Over an hour on hold for support

[Chowdahead]

1:09 to be exact... and counting...  this is crazy.

[Possi]

Last night, TW, 2 hr. 10 min. on hold for a 3 min. fix that could only be done by them.

 

The good news is that I'm cooking with grease, now.

[Chowdahead]

At 1 and half hours I was connected to a rep.  I jumped right in.  He started to look into the issue I am having with PaperlessPlus... and then I got cutoff, just to hear waiting music again.  Back in the queue again.  Are you freaking kidding me!! I am at 2:07 wait time now....

[Chowdahead]

Now at 3 hours.....

[Margaret CPA in OH]

Hmmm, you might want to post that on the ATX blog site, see if you get a reaction.

[jasdlm]

How frustrating.  Did you ever get through?

 

[JimTaxes]

looks like a nice phone

[Chowdahead]

13 hours ago, jasdlm said:

How frustrating.  Did you ever get through?

 

Yes I did at just over 3 and half hours.  It was bitter sweet because the Rep I got was amazing.  He was patient.  He apologized twice for the other Rep disconnecting me. And best of all he was knowledgeable.  He remoted in on my PC and was able to assist me.  What happened was at the beginning of January  ATX sent me a link to download the PaperlessPlus software but it still had the 2015 version.  So that's why my activation code would not work.  The two versions look almost identical.

He was also able to clean up some networking issues and transfer my database over.  I thanked him a million times.  It was worth the wait.  I am glad I didn't hang up.. I was tempted a few times.

 

[Mike D]

You all need to consider Drake!

Lower cost.

Excellent technical support

Over 50,000 users

I used ATX prior to their being absorbed by . They made my mind up for me with all of the bait and switch, fixed assets were free and then they weren't, price increases, etc.

Drake works quite well in most scenarios as all software has its workarounds.

Mike Dubin CPA

[Abby Normal]

I watched a Drake video on their 2016 enhancements and it was quite obvious that Drake is too 'Mickey Mouse' for my clients.

We just called support, left our number and they called back shortly and gave us the answer we needed. It was a 2014 efile issue.

[BLACK BART]

6 hours ago, Chowdahead said:

Yes I did at just over 3 and half hours.  It was bitter sweet because the Rep I got was amazing.  He was patient.  He apologized twice for the other Rep disconnecting me. And best of all he was knowledgeable.  He remoted in on my PC and was able to assist me...

 

Same for me except less hold time.  Usually I'll wait a few days figuring they'll be swamped right off, but decided what-the-hey and called first thing Monday morning. Most times it's hold one to two hours, but lucked out at 30 minutes.  Describing my problem (couldn't export/import and error detail listed Boolean somethings-or-another and half a page of programming code) got me "I'll transfer you to a tech" and only 30 minutes later a great tech like yours came on, remoted the PC, talked/walked me through it for TWO hours (he had to experiment with several different methods). Anyway, everything's fixed and I count myself astoundingly lucky to have gotten through in only an hour to somebody who actually knew something. 

I've had ATX for years and love it - when it works it's great, but when it doesn't it's frequently very difficult to get service.  I've only got two stand-alone PCs, but if I had Jack from Ohio's network and accompanying problems I'd probably have to consider either suicide or Drake. 

I hate switching software, but sure do envy those 3-ring support calls Drake clients rave about.  I think the prices are similar and after ATX's "disaster season" some years back (John H. can tell you about that), I considered jumping ship.  Only thing, Drake didn't have forms entry which I prefer.  Somebody said they have it now but that it's an awkward toggle system back and forth with the regular data entry format.  Guess I'll just wait for the next shoe to drop. 

     

[Jumping Jax Tax Inc]

WORST TECHNICAL SUPPORT EVER -- 1.5 HOUR ON MY THIRD, EVER HIGHER LEVEL OF EXPERIENCE, CANNOT FIX WHAT IS OBVIOUSLY WRONG -- I HAVE BOTH AN ACCEPTANCE AND SLIGHT LATER REJECTION FOR THE SAME FORM 1040 -- THE REJECTION IS FROM EFC, WHICH ATX CONTROLS -- THE EASY FIX IS TO REMOVE THE LATER REJECTION AND THE ACCEPTANCE WILL BE DOWNLOADED DURING THE NEXT RUN -- HOWEVER, SEEMS IMPOSSIBLE EVEN AFTER REMOTING INTO MY WORKSTATION  -- EVER SINCE 2012 THIS MAX SOFTWARE HAS BEEN PLAGUED WITH PROBLEMS THAT REQUIRE HOURS OF REVIEW BEFORE ITS SOLVED -- I BEEN AN ATX USER SINCE 1998, BUT THIS IS MY LAST YEAR.  TOO MUCH LOST TIME TO CRAPPING SOFTWARE 

[Lee B]

Earlier this year ATX rolled out "Support Cases" with lots of fanfare.

So last Thursday, when I was having repeat Oregon Business efiling rejections,

I entered all the information requested.  ATX touted this as a better way to go, said they would

assign each request to a support employee with the knowledge needed to resolve each request.

So 8 days later the status of my request is "Pending Assignment".

So now alternative support is Fake Support !

 

[Abby Normal]

Does anyone here have Advantage with 'concierge support'? Is ATX making support so bad that you have to cough up 3 grand+ just to get decent support?

[Terry D EA]

Explain the meaning of Drake being "too mickey mouse" for your clients. I switched to Drake and am not a bit sorry. Minimal learning curve and as Mike D said, excellent quick support.

[Lee B]

1 hour ago, Terry D said:

Explain the meaning of Drake being "too mickey mouse" for your clients. I switched to Drake and am not a bit sorry. Minimal learning curve and as Mike D said, excellent quick support.

Yes, I want to know too, since at this point,  the odds are 80/20 that I will switch to Drake after 20 years with ATX !

[Pacun]

5 hours ago, Jumping Jax Tax Inc said:

WORST TECHNICAL SUPPORT EVER -- 1.5 HOUR ON MY THIRD, EVER HIGHER LEVEL OF EXPERIENCE, CANNOT FIX WHAT IS OBVIOUSLY WRONG -- I HAVE BOTH AN ACCEPTANCE AND SLIGHT LATER REJECTION FOR THE SAME FORM 1040 -- THE REJECTION IS FROM EFC, WHICH ATX CONTROLS -- THE EASY FIX IS TO REMOVE THE LATER REJECTION AND THE ACCEPTANCE WILL BE DOWNLOADED DURING THE NEXT RUN -- HOWEVER, SEEMS IMPOSSIBLE EVEN AFTER REMOTING INTO MY WORKSTATION  -- EVER SINCE 2012 THIS MAX SOFTWARE HAS BEEN PLAGUED WITH PROBLEMS THAT REQUIRE HOURS OF REVIEW BEFORE ITS SOLVED -- I BEEN AN ATX USER SINCE 1998, BUT THIS IS MY LAST YEAR.  TOO MUCH LOST TIME TO CRAPPING SOFTWARE 

I am sorry to hear that but it is not our fault, so please don't scream at us.

I had a similar issue. A return was hung at ATX and I sent an email and went back to work. A couple of hours later, my email was answered and it was suggested to create the efile file when I receive the return back.

[Terry D EA]

12 hours ago, cbslee said:

Yes, I want to know too, since at this point,  the odds are 80/20 that I will switch to Drake after 20 years with ATX !

If you make the switch you won't be sorry. I left ATX back when CCH consumed them and have messed around with what I will call "Mickey Mouse3" programs trying to save money. What a mistake and a lesson well learned. You will some learning curve with Drake but it will not be bad. Also there are a lot of folks here that will help and the folks on the Drake discussion board are very helpful as well.

[Pacun]

1 hour ago, Terry D said:

If you make the switch you won't be sorry. I left ATX back when CCH consumed them and have messed around with what I will call "Mickey Mouse3" programs trying to save money. What a mistake and a lesson well learned. You will some learning curve with Drake but it will not be bad. Also there are a lot of folks here that will help and the folks on the Drake discussion board are very helpful as well.

Too bad you left. Ever since that time, ATX has been an excellent program. I never had issue but I guess having these certifications helps:
A+
N+
MCP
MCP + I
MSCE
and EA.

[Catherine]

1 hour ago, Terry D said:

folks on the Drake discussion board are very helpful as well

Plus, if you need support they answer within THREE rings, and help you right then and there.  I have, on rare occasion, had them need to bump things up a notch and get back to me.  Longest it took was two days (after they had told me "about three") and they apologized profusely for the delay.

In the meantime, I am still awaiting a promised 48-hour callback from ATX Tech Support, promised in February of 2013.  But it's OK; I am not holding my breath.  (But that was the return that sent me to Drake; I switched mid-season and have NEVER regretted it.)

[Jack from Ohio]

This is why I learn the innermost workings of the program so I can do the necessary repairs when something goes wrong.  The very rare times I call, I quiz the technician (after I have been quite the A _ _ to finally get connected to  a REAL technician) about every little thing I have experienced.  

I HATED Drake.  Did a dual year in 2013 where I had both Drake and ATX.  Drake may be good for people who only want to input data to workpages, but I found it absolutely horrible to try to investigate any issue that came up during preparation.

Speed of input is not the end all of choosing tax software.

[BLACK BART]

5 hours ago, Pacun said:

...I never had issue but I guess having these certifications helps:
A+
N+
MCP
MCP + I
MSCE
and EA.

Impressive, but I prefer Idi Amin's: "His excellency, President for Life, Field Marshal Al Hadji Doctor Idi Amin Dada, VC, DSO, MC, Lord of All the Beasts of the Earth and Fishes of the Seas and Conqueror of the British Empire in Africa in General and Uganda in Particular."

P.S. Sorry, but I couldn't resist.

[Pacun]

2 minutes ago, BLACK BART said:

Impressive, but I prefer Idi Amin's: "His excellency, President for Life, Field Marshal Al Hadji Doctor Idi Amin Dada, VC, DSO, MC, Lord of All the Beasts of the Earth and Fishes of the Seas and Conqueror of the British Empire in Africa in General and Uganda in Particular."

LOL

 

[Terry D EA]

Jack, sorry you had a bad experience with Drake. I would have probably felt the same way leaving ATX and jumping into an input driven program. I did issues with that with other programs which is why it was probably easier for me to make the switch. You can dig into the bowels of Drake and solve any issues you may have. As you said, it is important to learn the innermost workings of the program. Pacun, I am sorry but I don't need a long list of credentials to get support from Drake. Believe what Catherine has said. They do answer within three rings which is utterly amazing. Also, the program updates in 60 seconds. Sorry but ATX can't touch that.

[Pacun]

I have never called ATX support except for that email I sent and it was answered in 2 hours. Maybe the "long list of credentials" help so I don't have to call ATX to begin with.