Tech support (the free variety)
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I've lost faith in humankind You people who deal regularly with users probably experience this regularly. You have my heartfelt sympathies... It started off as an email attachment they couldn't open. Forward it to me, I'll take a look Apparently there are people who can't forward email because they don't know how to. The "attachment" happened to be a link to a huge video. Since they can't forward the link, they got their kid to log in to the email account and sent me a photograph of the screen. They can skype, thankfully, on their iPhone. Apple is right, people definitely don't need that many features because it confuses them. Had it been an Android phone I'd have been screwed - making me visit them to look at the mail in person. That took two attempts because the first pic was of the list of emails (without opening the one with the link) Had to type the link manually (freaking long hash), download it and write it to a DVD so that they can view it (another thing that they could do) The previous tech support request was to fix their laptop (because programmers know to fix everything. Go figure) Turned out the thing was unplugged (rats nest of wires, no idea what is plugged in where) and the battery was dead. Nearly took the damned thing apart, had too much faith that they would overlook something so obvious. I need a drink. And another one after that.
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I've lost faith in humankind You people who deal regularly with users probably experience this regularly. You have my heartfelt sympathies... It started off as an email attachment they couldn't open. Forward it to me, I'll take a look Apparently there are people who can't forward email because they don't know how to. The "attachment" happened to be a link to a huge video. Since they can't forward the link, they got their kid to log in to the email account and sent me a photograph of the screen. They can skype, thankfully, on their iPhone. Apple is right, people definitely don't need that many features because it confuses them. Had it been an Android phone I'd have been screwed - making me visit them to look at the mail in person. That took two attempts because the first pic was of the list of emails (without opening the one with the link) Had to type the link manually (freaking long hash), download it and write it to a DVD so that they can view it (another thing that they could do) The previous tech support request was to fix their laptop (because programmers know to fix everything. Go figure) Turned out the thing was unplugged (rats nest of wires, no idea what is plugged in where) and the battery was dead. Nearly took the damned thing apart, had too much faith that they would overlook something so obvious. I need a drink. And another one after that.
Nighthowler wrote:
I'd have been screwed - making me visit them to look at the mail in person.
Years ago, I did tech support and we only had a telephone. There is a skill in asking users to describe what they are seeing. Nowadays, people rely too much on being able to remote in and do not know how to ask the right questions. A lost art, it would seem. :^)
There are two kinds of people in the world: those who can extrapolate from incomplete data. There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.
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I've lost faith in humankind You people who deal regularly with users probably experience this regularly. You have my heartfelt sympathies... It started off as an email attachment they couldn't open. Forward it to me, I'll take a look Apparently there are people who can't forward email because they don't know how to. The "attachment" happened to be a link to a huge video. Since they can't forward the link, they got their kid to log in to the email account and sent me a photograph of the screen. They can skype, thankfully, on their iPhone. Apple is right, people definitely don't need that many features because it confuses them. Had it been an Android phone I'd have been screwed - making me visit them to look at the mail in person. That took two attempts because the first pic was of the list of emails (without opening the one with the link) Had to type the link manually (freaking long hash), download it and write it to a DVD so that they can view it (another thing that they could do) The previous tech support request was to fix their laptop (because programmers know to fix everything. Go figure) Turned out the thing was unplugged (rats nest of wires, no idea what is plugged in where) and the battery was dead. Nearly took the damned thing apart, had too much faith that they would overlook something so obvious. I need a drink. And another one after that.
It's old, but... Too Stupid to Own a Computer : snopes.com[^] it's still as true today - if not truer, given that any imbecile that can turn on an iPhone thinks they "understand computers" these days. :sigh:
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
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It's old, but... Too Stupid to Own a Computer : snopes.com[^] it's still as true today - if not truer, given that any imbecile that can turn on an iPhone thinks they "understand computers" these days. :sigh:
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
You're forgetting the people that think that the younger generation is all "in-tune" with computers because of video games and facebook(twitter, snapchat, insert relevant social media here, because I don't care).
"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics." - Benjamin Disraeli
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You're forgetting the people that think that the younger generation is all "in-tune" with computers because of video games and facebook(twitter, snapchat, insert relevant social media here, because I don't care).
"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics." - Benjamin Disraeli
Virgin have an advert at the moment in the UK: Masters of Entertainment[^] which annoys the heck out of me: just because the ad company executives can't do any of those things (despite a mental age of seven) doesn't mean that I can't. The "younger generation" aren't all "in-tune" with tech, because most of 'em have no idea what happens behind the scenes of iOS / Android / Farcebook / Twatter - but it looks like they are to people who grew up in pre-Betamax days! :laugh:
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
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Virgin have an advert at the moment in the UK: Masters of Entertainment[^] which annoys the heck out of me: just because the ad company executives can't do any of those things (despite a mental age of seven) doesn't mean that I can't. The "younger generation" aren't all "in-tune" with tech, because most of 'em have no idea what happens behind the scenes of iOS / Android / Farcebook / Twatter - but it looks like they are to people who grew up in pre-Betamax days! :laugh:
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
If those were only all things we had to endure just because some useless drone can't do them...
The language is JavaScript. that of Mordor, which I will not utter here
This is Javascript. If you put big wheels and a racing stripe on a golf cart, it's still a fucking golf cart.
"I don't know, extraterrestrial?" "You mean like from space?" "No, from Canada." If software development were a circus, we would all be the clowns. -
I've lost faith in humankind You people who deal regularly with users probably experience this regularly. You have my heartfelt sympathies... It started off as an email attachment they couldn't open. Forward it to me, I'll take a look Apparently there are people who can't forward email because they don't know how to. The "attachment" happened to be a link to a huge video. Since they can't forward the link, they got their kid to log in to the email account and sent me a photograph of the screen. They can skype, thankfully, on their iPhone. Apple is right, people definitely don't need that many features because it confuses them. Had it been an Android phone I'd have been screwed - making me visit them to look at the mail in person. That took two attempts because the first pic was of the list of emails (without opening the one with the link) Had to type the link manually (freaking long hash), download it and write it to a DVD so that they can view it (another thing that they could do) The previous tech support request was to fix their laptop (because programmers know to fix everything. Go figure) Turned out the thing was unplugged (rats nest of wires, no idea what is plugged in where) and the battery was dead. Nearly took the damned thing apart, had too much faith that they would overlook something so obvious. I need a drink. And another one after that.
You don't know how good you've got it. I was support supervisor for an accounting software company back in the early 80's, and some of the things we encountered back in those days have since become urban legend, but I assure you, they are totally true. Some examples: These were the days of 5¼" floppy disks, and often we would get the client to send us in a copy of their files so we could inspect/repair them. One case sent us in a photocopy of their backup disk. Another folded the disk so it would fit into a standard envelope. Yet another kept the disks safe by storing them on the side of a filing cabinet with a magnet. One of the funniest examples: one of our clients was the 7th Day Adventist Church. When doing telephone support, we always told them what to type letter by letter, and used a word as in "a for apple, b for balloon" etc. Anyway, our staff said "d for dingo", and didn't that stir things up! Poor girl was stuck on the phone for almost three hours getting a full explanation of how Lindy could not possibly have done it.
Cheers, Mick ------------------------------------------------ It doesn't matter how often or hard you fall on your arse, eventually you'll roll over and land on your feet.
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Virgin have an advert at the moment in the UK: Masters of Entertainment[^] which annoys the heck out of me: just because the ad company executives can't do any of those things (despite a mental age of seven) doesn't mean that I can't. The "younger generation" aren't all "in-tune" with tech, because most of 'em have no idea what happens behind the scenes of iOS / Android / Farcebook / Twatter - but it looks like they are to people who grew up in pre-Betamax days! :laugh:
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
I think you're giving too much credit to ad execs...that was painful.
"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics." - Benjamin Disraeli
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You don't know how good you've got it. I was support supervisor for an accounting software company back in the early 80's, and some of the things we encountered back in those days have since become urban legend, but I assure you, they are totally true. Some examples: These were the days of 5¼" floppy disks, and often we would get the client to send us in a copy of their files so we could inspect/repair them. One case sent us in a photocopy of their backup disk. Another folded the disk so it would fit into a standard envelope. Yet another kept the disks safe by storing them on the side of a filing cabinet with a magnet. One of the funniest examples: one of our clients was the 7th Day Adventist Church. When doing telephone support, we always told them what to type letter by letter, and used a word as in "a for apple, b for balloon" etc. Anyway, our staff said "d for dingo", and didn't that stir things up! Poor girl was stuck on the phone for almost three hours getting a full explanation of how Lindy could not possibly have done it.
Cheers, Mick ------------------------------------------------ It doesn't matter how often or hard you fall on your arse, eventually you'll roll over and land on your feet.
Ah, yes, I've had the old 5 1/4"s with compliment slips staples through them. My all time favourite one, though: "I think the computer's broken." "What makes you think that?" "The screen's gone all blank except for a pound sign in the corner." That was a conversation with someone who was meant to be a UNIX systems administrator. Sometimes it really is better to ask a programmer.
Slogans aren't solutions.
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Ah, yes, I've had the old 5 1/4"s with compliment slips staples through them. My all time favourite one, though: "I think the computer's broken." "What makes you think that?" "The screen's gone all blank except for a pound sign in the corner." That was a conversation with someone who was meant to be a UNIX systems administrator. Sometimes it really is better to ask a programmer.
Slogans aren't solutions.
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I've lost faith in humankind You people who deal regularly with users probably experience this regularly. You have my heartfelt sympathies... It started off as an email attachment they couldn't open. Forward it to me, I'll take a look Apparently there are people who can't forward email because they don't know how to. The "attachment" happened to be a link to a huge video. Since they can't forward the link, they got their kid to log in to the email account and sent me a photograph of the screen. They can skype, thankfully, on their iPhone. Apple is right, people definitely don't need that many features because it confuses them. Had it been an Android phone I'd have been screwed - making me visit them to look at the mail in person. That took two attempts because the first pic was of the list of emails (without opening the one with the link) Had to type the link manually (freaking long hash), download it and write it to a DVD so that they can view it (another thing that they could do) The previous tech support request was to fix their laptop (because programmers know to fix everything. Go figure) Turned out the thing was unplugged (rats nest of wires, no idea what is plugged in where) and the battery was dead. Nearly took the damned thing apart, had too much faith that they would overlook something so obvious. I need a drink. And another one after that.
Nighthowler wrote:
I need a drink.
Is the correct answer!
veni bibi saltavi
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I've lost faith in humankind You people who deal regularly with users probably experience this regularly. You have my heartfelt sympathies... It started off as an email attachment they couldn't open. Forward it to me, I'll take a look Apparently there are people who can't forward email because they don't know how to. The "attachment" happened to be a link to a huge video. Since they can't forward the link, they got their kid to log in to the email account and sent me a photograph of the screen. They can skype, thankfully, on their iPhone. Apple is right, people definitely don't need that many features because it confuses them. Had it been an Android phone I'd have been screwed - making me visit them to look at the mail in person. That took two attempts because the first pic was of the list of emails (without opening the one with the link) Had to type the link manually (freaking long hash), download it and write it to a DVD so that they can view it (another thing that they could do) The previous tech support request was to fix their laptop (because programmers know to fix everything. Go figure) Turned out the thing was unplugged (rats nest of wires, no idea what is plugged in where) and the battery was dead. Nearly took the damned thing apart, had too much faith that they would overlook something so obvious. I need a drink. And another one after that.
I used to work near a guy on customer support in the 90s - he had a) the patience of a saint, b) a distinct German accent. It was magnificent to hear him (obviously, only one half of the conversation) Do you have PIF Editor? It is ze icon viz ze yellow pencil... No, zen ve must knife and fork it srough ... lots of to-ing & fro-ing, always polite, not getting angry ... puts phone down, then in frustration - vhen she cannot speak her own language, she may as vell bark like a dog! That was a particularly bad one though.
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I've lost faith in humankind You people who deal regularly with users probably experience this regularly. You have my heartfelt sympathies... It started off as an email attachment they couldn't open. Forward it to me, I'll take a look Apparently there are people who can't forward email because they don't know how to. The "attachment" happened to be a link to a huge video. Since they can't forward the link, they got their kid to log in to the email account and sent me a photograph of the screen. They can skype, thankfully, on their iPhone. Apple is right, people definitely don't need that many features because it confuses them. Had it been an Android phone I'd have been screwed - making me visit them to look at the mail in person. That took two attempts because the first pic was of the list of emails (without opening the one with the link) Had to type the link manually (freaking long hash), download it and write it to a DVD so that they can view it (another thing that they could do) The previous tech support request was to fix their laptop (because programmers know to fix everything. Go figure) Turned out the thing was unplugged (rats nest of wires, no idea what is plugged in where) and the battery was dead. Nearly took the damned thing apart, had too much faith that they would overlook something so obvious. I need a drink. And another one after that.
I used to do phone support and one of the bizarre things that annoyed me was that for some reason people immediately forgot how to do anything when they were on the phone to you and this was a far from uncommon occurrence. Them: "When I open this Word file the letters are really small." Me: "Ok can you just open the file for me now." Them: "How do I do that?" Them: "When I start Outlook it won't download my mail." Me: "Ok can you start Outlook for me now." Them: "How do I do that?" No matter what it was they were calling about, 50% of the time when you asked them to reproduce the issue they asked "How do I do that?" HOW DO YOU KNOW IT'S A £^*"$ING PROBLEM THEN???
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Virgin have an advert at the moment in the UK: Masters of Entertainment[^] which annoys the heck out of me: just because the ad company executives can't do any of those things (despite a mental age of seven) doesn't mean that I can't. The "younger generation" aren't all "in-tune" with tech, because most of 'em have no idea what happens behind the scenes of iOS / Android / Farcebook / Twatter - but it looks like they are to people who grew up in pre-Betamax days! :laugh:
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
By the same merit, though, I'm cr@p with radio tech, because computer tech was just growing up when I was "that age", and attracted me more. I'll bet there were plenty of grumpy old buggers complaining about "kids nowadays not even knowing how to wire up a crystal", or some-such.
I wanna be a eunuchs developer! Pass me a bread knife!
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Ah, yes, I've had the old 5 1/4"s with compliment slips staples through them. My all time favourite one, though: "I think the computer's broken." "What makes you think that?" "The screen's gone all blank except for a pound sign in the corner." That was a conversation with someone who was meant to be a UNIX systems administrator. Sometimes it really is better to ask a programmer.
Slogans aren't solutions.
PeejayAdams wrote:
"The screen's gone all blank except for a pound sign in the corner."
So put a shilling in the meter.
I wanna be a eunuchs developer! Pass me a bread knife!
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It's old, but... Too Stupid to Own a Computer : snopes.com[^] it's still as true today - if not truer, given that any imbecile that can turn on an iPhone thinks they "understand computers" these days. :sigh:
Bad command or file name. Bad, bad command! Sit! Stay! Staaaay...
Back when I was teaching I ran an evening class for "Computer Studies". One mother brought her son to attend the classes and proudly told me, "He's very good and knows all about computers. He always sets the high score on Space Invaders!" - which also gives you an idea of how long ago it was!
- I would love to change the world, but they won’t give me the source code.
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I've lost faith in humankind You people who deal regularly with users probably experience this regularly. You have my heartfelt sympathies... It started off as an email attachment they couldn't open. Forward it to me, I'll take a look Apparently there are people who can't forward email because they don't know how to. The "attachment" happened to be a link to a huge video. Since they can't forward the link, they got their kid to log in to the email account and sent me a photograph of the screen. They can skype, thankfully, on their iPhone. Apple is right, people definitely don't need that many features because it confuses them. Had it been an Android phone I'd have been screwed - making me visit them to look at the mail in person. That took two attempts because the first pic was of the list of emails (without opening the one with the link) Had to type the link manually (freaking long hash), download it and write it to a DVD so that they can view it (another thing that they could do) The previous tech support request was to fix their laptop (because programmers know to fix everything. Go figure) Turned out the thing was unplugged (rats nest of wires, no idea what is plugged in where) and the battery was dead. Nearly took the damned thing apart, had too much faith that they would overlook something so obvious. I need a drink. And another one after that.
A billion years ago when I was in IT and we were rolling out a PC network to replace an old mini system (Nixdorf) there was an elderly woman in accounts receivable that freaked out when she found out a mouse was called a "mouse". She absolutely refused to touch it. I cut out a picture of a flower and taped it to her mouse and from that day forward always referred to it as a flower when we spoke. Damn picture was still there 3 years later when she retired.
In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem. ~ Ronald Reagan
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A billion years ago when I was in IT and we were rolling out a PC network to replace an old mini system (Nixdorf) there was an elderly woman in accounts receivable that freaked out when she found out a mouse was called a "mouse". She absolutely refused to touch it. I cut out a picture of a flower and taped it to her mouse and from that day forward always referred to it as a flower when we spoke. Damn picture was still there 3 years later when she retired.
In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem. ~ Ronald Reagan
It was good to have fun with some of the clients like that. We had one client that lived very close to where she worked, and each lunch time would go home and watch "Days of our Lives". So whenever we had a new employee, and that client rang, we would get the new person to take the call and ask her how Days of our Lives was going, and enjoy the reaction when they got a (good natured) mouthful.
Cheers, Mick ------------------------------------------------ It doesn't matter how often or hard you fall on your arse, eventually you'll roll over and land on your feet.
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I used to do phone support and one of the bizarre things that annoyed me was that for some reason people immediately forgot how to do anything when they were on the phone to you and this was a far from uncommon occurrence. Them: "When I open this Word file the letters are really small." Me: "Ok can you just open the file for me now." Them: "How do I do that?" Them: "When I start Outlook it won't download my mail." Me: "Ok can you start Outlook for me now." Them: "How do I do that?" No matter what it was they were calling about, 50% of the time when you asked them to reproduce the issue they asked "How do I do that?" HOW DO YOU KNOW IT'S A £^*"$ING PROBLEM THEN???
They hear your words, but ton't connect them with the normal activities, so they ask. Every time Mickeysoft sh*ts out a new OS, I use some new features and discover later what they actually are called. Sometimes even after asking some dumb question when I heard the name without yet knowing that this new feature I was using was behind that. If you do support all day, you may phrase things in a way that normal uses are not used to.
The language is JavaScript. that of Mordor, which I will not utter here
This is Javascript. If you put big wheels and a racing stripe on a golf cart, it's still a fucking golf cart.
"I don't know, extraterrestrial?" "You mean like from space?" "No, from Canada." If software development were a circus, we would all be the clowns. -
I've lost faith in humankind You people who deal regularly with users probably experience this regularly. You have my heartfelt sympathies... It started off as an email attachment they couldn't open. Forward it to me, I'll take a look Apparently there are people who can't forward email because they don't know how to. The "attachment" happened to be a link to a huge video. Since they can't forward the link, they got their kid to log in to the email account and sent me a photograph of the screen. They can skype, thankfully, on their iPhone. Apple is right, people definitely don't need that many features because it confuses them. Had it been an Android phone I'd have been screwed - making me visit them to look at the mail in person. That took two attempts because the first pic was of the list of emails (without opening the one with the link) Had to type the link manually (freaking long hash), download it and write it to a DVD so that they can view it (another thing that they could do) The previous tech support request was to fix their laptop (because programmers know to fix everything. Go figure) Turned out the thing was unplugged (rats nest of wires, no idea what is plugged in where) and the battery was dead. Nearly took the damned thing apart, had too much faith that they would overlook something so obvious. I need a drink. And another one after that.
