Why do computer problems for non-techies cause them to forget how to read?

dLockers said:
Read this very thread and you'll see why IT get treated badly. It is a fallacy to expect people to be able to understand computers as well as computer enthusiasts. It is the same reason why IT isn't asked what the balance sheet liabilities are. I mean it is bloody obvious and written down in front of them, so why can't you get your head around IT asset depreciation curves? :rolleyes:

I'd say IT is one of the worst for the peter principle too.
Click to expand...

Phoning up IT because your PC isnt plugged in and you didnt check is a bit different...

Or phoning them up to do non-IT related jobs, like move furniture around just because a desk happens to have a PC on it. Then kick off when told to get lost.
 
Nasher said:
Phoning up IT because your PC isnt plugged in and they didnt check is a bit different...

Or phoning them up to do non-IT related jobs, like move furniture around just because a desk happens to have a PC on it. Then kick off when told to get lost.
Click to expand...
That's very true. I remember my first first line job and I was asked by the Office Manager to replace the whiteboard pens in each of the meeting rooms. Luckily my line manager heard the ask and went ape on her.
 
dl8860 said:
Why do computer problems for non-techies cause them for forget how to read?

Why does making a post on a forum about non-techies and computer problems cause people to forget how to write?
Click to expand...

Fixed it. Sorry about that.
 
The "know just enough to be dangerous, but not enough to fix it" who call for support and then completely ignore what you ask them to do and go and change stuff in front of you making the original problem worse and impossible to diagnose.
 
Nasher said:
Phoning up IT because your PC isnt plugged in and you didnt check is a bit different...

Or phoning them up to do non-IT related jobs, like move furniture around just because a desk happens to have a PC on it. Then kick off when told to get lost.
Click to expand...

Conversely I worked (temporarily) in an office where policy dictated that IT be at least present when this was the case. If the table/desk had equipement on it, IT had to go and disconnect it, wait till the furniture was repositioned then reconnect the equipment, even if, as in one case, it's a WiFi connected printer that only has a power cable.
 
I always wow people in work with my skills with the printer.
They don't seem to like it when I point out there's picture instructions of the screen with what to do.
 
Well, there is a reason why people type password as their password. So they don't forget it.

They simple folk.
 
Do they still teach basic computer literacy at schools anymore? They know how to use tablets and phones well enough but how many will actually regularly use a desktop PC anymore unless its for work?

Theres far too much useless stuff taught in schools and not enough to equip them with real life.

Haggisman said:
To be honest, anyone under the age of 40 has absolutely no excuse - personal and office computers have been ubiquitous for the last 30 years or so - unless you've had a very isolated life you've almost certainly been using one for the majority of your adult life :mad:
Click to expand...

Under 50 I'd say they've been commonplace since the 80's I was first sat down in front of a computer sometime then when I stared at it and thought "wtf do I do with this?!" and that was just a CLI prompt and a blank screen lol
 
Last edited:
Something i've seen increasing over the past few years is people not haviong the ability to use the start button.

Not quite daily but certainly weekely i'll get a call regarding software not being on a machine. Not being = no shortcut on the desktop / task bar.
 
john_smith said:
Something i've seen increasing over the past few years is people not haviong the ability to use the start button.

Not quite daily but certainly weekely i'll get a call regarding software not being on a machine. Not being = no shortcut on the desktop / task bar.
Click to expand...
What's the start button? Be more specific :o
 
john_smith said:
Something i've seen increasing over the past few years is people not haviong the ability to use the start button.

Not quite daily but certainly weekely i'll get a call regarding software not being on a machine. Not being = no shortcut on the desktop / task bar.
Click to expand...

Which is the same thing to most users. They use apps. That's it. The hardware, the firmware, the OS...none of those things are their concern. They use apps. In a similar vein, most people who use a car don't know (or want to know, or need to know) how the car works. It's more common in modern times due to modern technology, but it's not an entirely new thing. Specialisation has existed at least since the first city. An ancient Mesopotamian merchant selling bronze tools needn't know how to make them, for example. The person who made them needn't know how to mine and smelt ore.
 
Reading this and the IT "crowd" saying omg it's such a simple thing to fix...I wouldn't be saying that too much to your employer tbh, Teach the grunts how to solve their own problems and you'll be out of a job :P
 
Blackjack Davy said:
Do they still teach basic computer literacy at schools anymore? They know how to use tablets and phones well enough but how many will actually regularly use a desktop PC anymore unless its for work?

Theres far too much useless stuff taught in schools and not enough to equip them with real life.



Under 50 I'd say they've been commonplace since the 80's I was first sat down in front of a computer sometime then when I stared at it and thought "wtf do I do with this?!" and that was just a CLI prompt and a blank screen lol
Click to expand...

Funny, I used to hear that back in 1997 - 2002. That and the lecturers saying PCs are only for work, not entertainment/gaming.
 
dLockers said:
ITT: IT misaligned with business objectives and unaware of who pays their bills.
Click to expand...

ITT: End users who don't realise that if IT have to spend 99% of their time firefighting trivial issues which the end user could sort out themselves in less time than it takes to raise a ticket if only they would engage brain, then IT only have 1% of their time left to actually work on improving systems and infrastructure for said users.
 
Haggisman said:
ITT: End users who don't realise that if IT have to spend 99% of their time firefighting trivial issues which the end user could sort out themselves in less time than it takes to raise a ticket if only they would engage brain, then IT only have 1% of their time left to actually work on improving systems and infrastructure for said users.
Click to expand...
Oh ok maybe I've just left the world where first line help desk are also responsible for improving systems and infra.

Also, what infra? Get to the cloud :p
 
Resident said:
Conversely I worked (temporarily) in an office where policy dictated that IT be at least present when this was the case. If the table/desk had equipement on it, IT had to go and disconnect it, wait till the furniture was repositioned then reconnect the equipment, even if, as in one case, it's a WiFi connected printer that only has a power cable.
Click to expand...

As far as I can see there are three ways this happens:

1. They were writing a policy and either a senior manager saw the word IT and decided he wanted the IT team to be involved, or an overzealous IT manager, in an effort to justify his existence decided anything with the word technology in it had to be overseen by his team.

2. Every slight office reshuffle led to so many petty IT tickets that the team decided it was just easier to do it themselves.

3. And I hope this is true, at some point there was an office move where SO MUCH DAMAGE was caused to the IT equipment that a policy was created which means Doris from accounting can't even move the pot plant that's next to the office MFD without adult supervision.
 
dLockers said:
Oh ok maybe I've just left the world where first line help desk are also responsible for improving systems and infra.
Click to expand...

To be honest this does depend on the company size. In an SME where you have maybe 1-2 IT people who do everything it becomes problematic when you don't have time for anything else because you're constantly dealing with "critical" issues like a printer being out of paper or a computer "not coming on" because there's a light on the monitor so that must also mean the "hard drive" is on. Obviously not such an issue in bigger companies where you have dedicated 1st/2nd/3rd line & infrastructure teams.

dLockers said:
Also, what infra? Get to the cloud :p
Click to expand...

To be fair, it's over 10 years since I had anything to do with support or infrastructure, and "the cloud" wasn't really a thing at that time :p

Regardless, I dread to think of the bandwidth requirements of 30-40 devs all downloading 20+gb of source code simultaneously multiple times a day! :eek:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom