will not even give small business loans if the applicant has not addressed the Y2K computer problem fully.

"The government is actually ahead of private enterprise on this one," said Grijalva.  "A senate subcommittee that investigated this problem estimated that 90 percent of physician offices are not Y2K prepared at all."

Grijalva warns those business owners and personal computer users who have not addressed the Y2K problem that October or November may be too late and that the sooner the problem is dealt with, the easier a crisis can be avoided.

The Best at What They Do

User Friendly's philosophy is that good employer-employee relationships translate into good customer relationships.  Other computer firms sometimes call the well-trained staff to see if they are interested in switching jobs, but balk when they learn how much User Friendly employees are paid.

"We hire quality people, and we try out best to keep them," said Grijalva.  "We keep our customers happy by keeping our employees happy."

User Friendly builds computer systems and offers monthly specials.  They are located at 505 River Street in Santa Cruz across the street from Gateway Plaza.  Call 423-9653 for more information or send email to user@friendlycomputing.com.