need help on trustworthy computer technician/store

[vincent]

hello, I am in the states and I usually send home my old pcs and laptops, even used laptops from my friends sometimes, i always change to new drives before sending it home, and install ubuntu before sending it home, i told them that once it gets there and you want windows just bring it to a shop for installation, but everytime i send one home and they bring it to a shop, they always say its not working, even the laptops, makes me wonder, who knows, maybe it just needs a reseat, but this happens all the time, makes me scratch my head all the time and frustrating, was wondering if you guys know any computer shop that you guys really trust, or even a freelance techie that I can refer them to go to, thanks, thanks

[jeremypv]

have the recipients checked the items before bringing it into the shop? maybe it really is broken? have the recipients boot it first, since it's a no brainer to tell "it's not working", have the people that brought it to the shop "visually" seen that it was not working?

"not working" is a broad phrase, maybe it's not working in a sense that when the shop sees linux, they just don't want anything to do with it...

for this case, you might want to consult with the recipients first, because it will really be frustrating if the first line of advise you want to take is to go to the forums instead of talking to the people who took it to the shop, and they can't even tell what is a "working" thing or a "non-working" thing is...