OT: tech support joke... OR NOT??
TheHappyFriar
wrote on 3/2/2009, 7:17 PM
Comments
Spot|DSE
wrote on 3/2/2009, 7:27 PM
I assure you, it's no joke.
You'd be stunned at how many tech support mails come with "where is the "any" key, or "where is the SHIFT+" key.
it's not that people are dumb, they just get focused on one issue and can't think inside the box when that deeply focused.
You'd be stunned at how many tech support mails come with "where is the "any" key, or "where is the SHIFT+" key.
it's not that people are dumb, they just get focused on one issue and can't think inside the box when that deeply focused.
TheHappyFriar
wrote on 3/2/2009, 7:29 PM
ya know... that makes jokes about the "any" key much less funny if they're still happening. :)
musicvid10
wrote on 3/2/2009, 7:52 PM
There was a message that popped up occasionally at startup on my Win98 machine:
"Windows did not detect a keyboard attached to your computer. Press any key to continue."
I wondered why that never worked -- until now, that is . . . .
"Windows did not detect a keyboard attached to your computer. Press any key to continue."
I wondered why that never worked -- until now, that is . . . .
i c e
wrote on 3/2/2009, 7:58 PM
That sounds like something I would ask....
ice
ice
blink3times
wrote on 3/2/2009, 8:20 PM
"I assure you, it's no joke.
And this sort of stuff is EXACTLY why support from knowledgeable tech people is dwindling... not just with Sony... but with all other software too.
Would you actually pay a technician a tech wage to put answers to this kind of stupidity?? I work as an Engineer for our Provincial Government and we have a 24/7 emergency line.... Well over 80% of the incoming calls is just TOTAL stupidity. I feel very truly sorry for these support people and what they have to go through!
And this sort of stuff is EXACTLY why support from knowledgeable tech people is dwindling... not just with Sony... but with all other software too.
Would you actually pay a technician a tech wage to put answers to this kind of stupidity?? I work as an Engineer for our Provincial Government and we have a 24/7 emergency line.... Well over 80% of the incoming calls is just TOTAL stupidity. I feel very truly sorry for these support people and what they have to go through!
Spot|DSE
wrote on 3/2/2009, 8:36 PM
It costs approximately 13.00 per tech support call in this industry.
ANYTHING a business can do to reduce that cost (outside of selling tech support off-shore) is a worthy effort, IMO.
.
ANYTHING a business can do to reduce that cost (outside of selling tech support off-shore) is a worthy effort, IMO.
.
xberk
wrote on 3/2/2009, 8:49 PM
Granted, the user is often not playing with a full deck. This same user can often be found working in customer service.
My friend called his car insurance company to tell them to change his address from Texas to Vermont. The woman who took the call asked where Vermont was. As he tried to explain, she interrupted and said, 'Look, I'm not stupid or anything, but what state is it in?'
My friend called his car insurance company to tell them to change his address from Texas to Vermont. The woman who took the call asked where Vermont was. As he tried to explain, she interrupted and said, 'Look, I'm not stupid or anything, but what state is it in?'
Grazie
wrote on 3/2/2009, 10:37 PM
I have a simple answer - it is called training.
Rant-alert . . ..
You don't just plop a new worker in front of a PC, you train them. But why doesn't that happen? You got it, 'cos it costs money.
Training, training, training . . . we STILL haven't learnt this. The easy and cheapest part is the acquisition of the PC and not instructing costs. It is tantamount to a type of bullying. And please don't come back at me and say things like:"Well, in this day and age people should KNOW . . . " well, they don't. They need to be trained and selected for the job better and/or trained B4 taking the position.
What managers/bosses and those that MAKE decisions will very rarely, in my experience of local government, train a newbie into getting the most "appropriate" value from the pc. There are the exceptions of course.
And do you know why there is the lack of training? Because time is tight and to be seen assisting a co-worker is a) Seen to be unproductive and b) It takes you away from the pressing work YOU have to do.
No, pressing for the "need" for training has been at the core of my management style for at least 3 decades. And I learnt it at the elbows of very fine Craftsmen: You have to and WANT to train people. Just because we are talking IT here, this has not changed. In fact, I could make an argument that it is even MORE necessary to train - and NOT just for those that seemingly "know" the ropes.
And the other thing: You need to train people to know to train people. And THAT is the virtuous circle. Training needs to be adopted and seen as part of "Doing-the-job".
(steps down from soapbox)
Grazie
Rant-alert . . ..
You don't just plop a new worker in front of a PC, you train them. But why doesn't that happen? You got it, 'cos it costs money.
Training, training, training . . . we STILL haven't learnt this. The easy and cheapest part is the acquisition of the PC and not instructing costs. It is tantamount to a type of bullying. And please don't come back at me and say things like:"Well, in this day and age people should KNOW . . . " well, they don't. They need to be trained and selected for the job better and/or trained B4 taking the position.
What managers/bosses and those that MAKE decisions will very rarely, in my experience of local government, train a newbie into getting the most "appropriate" value from the pc. There are the exceptions of course.
And do you know why there is the lack of training? Because time is tight and to be seen assisting a co-worker is a) Seen to be unproductive and b) It takes you away from the pressing work YOU have to do.
No, pressing for the "need" for training has been at the core of my management style for at least 3 decades. And I learnt it at the elbows of very fine Craftsmen: You have to and WANT to train people. Just because we are talking IT here, this has not changed. In fact, I could make an argument that it is even MORE necessary to train - and NOT just for those that seemingly "know" the ropes.
And the other thing: You need to train people to know to train people. And THAT is the virtuous circle. Training needs to be adopted and seen as part of "Doing-the-job".
(steps down from soapbox)
Grazie
DrLumen
wrote on 3/3/2009, 12:29 AM
The entry was not a joke as it was entered into their knowledgebase. However, the initial call (if there was one) could have been a prank by a customer or a supervisor test. When I was doing tech support, the worst calls were from the supervisors. They throw curves, get belligerent and trump up BS problems only to see how the agent reacts and then they can check the documentation skills. You never know for sure if it's real, a joke or a test. Support has to treat the issue as real even when it's highly suspect.
It's likely that the entry was originally coded as a general question to some other software and it got rolled over into Cinescore.
Granted that it's possible that Homer Simpson or some blue haired granny called in this issue. You also should remember that SCS is targeted to the consumers in the wild which are completely different animals compared to those caged in cubicles.
Most companies require some type of computer knowledge for those people that will be using them. If this truly came from some zoo animal (to continue the analogy) because they bluffed their way in, they probably weren't employed for long.
It's likely that the entry was originally coded as a general question to some other software and it got rolled over into Cinescore.
Granted that it's possible that Homer Simpson or some blue haired granny called in this issue. You also should remember that SCS is targeted to the consumers in the wild which are completely different animals compared to those caged in cubicles.
Most companies require some type of computer knowledge for those people that will be using them. If this truly came from some zoo animal (to continue the analogy) because they bluffed their way in, they probably weren't employed for long.
Grazie
wrote on 3/3/2009, 12:41 AM
" . . they probably weren't employed for long." - Huh . . don't you believe it!
Grazie
Grazie
farss
wrote on 3/3/2009, 1:35 AM
When I was a teenager it was the generation gap, today it's the technology gap. Most school kids are pretty computer savvy but then again before we get too smug watch 
.
Bob.
.Bob.
Chienworks
wrote on 3/3/2009, 4:27 AM
I think there's still a lot of computer fright out there. I've seen the mere fact that the topic in question is computer related reduce normally competent people to squeamish ignoramuses over and over again.
I was teaching an introduction to computers course at a local high school. The computers there had an actual rocker switch labelled "on/off" on the front panel, very obvious and conspicuous. I instructed the students to flip the switch from off to on. Two of them couldn't figure out how to do it and had to be physically shown.
I was tutoring one beginning programming student on an old Burroughs 1955 mainframe. The first step was to log in. Her user name was her real first name, but she didn't know how to type it. That threw me for a while. I mean ... how would you type your name other than by pressing the keys with the letters that spell your name? It took almost half an hour of gentle coaxing to get her to finally put fingers on the keys labeled H A I L E Y and push them in that order. For every single keystroke she was paralyzed again and had to ask "ok, so now how do i type in the L?" Later that day i saw the same student in the typing lab on an IBM selectric typing up her English composition assignment at a steady 72wpm.
There appears to be a substantial (hopefully shrinking) segment of the population that simply turns their brains off when it comes to using a computer. They believe the computer is going to be too complicated for them to understand, so they make themselves not understand it.
I was teaching an introduction to computers course at a local high school. The computers there had an actual rocker switch labelled "on/off" on the front panel, very obvious and conspicuous. I instructed the students to flip the switch from off to on. Two of them couldn't figure out how to do it and had to be physically shown.
I was tutoring one beginning programming student on an old Burroughs 1955 mainframe. The first step was to log in. Her user name was her real first name, but she didn't know how to type it. That threw me for a while. I mean ... how would you type your name other than by pressing the keys with the letters that spell your name? It took almost half an hour of gentle coaxing to get her to finally put fingers on the keys labeled H A I L E Y and push them in that order. For every single keystroke she was paralyzed again and had to ask "ok, so now how do i type in the L?" Later that day i saw the same student in the typing lab on an IBM selectric typing up her English composition assignment at a steady 72wpm.
There appears to be a substantial (hopefully shrinking) segment of the population that simply turns their brains off when it comes to using a computer. They believe the computer is going to be too complicated for them to understand, so they make themselves not understand it.
TheHappyFriar
wrote on 3/3/2009, 5:06 AM
yes, I agree about people being scared of computers. Smart people will just freeze up for fear of looking like an idiot & "dumb" people won't bother because they don't want to ask. To many people are afraid they'll fail so they don't try because failing is shown as evil now: in school you're no longer told "you're wrong", you're told "nice try, try again". @ work it's no longer "you're doing it wrong" it's "gee, could you try it this way instead?"
re: bob:
I've seen that video before. Besides the playing with stats & numbers, it's already wrong: the top 10 jobs for '10 will be jobs that already existed for decades because those are the only ones paying! :) Infact, odds are walmart will be one of the most in demand jobs for 2010 (people always buy from them regardless of the economy!)
re: bob:
I've seen that video before. Besides the playing with stats & numbers, it's already wrong: the top 10 jobs for '10 will be jobs that already existed for decades because those are the only ones paying! :) Infact, odds are walmart will be one of the most in demand jobs for 2010 (people always buy from them regardless of the economy!)
plasmavideo
wrote on 3/3/2009, 6:45 AM
"Have you tried a reboot?"
"Yes, I've kicked the fricken box twice now!"
"Does the mouse respond?"
"No, they usually ignore me and go back in the wall"
"Yes, I've kicked the fricken box twice now!"
"Does the mouse respond?"
"No, they usually ignore me and go back in the wall"
John_Cline
wrote on 3/3/2009, 7:01 AM
Computers aren't rocket science, they are, however, computer science.
Coursedesign
wrote on 3/3/2009, 8:16 AM
Certainly they are a long way from being consumer appliances....
My favorite tech support call ever was about the customer who called Compaq asking for help:
"The cup holder is broken!"
It took the tech a few minutes to trace this to the CD-ROM drive being open....
My favorite tech support call ever was about the customer who called Compaq asking for help:
"The cup holder is broken!"
It took the tech a few minutes to trace this to the CD-ROM drive being open....
TheHappyFriar
wrote on 3/3/2009, 10:17 AM
I have a video of someone putting a cup of coffee in their optical drive & then it retracts on the cup.
Awesome. :)
Awesome. :)
DSCalef
wrote on 3/3/2009, 10:25 AM
A few years back when I was spending my weeks making far too many service calls on computer systems for silly errors a client had made, I came up with a new phrase when asked what was wrong, I found that telling the client they had made a simple mistake was counter productive. Like a small child caught doing something wrong, they would deny it and arugue. So, I started telling clients it was just an "OE" that happened occasionally. Then I would proceed to show the correct way to do what they wanted.
One day a good friend and client heard the "OE" and asked what it was. I laughed, and explained it stood for "Operator Error". He shook his head and said pointedly, "What you don't understand is that it wasn't an 'OE'. it was an 'OI'".
As I looked at him quizzically, he explained that "OI" was "Operator Incompetent."
I still use both.
One day a good friend and client heard the "OE" and asked what it was. I laughed, and explained it stood for "Operator Error". He shook his head and said pointedly, "What you don't understand is that it wasn't an 'OE'. it was an 'OI'".
As I looked at him quizzically, he explained that "OI" was "Operator Incompetent."
I still use both.
Stringer
wrote on 3/3/2009, 12:32 PM
One of my favorites is the saying of a tech buddy of mine:
" The problem was a short - between the keyboard and the chair. "
" The problem was a short - between the keyboard and the chair. "
rs170a
wrote on 3/3/2009, 12:39 PM
And then there's the ID 10 T error :-)
Mike
Mike
Rogueone
wrote on 3/3/2009, 12:45 PM
An acronym for the short between the chair and keyboard can be:
PEBKAC
Problem Exists Between Keyboard And Chair
:) I've been in IT for over 7 years, and User Error ( Or OE) certainly does exist!
PEBKAC
Problem Exists Between Keyboard And Chair
:) I've been in IT for over 7 years, and User Error ( Or OE) certainly does exist!
Udi
wrote on 3/4/2009, 1:17 AM
Look at 
erikd
wrote on 3/4/2009, 3:26 AM
Here is an example of a recent query I sent to tech support. Keep in mind I am asking him about a supported piece of hardware, the AJA LHe, which according to my understanding, Sony wrote the drivers for it to work with Vegas.
Customer (erik davis) 02/26/2009 12:21 PM
HP xw8600 workstation, AJA LHe PCIe in slot 4 of the workstation. Vegas 8.0c. Video ouput from Vegas is 0 ire not 7.5 ire. (NOTE: Not using Vegas internal scopes but Tektronix external waveform/vectorscope so please understand this is a real problem.) Contacted AJA support and there are no tweak settings on the output for the Xena card. There is for Kona but not for Xena. Also, have serious audio delay on the timeline of at least 20 frames. AJA says they didn't write the drivers for the LHe and that Sony did and that I should contact Sony.
Thanks,
Erik
Hi erik,
Thank you for contacting Sony Creative Software.
This is to account for the higher dynamic range used in other regions of the world. NTSC in Japan and PAL both do not add 7.5 IRE. You may add 7.5 IRE to the set up in the Video Scopes Settings menu. Click the Settings button in the Video Scopes window. Then, select the 7.5 IRE Setup check box in the Video Scopes Settings dialog screen. This will require your hard ware to be capable of adding 7.5 IRE. If your video hardware does not add 7.5 setup, clear the check box.
If you still have a follow-up question on this particular incident, please feel free to update it. If you have a completely different question, please create a new incident.
Sincerely,
Eric D.
Customer Service & Technical Support
Sony Creative Software Inc
www.sonycreativesoftware.com
So, he tells me to click 7.5 in the scope settings in Vegas if "your hardware is capable of supporting 7.5 ire." I clicked it and I see no difference on the waveform in the setup level. Also he doesn't he begin to address the serious audio sync lag on playback from the timeline. Wow, what a really helpful response.
Customer (erik davis) 02/26/2009 12:21 PM
HP xw8600 workstation, AJA LHe PCIe in slot 4 of the workstation. Vegas 8.0c. Video ouput from Vegas is 0 ire not 7.5 ire. (NOTE: Not using Vegas internal scopes but Tektronix external waveform/vectorscope so please understand this is a real problem.) Contacted AJA support and there are no tweak settings on the output for the Xena card. There is for Kona but not for Xena. Also, have serious audio delay on the timeline of at least 20 frames. AJA says they didn't write the drivers for the LHe and that Sony did and that I should contact Sony.
Thanks,
Erik
Hi erik,
Thank you for contacting Sony Creative Software.
This is to account for the higher dynamic range used in other regions of the world. NTSC in Japan and PAL both do not add 7.5 IRE. You may add 7.5 IRE to the set up in the Video Scopes Settings menu. Click the Settings button in the Video Scopes window. Then, select the 7.5 IRE Setup check box in the Video Scopes Settings dialog screen. This will require your hard ware to be capable of adding 7.5 IRE. If your video hardware does not add 7.5 setup, clear the check box.
If you still have a follow-up question on this particular incident, please feel free to update it. If you have a completely different question, please create a new incident.
Sincerely,
Eric D.
Customer Service & Technical Support
Sony Creative Software Inc
www.sonycreativesoftware.com
So, he tells me to click 7.5 in the scope settings in Vegas if "your hardware is capable of supporting 7.5 ire." I clicked it and I see no difference on the waveform in the setup level. Also he doesn't he begin to address the serious audio sync lag on playback from the timeline. Wow, what a really helpful response.