arthwollipot
Limerick Purist Pronouns: He/Him
We have that too, but for some reason a lot of people don't use it.
Dear Users... (A thread for Sysadmin, Technical Support, and Help Desk people)
- Thread starter JoeMorgue
- Start date
- Status
Norman Alexander
Penultimate Amazing
What they don't see, they don't have to worry about.
arthwollipot
Limerick Purist Pronouns: He/Him
I'm on a call right now with someone who is phoning from a different desk from where their computer is. So whenever I tell them to try something it's "okay, hang on..." and then wait... wait... wait... "okay, that didn't work." Okay, so check this. "Right, hang on..." wait... wait... wait...
Worse, they aren't even letting me finish what I'm saying before putting the phone down and going away.
Worse, they aren't even letting me finish what I'm saying before putting the phone down and going away.
arthwollipot
Limerick Purist Pronouns: He/Him
Ugh. Someone made a truly terrible decision.
We've been having problems with our Citrix SecureMail phone apps syncing with the Exchange servers. Some very smart person decided that it would be a good idea to send an email around to everybody telling them that if they're experiencing a problem, they should call the Service Desk.
The solution is to delete and reinstall the app.
YOU COULDN'T HAVE PUT THAT IN THE DAMN EMAIL?
We've been taking these calls all afternoon.
We've been having problems with our Citrix SecureMail phone apps syncing with the Exchange servers. Some very smart person decided that it would be a good idea to send an email around to everybody telling them that if they're experiencing a problem, they should call the Service Desk.
The solution is to delete and reinstall the app.
YOU COULDN'T HAVE PUT THAT IN THE DAMN EMAIL?
We've been taking these calls all afternoon.
Norman Alexander
Penultimate Amazing
Forward these calls to the "some very smart person's" desk.
xterra
So far, so good...
I'm on a call right now with someone who is phoning from a different desk from where their computer is. So whenever I tell them to try something it's "okay, hang on..." and then wait... wait... wait... "okay, that didn't work." Okay, so check this. "Right, hang on..." wait... wait... wait...
Worse, they aren't even letting me finish what I'm saying before putting the phone down and going away.
When they return to the phone, continue exactly from when the phone went down. If that's in the middle of a word, so be it.
arthwollipot
Limerick Purist Pronouns: He/Him
As the call did not last three hours, your advice comes a little late.
xterra
So far, so good...
Next time....
I came into work this morning.
One of our... let's just say "high maintenance" users had snagged the new IT guy (been working here about 2 weeks now) and was having him put every single document she access on her desktop so she "didn't have to waste time going to look for it."
An entire, screen full, edge to edge collection of Excel and Word documents, folder shortcuts, even an individual on her desktop shortcut to every webpage she visits, on her desktop so she she wouldn't have to remember where anything was at.
One of our... let's just say "high maintenance" users had snagged the new IT guy (been working here about 2 weeks now) and was having him put every single document she access on her desktop so she "didn't have to waste time going to look for it."
An entire, screen full, edge to edge collection of Excel and Word documents, folder shortcuts, even an individual on her desktop shortcut to every webpage she visits, on her desktop so she she wouldn't have to remember where anything was at.
No they don't have a concept of wasting our time.
In fact some vague concept of "Hyper-efficiency" is what causes these problems. There's a corporate mentality here where basically the doctors, who own and run the show, want their underlings to be able to spout off any information it crosses their minds to want the nanosecond it crosses their minds to want it.
The problem is the "rank and file" people are almost universally 40-60 year old women with a proud "I don't know how to use a computer and will never learn" mentality so they just are not efficient users of IT systems. If everything isn't set up exactly as "they are used to" they damn near shut down and throw the IT dept under the bus as the reason they can't crap out the information the doctors want fast enough.
Wudang
BOFH
Have you tried financial reports? Show each doctor how much IT spend is on "hand holding", maybe with a "gold star" for the doctor whose staff are least expensive to the company? Divide et impera and all that.
Or there's the whole ITIL Financial Management - throw around KPIs and "best practice" and waffle.
Or there's the whole ITIL Financial Management - throw around KPIs and "best practice" and waffle.
Norman Alexander
Penultimate Amazing
If someone hits Auto Arrange on her desktop controls, she is going to be in a WORLD of pain. IT should suggest it for her.
As I have mentioned above, "high maintenance" users are that way because they have trained you to do their work for them. That's how they think it is done around here. Plus they are playing the "HELPLESS!" card. It needs to be the other way round. There needs to be an imperative for them to stop behaving like that. IT needs to train them to not expect IT to be their servants.
Also, anyone who states that "I don't know how to use a computer and won't learn" should have it taken off them forthwith. They can do without it if they are not prepared to put in some effort. And casually mention that staff who DO know how to use computers are readily available and looking for work. Naturally they will complain to their boss. For doctors, ask them if they would allow anyone at all to continue to do surgery on patients (or prescribe medications, run X-ray machines, whatever) without having any training and refusing to get it. Use their exclusive club rules to your advantage.
Last edited:
The problem is IT services are handled by a contractor. I don't work for the same people all my users work for, so I basically no leverage. The only thing their corporate leadership is worried with is everything working smoothly and trying to get Janice with the Minion posters and porcelain figurines all over her cubicle to learn the difference between a local drive and a network drive is just not worth the trouble in their minds.
It's basically strategic incompotence. The IT Staff hand-holding their staff through basic tasks just gets better and faster results then putting expectations on their staff.
Last edited:
RecoveringYuppy
Penultimate Amazing
- Joined
- Nov 29, 2006
- Messages
- 14,185
The last line really ought to be "git gone"
Hellbound
Merchant of Doom
I need a similar one that says something like "Click to accept the patch reboot now".
I swear, I wish I could convince management to put a limit on how many times users can click the "Delay" option when patches are pushed.
I swear, I wish I could convince management to put a limit on how many times users can click the "Delay" option when patches are pushed.
Ages ago, when we moved *to* XP,(!) I think, and had a "My Documents" folder for the first time, I decided it was an irritating name, so renamed mine "My Little Documents".
I soon renamed it, when I found that lots of stuff failed to work properly.
I soon renamed it, when I found that lots of stuff failed to work properly.
novaphile
Quester of Doglets
Our team just hang up on password change requests, people seem to grasp the concept fairly quickly.
(It was advertised widely before they started doing that.)
My main issue with this version of password reset is the places that insist you provide multiple reset questions (I've seen up to 5), and they need to come from a fixed selection of 10 or so. Now, frankly, I'm more likely to remember the password than I am the answer to all five security questions from things that I have absolutely no fixed answer for. Favourite film? First pet (depends on what animal I happen to remember at the time)? Favourite anything, in fact.
- Status