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<TITLE>Re: [Equest-users] eQUEST Help Desk Funding</TITLE>
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<FONT FACE="Calibri, Verdana, Helvetica, Arial"><SPAN STYLE='font-size:11pt'>Yes, PLEASE, someone offer this. We would love to have this kind of option to help us. Frankly, we’re way overworked (a good thing) and don’t have time to describe our problems, post to this list and add screen shots, etc. We’ve tried outsourcing modeling but prefer to have control over the model. What we need is expertise available real-time that can look at our model input via Webex, etc. and help us through these models. I would pay good money for this service. If there are any of you out there that can offer this, please email me. Thanks.<BR>
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Michael K. Mantai, PE, CCP, CEM, LEED AP<BR>
President<BR>
System WorCx, PLLC Building Commissioning Services<BR>
1900 Abbott St, Suite 101, Charlotte, NC 28203<BR>
Phone: 704-996-9924<BR>
Fax: 866-432-3942<BR>
Email: <a href="mmantai@systemworcx.com">mmantai@systemworcx.com</a><BR>
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On 5/26/10 2:13 PM, "Dakota Kelley" <<a href="dakotak@teliospc.com">dakotak@teliospc.com</a>> wrote:<BR>
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</SPAN></FONT><BLOCKQUOTE><FONT FACE="Calibri, Verdana, Helvetica, Arial"><SPAN STYLE='font-size:11pt'><FONT COLOR="#1F497D">Carol,<BR>
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Let me cut through the philosophical stuff and set a starting bid: were I to find myself in need, I would pay $125/hr for one-on-one, pay-per-use, phone/WebEx-style assistance, billed in 0.25 hr increments or each fraction thereof, with a minimum charge of 0.5 hrs. This assumes the person providing the help has both a mechanical engineering degree and years of eQUEST experience, which appears to fit your description. If Portland has not eliminated your Canadian accent, I would gladly pay aboot $126/hr..what’s another loonie, eh? Naturally, there would be a high expectation that you should be able to solve nearly any issue somewhat quickly, and you would have to determine how you want to handle issues you are unable to resolve. However, I have no qualms about charging or paying for one-on-one help…it’s called “consulting”. In my early days I posted a couple questions and received no responses – I could’ve just as easily been talking to my HP DeskJet while printing “I hope that helps” messages to myself. Having an alternate, fee-based help resource would have been a blessing. <BR>
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If I may enter the philosophical arena for a minute, I’m amazed by the eQUEST users who will comfortably charge their clients thousands of dollars for a model, using “free” software, but <I>expect</I> free assistance and get up in arms when anyone brings up the idea of fee-based help (or that it would be brought up on a forum created <I>for</I> eQUEST help). There has been talk about helping for “the greater good of the modeling community”, but I don’t find it to be intellectually honest. Such a notion is predicated on an equal contribution from all participants, but the reality is that there are far more help-seekers than help-providers, and such will always be the case with voluntary forums. Quick questions that can be answered in five minutes are not an issue, and the forum is wonderful for that, but when it turns into me taking an hour or two to go through someone’s model for free, while they get paid for my findings, is not inherently good for me or the community. It has been done for me in the past, and I have paid it forward. However, there are not enough active participants to make this standard operating procedure. I also refute the notion that having an alternate help source undermines the forum; the two are not mutually exclusive. <BR>
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So, Carol, please put out your shingle. I might break my model just for an excuse to call you.<BR>
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</SPAN></FONT></FONT><FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><SPAN STYLE='font-size:12pt'><IMG src="cid:3357730037_29024059" ></SPAN></FONT><FONT SIZE="2"><FONT FACE="Franklin Gothic Book"><SPAN STYLE='font-size:10pt'><B> DAKOTA KELLEY</B> </SPAN></FONT></FONT><FONT FACE="Franklin Gothic Book"><FONT SIZE="1"><SPAN STYLE='font-size:8pt'> <BR>
</SPAN></FONT><FONT SIZE="2"><SPAN STYLE='font-size:10pt'>Project Designer<BR>
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Office: 214-744-6199<BR>
Cell: 214-280-3825<BR>
Fax: 214-744-0770 <BR>
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</SPAN></FONT></FONT><FONT SIZE="1"><SPAN STYLE='font-size:8pt'><FONT COLOR="#0000FF"><FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><a href="http://www.teliospc.com">http://www.teliospc.com</a></FONT></FONT><FONT FACE="Franklin Gothic Book"> <<a href="http://www.teliospc.com/">http://www.teliospc.com/</a>> 3535 Travis St. Suite 115 <BR>
</FONT><FONT COLOR="#0000FF"><FONT FACE="Times New Roman"><a href="dakotak@teliospc.com">dakotak@teliospc.com</a></FONT></FONT><FONT FACE="Franklin Gothic Book"> <<a href="mailto:dakotak@teliospc.com">mailto:dakotak@teliospc.com</a>> Dallas, TX 75204 <BR>
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</SPAN></FONT><FONT SIZE="2"><FONT FACE="Tahoma, Verdana, Helvetica, Arial"><SPAN STYLE='font-size:10pt'><B>From:</B> Carol Gardner [<a href="mailto:cmg750@gmail.com">mailto:cmg750@gmail.com</a>] <BR>
<B>Sent:</B> Tuesday, May 25, 2010 4:45 PM<BR>
<B>To:</B> eQUEST Users List<BR>
<B>Cc:</B> Benville, Jim; <a href="ed.wall@ee.doe.gov">ed.wall@ee.doe.gov</a><BR>
<B>Subject:</B> [Equest-users] eQUEST Help Desk Funding<BR>
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All,<BR>
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For the right amount of money, a dedicated land line, and a dedicated computer, I will function as your dedicated Help Desk. Let me know who is interested in funding me to be this resource. Let me know how much you think this resource is worth. As you all know by now unless you've been sleeping, I am a self-employed professional that takes time to answer your questions but must quit giving my time away for free. <BR>
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