Do you keep your cool or go off on them? 5

[visualuser]

I know most of you out there are system admin, programmers, and so on. It seems like all the users think they can come to you and tell you what to do, like they are your boss.

Just the other day, one guy came to me and told me to reinstall some software becuase it wasn't working right and to open the case by the way and clean it out.

First off all, the user didn't tell me what the hXll was going on wit the software. Off the top of my head, I know why the software wasn't working is becuase some people love to have 3 app killing programs open all day and never reboot. Duh...get it trough your head you can't beat your pc to death and expect it to run correctly.

Does anyone think users just say and do things to make you upset. Gosh, you go to 4yr college and get a degree and then you get treated like you are the cleaning staff or something. ( don't get me wrong, I'm not making fun of cleaning staff, everyone needs them too...)
Everyone wants at least wants a little respect.

I think it's just a few people that do this, but it really makes me upset.

 

[Glenn9999]

Holy resurrection batman!

Anyway, it takes two to start an issue. One to be beligerent and the other to respond beligerently. There are ways always to peacably solve any conflict.

 

[johnpoole]

? strange, what did you do after that original demand? i do not go off on people but i might have made an exception. i had a vp order me to do something stupid so i just laughed and walked off. got an email from his pa and replied that i needed the request in writing and an invoice number.. he is no longer with the company.. (the request was to change his monitor to the brand he had at home, (apple) because he liked the screen saver better, i don't work desktop, network side, but it's a little tough to get a apple monitor on a microsoft box)

john poole
bellsouth business
columbia,sc

 

[grande]

...?

Did this guy actually think that changing the monitor would get him a new screen saver?

-------------------------
Just call me Captain Awesome.

 

[benlinkknilneb]

...?

Did this guy actually think that changing the monitor would get him a new screen saver?

You're new here, aren't you? (just kidding)


Shannanl:
My department is guilty of that very thing. Our ticketing system frequently gets requests that have users providing "solutions" which have no bearing on the actual problem. Something to examine, as I'm in the process of rewriting it...

BeckahC: That's awesome! I'd never thought of adding a commentary for the reason that there was a problem. I bet adding a little thing that lets us analyze how many training issues we have around here (as opposed to malfunctions, etc) would help us out a whole lot.


Ben
The ships hung in the sky in much the same way that bricks don't. - Douglas Adams

 

[PCmad]

Well working in IT support for 10 years covering 1st, 2nd and 3rd line support I firmly believe that a lot of the blame goes to the lack of training for new users if any. The number of people who don't even know how to restart the machine, shut down the machine, log off user and how to lock their workstation is amazing. Even asking for them to turn the PC on and wait for it to boot they say is that the black box or the tv screen, for crying out loud. Its hardly rocket science. As for passwords well nightmare caps lock on, num lock not on and using num pad, book resting on the keyboard so then the account is locked. Then the million dollar question why is my account locked, 'cause you typed it wrong 3 times and it locks on the third attempt, no I didn't whatever I just unlock the account. It works now !

Then you get the it doesn't work, what doesn't work the computer, the screen, email, word, excel, outlook, sage what. Oh I don't know I don't know about computers I just use them everyday using the same application every day but don't know the name of it despite it saying so at the top of the screen. Give me a break, you know every Monday that Eastenders is on at 7:30 don't you and you don't look at the TV book as you watch it every Monday !

Printing issues, from the it won't print ok why will it not print ? Error message on screen ? Printer lights flashing what happens, can anyone else print ? Answer it won't print. So let me see lets turn the situation around, go to a garage tell them there is a problem with the car but do not give them any information and just expect them to know what is wrong on a telephone. Somehow its just not the same. Can you give me the make and model of the printer, yep it says HP ok and the model HP and make HP and the serial HP. Hmmm very helpful ever been to

http://www.hp.com

they make a lot of printers !

On a serious note, if companies spent time to spend an hour per employee to just explain how to use the basic functions like logging onto a pc, printing, email instead of thinking the employee knows it would make everyone's life just a bit easier.

I too am happy to explain how to do something the once and happy to show someone but the next time the user has to at least try. Where I am now we actually flag as a training issue and get someone from training to contact the user. If we get a history of repeated calls saying the same thing the line manager is informed informing they need to go on a training course.

Rant over !!

 

[ProbablyDown]

Back it up a little... When the person is HIRED, is there not any conversations around, "have you ever used a PC or has your head been completely shoved up your *** your entire life?"

If the latter is selected, "red flag".

Take their computer away and put an abacus on their desk and see what response you get. Probably "I wanted the RED abacus..."

Seriously though, I think computer usage is something that should be addressed at interview time if the job requirement is to use one everyday.

 

[BocaBurger]

Many years ago, on usenet there was a group called alt.sysadmin.recovery. It was a vent group. You should have seen what was reported there. Best one was from a guy in the UK:

Company President wanted to re-arrainge his desk. Did not call IT to move his computer.
Somehow got his 10B2 cable to fall off and hit a partially pulled out elactical plug.
220V through the network.

217 motherboards fried.
183 hard drives dead.
All the network cards dead.
107 video cards dead.
58 monitors fried.

How do I tell him he is a BLEEDING IDIOT?



BocaBurger
<===========================||////////////////|0
The pen is mightier than the sword, but the sword hurts more!

 

[Trevoke]

Boca, the scary devil monastery is still around...

-Haben sie fosforos?
-No tiengo caballero, but I have un briquet.

 

[Toshilap]

Does anyone have grandparents or parents who don't use computer? Think of them every time you want to go off.

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I finally got it all together and forgot where I put it.

 

[tazuk]

Does anyone have grandparents or parents who don't use computer

I have a 92 year old Great Aunt who had never used a computer before I gave her my old 486 4 years ago. She outgrew that one and wanted to get on the internet, so I built her a new PC last Xmas (Athlon 2Ghz with 512MB Ram etc) which she uses to play Scrabble online, write and publish her poetry, listen to music, email, etc. She recently diagnosed and resolved several errors on her own without any assistance, and remains a major netizen despite having a stroke earlier in the year.

My father recently replaced a CD drive in his PC, again without assistance - he's 64, has had no formal PC training and never seen the inside of a PC before.

What's the difference between them and the people we meet day to day in this industry? Instead of panicking / misrepresenting what happened to cause a problem, they thought things through (using basic problem solving abilities that all of us possess) and the information sources available to them to work out a course of action.

Whilst I appreciate the sentiment in your post Toshilap, namely that in the trade we need to exercise restraint when dealing with some of the more challenging customers, it is also true that there are some people who simply should not be working using a computer without some fairly basic training. Let's face it, you only have to visit the local supermarket to see that there are some people who still haven't figured out how to steer a shopping trolley (and they've been around since 1937!).

TazUk

Blue-screening PCs since 1998

 

[Toshilap]

So let's send all of those to reservations for being not 'as smart'? I don't understand...

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I finally got it all together and forgot where I put it.

 

[tazuk]

Perhaps I didn't express myself clearly - I don't consider myself any smarter than the next person. Computer use is no more related to intelligence than it is to age as you suggested above.
The single major issue is training, as has been mentioned in this thread by many. However there are some users who cannot or will not be trained. When I worked support I would regularly get the same calls for the same issues from the same people. First call - no problem, show them what to do and how to do it and then check that they understand. Second call - review how to do it and show them again. Third call, fourth call... where exactly should one draw the line?

For example: I can't draw to save my life - my horses look like people, my people like horrific accidents... So I didn't take a job that required me to draw to perform my duties. If I had wanted such a job I would have made sure that I obtained some training to enable me to perform that job.

TazUk

Blue-screening PCs since 1998

 

[Toshilap]

Thanks for explaining, I didn't think you was cruel or anything - it is just it annoys me a lot seeing people in my field who forgot that not everyone was born with computer skills but life demends it and people do want better jobs. Also society is values on how it treats their 'weaker'. In IT world we have long way to go.

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I finally got it all together and forgot where I put it.

 

[Stella740pl]

TazUk

Some of those people didn't actually get the job that requires them to use computers. It just happened that computer came to them, into the jobs that didn't require it initially, and they had to adjust. There were accountants, medical assistants, receptionists, children's services case workers, store clerks, and many other, that were able to do their jobs without the computers.

Nowadays, no matter how capable you are to balance your debit a credit with just a ruled notebook and a calculator, or to provide attentive service for abused children, or make a sale, you still need to know how to use a computer; and for some people, it is just not possible, even with the training (well, some people can't draw to save their lives, and some cannot learn languages, you know - and some are computer-impaired). They are usually fully capable of doing their main jobs, though.

That's why Tech Support exists. And it typically shouldn't draw the line. If these people didn't need help third, fourth, etc. times, many of the support people wouldn't have their jobs. I know it drives you crazy, but what can you do? They need your help. I know the feelings; long ago I did my share of training customers on using our software and computers in general. I was working with medical billing and medical statistics people. All of them used square-ruled notebooks before, and some checked the results of the program with said notebooks for 6 month or a full year.

 

[tazuk]

In IT world we have long way to go

I agree completely - I view the trade as one that requires continual learning (which is one of the reasons I joined this forum - I've learn from posts here on a daily basis). I think back to some of the production code I wrote years ago in a previous role, and am relieved that I no longer support it. I'm mostly self-taught, often by major mistakes (hence the signature lol).

Stella
I agree that Tech Support shouldn't draw a line - I'll happily sit with the 'computer impaired' and have on at least one occasion been able to turn them into 'super users' with in their department, something that gave me real pride in my role.
Unfortunately the grind of dealing with others burnt me out, and I moved out of Tech Support so that I could enjoy my work again. Simply put I believe I lack the temperament for the work, so now I restrict myself to helping friends and family, who seem to appreciate my efforts and are keen to learn.

Anyway, 'nuff said from me , except to say to those who work in Tech Support I salute you .

TazUk

Blue-screening PCs since 1998

 

[Toshilap]

I am saluting too even to the Best Buy Tech support guy who asked me to measure my electric cord (to somehow find out if it reaches the wall where my electric outlet should be. There are impare people everywhere, even in Tech Support).

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I finally got it all together and forgot where I put it.

 

[BocaBurger]

The impared in Tech Support are known as...



Wait for it......




Managers.








BocaBurger
<===========================||////////////////|0
The pen is mightier than the sword, but the sword hurts more!

 

[Toshilap]

ROFLMAO, Boca!

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I finally got it all together and forgot where I put it.

 

[phuzzy42]

Rand Mode ON

I have no problem helping people who need it and want to learn. The ones that fry my biscuits are those who refuse to even attempt to learn. I handle over 350 computers and servers in about 90 locations and don't have time to babysit. Nobody has to be a computer "guru" (except me, of course ;-)), but I won't put up with someone playing dumb.

I have one user who has run the same database job every day for the last 13 years. He still uses the same "cheat sheet" I wrote for him way back then to type the same commands in the same order. His database crashed last month and his backup was blank. He dragged out that torn, yellowed, coffee-stained piece of paper. He had no concept of what the commands did or why they were being done (though I've explained them to him many times), and never bothered to find out why he got error messages every time he typed them. He was p###ed at me because the procedure changed 9 years ago and I didn't write him a new cheat sheet (he was informed of the change then). The man is intelligent but intellectually lazy and I don't feel sorry for him because he just couldn't be bothered to use two brain cells.

The other "problem people" are the ones who act like the work computer is "theirs" and they should be able to do anything with it they want. I praised the day Windows 2000 came along and I could lock things down - it's saved me thousands of work and/or travel hours I didn't have to spend fixing botched installs, spyware, viruses, and programs that won't let their work software operate.

One user completely filled up the hard drive with background pictures, and Windows kept crashing because there was no room for the swap file. When I deleted all those pictures, the guy went running to my boss complaining that it took him a long time (duh!) to download them and I just wiped them all out. Luckily my boss backs me up - that user was officially reprimanded for wasting company time. Word gets around and I never had that problem again.

The disadvantage to locking PCs down was some users were frustrated they couldn't change settings like their home PCs, so they changed every other setting they could (I never understood why someone in Midwest USA would think they should change their codepage to Cyrillic). Of course, things broke. This particular site has 8 PCs and every one has been botched up badly enough to be reimaged at least 3 times. So... I changed my policy. Instead of 4 hour response, I just happen to be "booked up" for at least 3 days each time they do this - the users suffer for their stupidity instead of me, and amazingly, I've had no more problems from them for the last year.

I've worked here 27 years and been doing this job for 14 - I know the people. I'll spend as much time as needed helping someone, but I refuse to let them make me work harder because they don't want to or because they intentionally screw up. I'm always courteous, but people know I'm not a pushover. 98% of the users are great to work with - I don't worry much about the rest. All my users know that I'll respond to their real problems immediately and do 110% to make their jobs easier.

Rant Mode OFF

Steve Harmon
Greenfield, Indiana

 

[Trevoke]

Have a star. You flicked a switch in my brain and I saw the light (finally; can you imagine how many other switches I had to flick?).

"That time in Seattle... was a nightmare. I came out of it dead broke, without a house, without anything except a girlfriend and a knowledge of UNIX."
"Well, that's something," Avi says. "Normally those two are mutually exclusive."
-- Neal Stephenson, "Cryptonomicon"