OT
<< << << DON'T FEEL STUPID
If you've ever felt computer illiterate and just a little embarrassed about
your
technical skills, check out the following, excerpted from the Wall Street
Journal:
* Compaq is considering changing the command "Press Any Key" to "Press
Return
Key" because of the flood of calls asking where the Any Key is.
* AST technical support had a caller complaining that her mouse was hard to
control with the dust cover on. The cover turned out to be the plastic bag
the
mouse was packaged in.
* Another AST customer was asked to send a copy of her defective diskettes.
A
few days later a letter arrived from the customer along with photocopies of
the
floppies.
* Another Dell customer called to say he couldn't get his computer to fax
anything. After 40 minutes of troubleshooting, the technician discovered
the
man was trying to fax a piece of paper by holding it in front of the monitor
screen and hitting the "send" key.
* A Dell technician received a call from a customer who was enraged because
his
computer had told him he was "bad and an invalid." The tech explained that
the
computer's "bad command" and "invalid" responses shouldn't be taken
personally.
* A confused caller to IBM was having troubles printing documents. He told
the
technician that the computer had said it "couldn't find printer." The user
had
also tried turning the computer screen to face the printer but that his
computer
still couldn't "see" the printer."
* An exasperated caller to Dell Computer Tech Support couldn't get her new
Dell
Computer to turn on. After ensuring the computer was plugged in, the
technician
asked her what happened when she pushed the power button. Her response, "I
pushed and pushed on this foot pedal and nothing happens." The "foot pedal"
turned out to be the mouse.
* Another customer called Compaq tech support to say her brand-new computer
wouldn't work. She said she unpacked the unit, plugged it in and sat there
for
20 minutes waiting for something to happen. When asked what happened when
she
pressed the power switch, she asked "What power switch?"
* Another IBM customer had troubles installing software and rang for
support.
"I put in the first disk, and that was OK. It said to put in the second
disk,
and I had some problems with the disk. When it said to put in the third
disk, I
couldn't even fit it in...." The user hadn't realized that "Insert Disk 2"
meant to remove Disk 1 first.
* In a similar incident, a customer had followed the instructions for
installing
software. The instructions said to remove the disk from its cover and
insert
into the drive. The user had physically removed the casing of the disk and
wondered why there were problems.
* True story from a Novell NetWare Sysop:
Caller: "Hello, is this Tech Support?"
Tech: "Yes, it is. How may I help you?"
Caller: "The cup holder on my PC is broken and I am within my warranty
period.
How do I go about getting that fixed?"
Tech: "I'm sorry, but did you say a cup holder?"
Caller: "Yes, it's attached to the front of my computer."
Tech: "Please excuse me. If I seem a bit stumped, it's because I am. Did
you
receive this as part of a
promotional at a trade show? How did you get this cup holder? Does it have
any
trademark on it?"
Caller: "It came with my computer. I don't know anything about a promotion.
It
just has '4X' on it."
At this point, the Tech Rep had to mute the caller because he couldn't stand
it.
He was laughing too hard. The caller had been using the load drawer of the
CD-ROM drive as a cup holder and snapped it off the drive.
* A woman called the Canon help desk with a problem with her printer. The
tech
asked her if she was running it under "Windows." The woman responded, "No,
my
desk is next to the door. But that is a good point. The man sitting in the
cubicle next to me is under a window and his printer is working fine."
* Tech Support: "O.K. Bob, let's press the control and escape keys at the
same
time. That brings up a task list in the middle of the screen. Now type the
letter "P" to bring up the Program Manager."
Customer: "I don't have a 'P.'"
Tech: "On your keyboard, Bob."
Customer: "What do you mean?"
Tech: "'P' on your keyboard, Bob."
Customer: "I'm not going to do that!">> |
