02-05-2004, 08:21 AM | #1 (permalink) |
Tilted
Location: Jersey
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Today's (2/5/04) NY Times
Technology Section:
"Geeks Put the Unsavvy on Alert: Learn or Log off" Whaddaya think? ***EDIT: Please scroll down a few posts to see the text of this article thanks to Cynthetiq*** Last edited by SecretMethod70; 02-05-2004 at 06:32 PM.. |
02-05-2004, 08:23 AM | #2 (permalink) |
Darth Papa
Location: Yonder
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I have no idea what to think because you haven't posted anything. I don't have the Times in front of me this morning, so I have no way to interact with this thread.
The body of the article would be very nice, if you can find it online somewhere. Or at least a link. |
02-05-2004, 08:26 AM | #3 (permalink) | |
Death Leprechaun
Location: College Station, TX
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Quote:
that's all i could get without creating an account to see the rest EDIT: nevermind see below |
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02-05-2004, 08:26 AM | #4 (permalink) |
Tilted Cat Head
Administrator
Location: Manhattan, NY
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please don't just toss something into the fray without actual meat and bones for the people to gnaw on and discuss.
------- for the link challenged: Geeks Put the Unsavvy on Alert: Learn or Log Off By AMY HARMON hen Scott Granneman, a technology instructor, heard that one of his former students had clicked on a strange e-mail attachment and infected her computer with the MyDoom Internet virus last week, empathy did not figure anywhere in his immediate response. "You actually got infected by the virus?" he wrote in an e-mail message to the former student, Robin Woltman, a university grant administrator. "You, Robin? For shame!" As MyDoom, the fastest-spreading virus ever, continues to clog e-mail in-boxes and disrupt business, the computer-savvy are becoming openly hostile toward the not-so-savvy who unwittingly play into the hands of virus writers. The tension over the MyDoom virus underscores a growing friction between technophiles and what they see as a breed of technophobes who want to enjoy the benefits of digital technology without making the effort to use it responsibly. The virus spreads when Internet users ignore a basic rule of Internet life: never click on an unknown e-mail attachment. Once someone does, MyDoom begins to send itself to the names in that person's e-mail address book. If no one opened the attachment, the virus's destructive power would never be unleashed. "It takes affirmative action on the part of the clueless user to become infected," wrote Scott Bowling, president of the World Wide Web Artists Consortium, expressing frustration on the group's discussion forum. "How to beat this into these people's heads?" Many of the million or so people who have so far infected their computers with MyDoom say it is not their fault. The virus often comes in a message that appears to be from someone they know, with an innocuous subject line like "test" or "error." It is human nature, they say, to open the mail and attachments. But computer sophisticates say it reflects a willful ignorance of basic computer skills that goes well beyond virus etiquette. At a time when more than two-thirds of American adults use the Internet, they say, such carelessness is no longer excusable, particularly when it messes things up for everyone else. For years, many self-described computer geeks seemed eager to usher outsiders onto their electronic frontier. Everyone, it seemed, had a friend or family member in the geek elite who could be summoned — often frequently — in times of computer crisis. But as those same friends and family members are called upon again and again to save the computer incompetents from themselves, the geeks' patience is growing thin. As it does, a new kind of digital divide is opening up between populations of computer users who must coexist in the same digital world. "Viruses are just the tip of the iceberg," said Bill Melcher, who runs his own technical support business in San Francisco. "When it comes to computers, a lot of intelligent people and fast learners just decide that they don't know." Many of the computationally confused say they suffer from genuine intimidation and even panic over how to handle the mysterious machines they have come to rely on for so much of daily life. Virus writers, spammers and scammers, they say, are the ones who should be held accountable for the chaos they cause. But as the same people equip themselves with fancy computers and take advantage of the Internet for things like shopping and banking, critics say that their perpetual state of confusion has begun to get tiresome. And while the Internet's traditional villains remain elusive, those inadvertently helping them tend to be friends and neighbors. Some in the technocamp imagine requiring a license to operate a computer, just like the one required to drive a car. Others are calling for a punishment that fits a careless crime. People who click on virus attachments, for instance, could be cut off by their Internet service providers until they proved that their machines had been disinfected. And some, tired of being treated like free help lines, are beginning to rebel. They are telling friends, relatives and random acquaintances to figure it out on their own. "Go out, get a book," suggests Zack Rubenstein, 28, who has for years provided free technical support for his extended social network. "You went to college and you got a degree, you obviously can learn something. Play around with it; it's not going to kill you." Mr. Rubenstein, a member of the technical support staff at a New York City law school he thought it best not to identify, is not at liberty to dispense such advice at work. Instead, he answers endless calls about malfunctioning monitors that turn out not to be plugged in, and broken printers that start working again as soon as he removes the single piece of paper obviously jamming them. "Especially dealing with academics," Mr. Rubenstein added, "you'd think they'd have some ability to deduce or think problems through for a minute." Not so long ago, he took pleasure in showing people around the brave new digital world that he moved in with such ease. Now that everyone has a technical question, he says, being a tour guide has lost its charm. But his girlfriend, Miriam Tauber, 24, makes no apologies for her lack of computer knowledge. To her, computers are like "moody people" who behave illogically. If people like Mr. Rubenstein expect her to understand them, she suggests, perhaps they should learn to speak in a language she can understand, rather than ridiculous acronyms and suffixes. "There are these MP3's and PDF's and a million other things that you don't even know what they are," Ms. Tauber said. "I don't feel like I need to figure out computers, because my instinct is there's just no way." Still, if there is any evidence that the antagonism of the technical elite is having an effect, it may be in the mounting degree of shame among those who make obvious mistakes, or ask obvious questions too often. When Julie Dillon, 33, had trouble installing a wireless card in her Macintosh laptop last weekend, for instance, she stopped herself from calling a friend three blocks away who works for Apple Computer because she knows he is besieged. "There's this whole complicated interchange — are you calling them as a friend or are you calling them as tech support — and I definitely feel a little bit guilty," said Ms. Dillon, a musician in San Francisco. "It's a fine line that has changed because I remember a few years ago it was no big deal." Instead, Ms. Dillon called Mr. Melcher, who has built his technical support business in part on referrals from friends who no longer wanted to handle the demands of other friends. Ms. Dillon, who considers her laptop "a blessing" that helps her promote her music, said she was happy to pay for the help. She has also frequently received technical support in exchange for dinner, and, once, for a song. Even parents are being left to fend for themselves as their children tire of dispensing advice. David Hale, 25, a lawyer in St. Louis, said he had rebuilt his parents' virus-ridden computer from scratch several times in recent months before he learned that his father, Dale, was replying to every piece of his spam e-mail, asking to be taken off the spammers' mailing lists. Dale Hale, 47, also frequently clicked on pop-up ads that appeared to be messages from Microsoft telling him to upgrade his computer. "It would cause fights between my parents because they would argue about whether a particular one was legitimate and I'm like, `It is NEVER legitimate,' " said Mr. Hale, who explained as patiently as he could that answering spam and clicking on pop-ups only invite more of the same. After that, Dale Hale said, his son would sometimes become frustrated by his and his wife's questions. They in turn would get frustrated with their son's instructions, especially over the phone. Eventually they bought antivirus software. "We've learned by the lumps and bumps," the father said. (People who had installed the major antivirus software programs from companies like McAfee were largely protected from the MyDoom virus after downloading updates available a few hours after the virus's appearance on Jan. 26.) Perhaps the one thing that technophobes and technophiles can agree on is that software companies like Microsoft should make things easier and more secure for all kinds of computer users. But Microsoft, whose Web site has so far withstood a continuing attack by the MyDoom virus, had a reminder for users, too. "Responsibility is shared," said Scott Charney, Microsoft's chief security strategist. "With some of these viruses that require user action, people have a responsibility to be careful and protect themselves." link
__________________
I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not. |
02-05-2004, 08:49 AM | #5 (permalink) |
Banned
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I completely agree. People need to get a clue. It's just a computer. Deal with it, learn to use it properly, or don't use it at all. It's not that difficult to learn the basics, and from there it's just hands-on experience. I don't care what generation someone is from, you still have a brain (i'm assuming) so make it happen.
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02-05-2004, 08:55 AM | #6 (permalink) | |
Tilted Cat Head
Administrator
Location: Manhattan, NY
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Quote:
__________________
I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not. Last edited by Cynthetiq; 02-05-2004 at 09:41 AM.. |
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02-05-2004, 09:17 AM | #7 (permalink) |
Tilted
Location: Jersey
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I guess I have my answer
BTW all knowing moderators..... notice a couple of things to the left of this post: 1) No band width glombing avatar 2) "Rookie" tag And, I would assume, the most important 3) "Donor" Now I'll sit back down and let the "cool" kids rule |
02-05-2004, 09:34 AM | #8 (permalink) | |
Talk nerdy to me
Location: Flint, MI
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I assosiated with so many things in that article it wasn't funny. I think it nailed it on the head pretty good.
Yes, users need to get smarter about what they are doing on a computer. But, in their defense, the latest viruses have become a little harder to detect. Quote:
The free tech support part of the article hit home the most. I get calls all the time from relatives I haven't talked to in years. "Can I ask you something about my computer?" I've often wondered if doctors, mechanics and other proffesionals get the same thing. I couldnt imagine calling up a friend who was a doctor at home to ask something as silly as "I got a mosquito bite, what should I do about it?"
__________________
I reject your reality, and substitute my own -- Adam Savage |
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02-05-2004, 09:39 AM | #9 (permalink) | |
Tilted Cat Head
Administrator
Location: Manhattan, NY
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Quote:
as far as not having an avatar, there are a number of people who have no avatar by choice. as far as the DONOR tag, thanks for donating, it's important to keep this place running. welcome and I hope to see more posts and threads from you |
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02-05-2004, 10:44 AM | #10 (permalink) |
Cracking the Whip
Location: Sexymama's arms...
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God,
That article is so true. The straw that broke this camel's back was when I was asked, not by a friend, but by a FRIEND OF A FRIEND for technical help on his Compaq running winME. After 2 days and about 5 hours, this asshole offers to take me out to LUNCH! Friggin' LUNCH when I saved him over 300$ worth of work. Screw that. Now I make my living off these people. Just the other day I had a service call to a company (WITH an IT person ON-SITE) to replace a CD-ROM drive. Forty minutes and 65$ later, drive replaced and tested, and paperwork filed. (I wanted to go to that IT person's boss and ask what division they promoted that woman out of and why IT? Why not something she could actually DO??)
__________________
"Of all tyrannies, a tyranny exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron's cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end, for they do so with the approval of their own conscience." – C. S. Lewis The ONLY sponsors we have are YOU! Please Donate! |
02-05-2004, 11:48 AM | #13 (permalink) |
More Freedom, Less Bullshit
Location: Tulsa, OK
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I agree that the amount of people who use computers but know nothing is staggering. I started knowing nothing when I got my first computer in '00. Now I'm the guy everyone asks when they have problems. I am a nice guy so I always help whomever I can, and occasionally someone will pay me. I'd really just like people to RTFM occasionally. I have no problem helping my close friends/family with computer stuff, but friends of friends is rediculous.
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-Erik Stupid people shouldn't breed. |
02-05-2004, 11:59 AM | #14 (permalink) | |
Junkie
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Quote:
Computers are no different than cars or guns. People want them for the good they can do, but in too many cases refuse to accept that there is some responsibility that goes with it. |
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02-05-2004, 01:02 PM | #15 (permalink) |
42, baby!
Location: The Netherlands
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Ditto.
I've got a friend with a nice laptop. Now, once in a while, his Windows is so full of spyware, crappy programs and other assorted stuff, that he wants a fresh install. At first, I had to do it, the next time he tried it himself, but failed. Slowly he's getting the hang of it, though... (Last time he tried and tried, and I finally gave in, and installed it for him. I'm too nice, I guess.) |
02-05-2004, 01:27 PM | #17 (permalink) | |
Talk nerdy to me
Location: Flint, MI
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Quote:
__________________
I reject your reality, and substitute my own -- Adam Savage |
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02-05-2004, 02:17 PM | #18 (permalink) |
Rawr!
Location: Edmontania
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I'm all for these people learning how their computers work. Many of the concepts are no more difficult than driving a car. If these people treated owning a car the same as they did a computer the results would be alot like this:
General Motors doesn't have a help line for people who don't know how to drive, because people don't buy cars like they buy computers, but imagine if they did.... HELPLINE: "General Motors Helpline, how can I help you?" CUSTOMER: "Your cars stink!" HELPLINE: "What's wrong?" CUSTOMER: "It crashed, that's what's wrong!" HELPLINE: "What were you doing?" CUSTOMER: "I wanted to go faster, so I pushed the accelerator pedal all the way to the floor. It worked for a while, and then it crashed -- and now it won't even start up!" HELPLINE: "I'm sorry, sir, but it's your responsibility if you misuse the product." CUSTOMER: "Misuse it? I was just following this darned manual of yours. It said to make the car go to put the transmission in 'D' and press the accelerator pedal. That's exactly what I did -- now the darn thing's crashed." HELPLINE: "Did you read the entire operator's manual before operating the car sir?" CUSTOMER: "What? Of course I did! I told you I did EVERYTHING the manual said and it didn't work!" HELPLINE: "Didn't you attempt to slow down so you wouldn't crash?" CUSTOMER: "How do you do THAT?" HELPLINE: "You said you read the entire manual, sir. It's on page 14. The pedal next to the accelerator." CUSTOMER: "Well, I don't have all day to sit around and read this manual you know." HELPLINE: "Of course not. What do you expect us to do about it?" CUSTOMER: "I want you to send me one of the latest versions that goes fast and won't crash anymore!" HelpLine: "General Motors HelpLine, how can I help you?" Customer: "My car ran fine for a week and now it won't go anywhere!" HelpLine: "Is the gas tank empty?" Customer: "Huh? How do I know?" HelpLine: "There's a little gauge on the front panel with a needle and markings from 'E' to 'F'. Where is the needle pointing?" Customer: "It's pointing to 'E'. What does that mean?" HelpLine: "It means you have to visit a gasoline vendor and purchase some more gasoline. You can install it yourself or pay the vendor to install it for you." Customer: "What? I paid $12,000 for this car! Now you tell me that I have to keep buying more components? I want a car that comes with everything built in!" HelpLine: "General Motors HelpLine, how can I help you?" Customer: "Hi, I just bought my first car, and I chose your car because it has automatic transmission, cruise control, power steering, power brakes, and power door locks." HelpLine: "Thanks for buying our car. How can I help you?" Customer: "How do I work it?" HelpLine: "Do you know how to drive?" Customer: "Do I know how to what?" HelpLine: "Do you know how to drive?" Customer: "I'm not a technical person. I just want to go places in my car!" HelpLine: "General Motors HelpLine, how can I help you?" Customer: "I got in my car and closed the door and nothing happened!" HelpLine: "Did you put the key in the ignition slot and turn it?" Customer: "What's an ignition?" HelpLine: "It's a starter motor that draws current from your battery and turns over the engine." Customer: "Ignition? Motor? Battery? Engine? How come I have to know all these technical terms just to use my car?" At least this echos my sentiments on this topic.
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"Asking a bomb squad if an old bomb is still "real" is not the best thing to do if you want to save it." - denim |
02-05-2004, 04:55 PM | #19 (permalink) |
Cosmically Curious
Location: Chicago, IL
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I couldn't agree with the article more! I'm the 'computer geek' in my group of friends, and so often I'm called upon to fix problems that should be simple common sense. If you want a computer, learn to use it.
__________________
"The world is so exquisite with so much love and moral depth, that there is no reason to deceive ourselves with pretty stories for which there’s little good evidence. Far better it seems to me, in our vulnerability, is to look death in the eye and to be grateful every day for the brief but magnificent opportunity that life provides" -Carl Sagan |
02-05-2004, 04:59 PM | #20 (permalink) |
Death Leprechaun
Location: College Station, TX
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As far as my family and my roommates go, and even my outfit in the corps, I was always the computer knowledgeable one, it stinks when I'm working on something on my computer and all of a sudden I get an IM from someone asking me for help. the worst is when they try to explain the problem without knowing anything or accurately tell me what the problem is. It's even worse when they try to get my help over the IM and I can't look at their computer. 90% of the time i need to be sitting at the computer to make any kind of progress helping them. and they just get frustrated with me when I can't help them over the IM.
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02-05-2004, 05:37 PM | #21 (permalink) |
beauty in the breakdown
Location: Chapel Hill, NC
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I must say, I agree with it. I work at the IT support center here at school, and we were *swamped*. Had to shut down the SMTP access from all the dorms to save the servers. Im getting to the point that I think a basic computer skills class should be mandatory for all entering freshmen.
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"Good people do not need laws to tell them to act responsibly, while bad people will find a way around the laws." --Plato |
02-05-2004, 06:08 PM | #22 (permalink) | |
Free Mars!
Location: I dunno, there's white people around me saying "eh" all the time
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Quote:
Most of the situations that other posters posted about people being stupid or not being responsible for products they've brought: Too bad there's no law against idiots. If there was, I'm sure that half of the world population would wind up in jail...
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Looking out the window, that's an act of war. Staring at my shoes, that's an act of war. Committing an act of war? Oh you better believe that's an act of war |
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02-05-2004, 06:09 PM | #23 (permalink) | |
Death Leprechaun
Location: College Station, TX
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Quote:
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02-06-2004, 02:04 AM | #24 (permalink) | |
Watcher
Location: Ohio
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Quote:
Yes, most certainly. How can someone expect to have a higher education, and not be able to use one of our most basic productivity tools? skier, That was brilliantly written. Mad props! The thing is, we only have to wait for this generation of compu-dumbies to die off. Have you interacted with a 10 year old computer user lately? Those little fuckers know everything! During my IT internship at my college's IT dept, we hosted some grade school quiz bowl. Those were the smart kids, lemme tell you...those little buggers did just about everything the boxes were set up NOT to allow them to do. These kids will create skynet and cause the Matrix to rule us all from a Borg ship THEY BUILT!
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I can sum up the clash of religion in one sentence: "My Invisible Friend is better than your Invisible Friend." Last edited by billege; 02-06-2004 at 02:07 AM.. |
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02-06-2004, 09:30 PM | #27 (permalink) |
Deliberately unfocused
Location: Amazon.com and CDBaby
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True exchange from work:
Voice on the phone: "Could you come up here? My computer won't play my music CD." Me: " Do you have your speakers turned on?" VOTP: "Oh....." click It should be noted that I am the manager of an auto parts store, not a corporate IT guy. I've cut out doing free house calls for friends and relatives. Just because I'm not afraid to open a few files, or replace some hardware, doesn''t make me a "computer guru." It's time for them all to start participating in the economy.
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"Regret can be a harder pill to swallow than failure .With failure you at least know you gave it a chance..." David Howard |
02-07-2004, 02:35 PM | #28 (permalink) |
Junkie
Location: Connecticut
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If you can, check out the NYT Magazine article this week about the dudes writing these viruses. They don't think highly of most Microsoft users who make all of their creations multiply across the planet.
FYI the article is available online, with a free membership. Look for the "Magazine" section on the left hand menu
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less I say, smarter I am Last edited by meembo; 02-07-2004 at 02:58 PM.. |
02-09-2004, 03:41 AM | #30 (permalink) |
The Northern Ward
Location: Columbus, Ohio
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Some people just don't get computers. I'm not sure why, maybe they're afraid it will blow up, or transform into Megatron and rip their torsos off or something. But when people tell me "Thanks for the help! I can't hardly turn the thing off! hur hur hur!" I have ask them "Well, are you sure you're just not retarded?"
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"I went shopping last night at like 1am. The place was empty and this old woman just making polite conversation said to me, 'where is everyone??' I replied, 'In bed, same place you and I should be!' Took me ten minutes to figure out why she gave me a dirty look." --Some guy |
02-09-2004, 06:38 AM | #31 (permalink) |
Tilted
Location: Jersey
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meembo:
(Let's see if I can do this) This should be the link to the article in yesterday's (2/8/04) NYT magazine... http://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/08/magazine/08WORMS.html |
02-09-2004, 07:02 AM | #33 (permalink) |
is Nucking Futs!
Location: On the edge of sanity
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I agree. The time for hand holding is over! When I go out on service calls, I'm always pleasant and take the time to explain what happened and why. I guess I'm fortunate because my users have started to solve their own problems or, at least, I can walk them through the solution without them asking where the any key is or I can't find my desktop. It wasn't always like this. Let's not forget the "id10t" or "Pebkac" errors.
I think part of the problem is the marketing campaigns put out by the various computer manufactureres. "It's so easy to operate our system. It does this and that for you. Even a child can fix it!" That last one really bugs me, especially since it's an AOL commercial.
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I may look attentive, but I'm taking peeks down your blouse faster than the human eye can follow. Last edited by Dano069; 02-09-2004 at 07:05 AM.. |
02-09-2004, 08:34 AM | #34 (permalink) |
Junkie
Location: RI
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So, my fiancee's uncle is a mechanic, he charges his friends and family twice the amount to repair their car then he would a normal customer. And awhile back, her and I were talking to another mechanic, and he said he won't do repairs for a friend or family. We asked him why and he told us that if he did do work for them, they'd ALL walk all over him. And another accountant that I ride the bus with was telling us that he ALWAYS gets people coming up to him and asking him tax questions, espically now and what they should do on this or that. So now, he said whenever someone asks him a question, he says a quick answer and if they need more info, then it'd be $60 an hour.
I think it's getting to about that point for stuff like that for us. I've got a life too, and I'd kind of like to live it, and if I can't live it, I'm definately going to be making something for it. |
02-09-2004, 08:50 AM | #35 (permalink) | ||
Tilted Cat Head
Administrator
Location: Manhattan, NY
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Quote:
Quote:
__________________
I don't care if you are black, white, purple, green, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, hippie, cop, bum, admin, user, English, Irish, French, Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, Muslim, indian, cowboy, tall, short, fat, skinny, emo, punk, mod, rocker, straight, gay, lesbian, jock, nerd, geek, Democrat, Republican, Libertarian, Independent, driver, pedestrian, or bicyclist, either you're an asshole or you're not. |
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02-09-2004, 03:03 PM | #36 (permalink) |
Tilted
Location: San Francisco
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Call me guilty.
I'm somewhat techincal, having worked at Cisco for a number of years, but on my personal laptop, on my network, I don't have all their fancy firewalls and anti-virus software that came pre-installed on my work machines. I've had spyware galore, I've had a few viruses, but mostly that came from surfing for porn, or just clicking on interesting links. Fortunately, I am married to an uber geek, so that helps me out- I'd be up shit creek if I didn't have his help regularly to flush my system *snicker*. I don't think it's justifiable for anyone to blame anyone else for being a dolt where their computer is concerned. Everyone should be personally responsible for ensuring they know what they're clicking, opening, running etc.
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Cute, but useless. |
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alert, geeks, learn, log, put, times, unsavvy |
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