graniteoctopus on 23/9/2010 at 14:18
so say your mum or grandma calls you up, and says theres a problem with her computer. she cant describe with any real detail what the problem is, and asks you to come over and fix it. so you drive 14 kilometers in the snow, arrive at her house, and discover the problem is that it isnt plugged in.
do you gently explain what went wrong, in hopes of teaching them how to fix it themselves, or does the vein in your head explode and you respond with a barrage of swear words?
personally im as patient as the person im dealing with is. if they're willing to learn and actually listen then all is forgiven. if they act like they knew all along and show no gratitude for my aid, i remove their ability to procreate.
fett on 23/9/2010 at 14:45
Quote Posted by graniteoctopus
do you gently explain what went wrong, in hopes of teaching them how to fix it themselves, or does the vein in your head explode and you respond with a barrage of swear words?
personally im as patient as the person im dealing with is. if they're willing to learn and actually listen then all is forgiven. if they act like they knew all along and show no gratitude for my aid, i remove their ability to procreate.
This. But I also take into consideration that I have to get help all the time when I'm dealing with things like BIOS, the nuances of ftp clients, mod installs, etc. It's just that most people who game on the PC have more reason to be familiar with the inner workings of windows, software installation, anti-virus programs and other "common" things that the average non-gaming PC user has no need to delve into. I just think about how people like Bikerdude and Trance and others are so patient with me when I'm having trouble, and try to pass that on to my Dad or aunt when they can't figure out how to copy and paste. :erg:
graniteoctopus on 23/9/2010 at 14:54
Quote Posted by fett
when they can't figure out how to copy and paste. :erg:
"copy and paste? let me just grab my scissors and glue!"
SubJeff on 23/9/2010 at 15:01
If people just aren't as tech savvy as me (which I don't think is much) then I'd never get annoyed with them.
However, I have no time whatsoever for people who don't even try. If the answer is really simple or stupid (like a printer not printing because it's not plugged in) I'll be furious. People need to at least put in some effort. On of my female friends is always calling me for help with using her mobile/smartphone/laptop. The first few times it's no problem but wtf you're a surgeon don't you have a memory ffs?!:mad:
My brother's keyboard stopped working a few weeks ago and he needed to get on the computer badly. He called me up saying he thought the keyboard was broken and what was he going to do at 10pm on a Sunday blah blah. When I asked if it had become unplugged he just said "how could that happen?" revealing that he hadn't even looked. :mad::mad::mad:
So I guess I'm pretty impatient after all. With people that don't even try anyway.
Koki on 23/9/2010 at 15:18
Quote Posted by graniteoctopus
so say your mum or grandma calls you up
Already out of patience
kabatta on 23/9/2010 at 15:20
When that happens, I run for the hills or play dead.
Hewer on 23/9/2010 at 16:09
If someone calls me up with computer questions or weird glitches or whatever, I can usually walk them through isolating the problem and fixing it- as long as it's not too deep. But what I've noticed happens a lot is that when those dumb little things happen to me, I usually don't think very clearly and struggle with it. I'll call up my brother or someone else I consider more knowledgeable than me about this stuff, and they almost always walk me through exactly the way I would have somebody else and we fix it.
I just had this happen trying to get The Dark Mod running smoothly- did I make sure I've got anti-virus programs etc... that run in the background turned off? Duh. I know that- for some reason, though, it didn't occur to me to handle it the same way I would if I were helping someone else with the problem.
So, yeah, unless somebody obviously isn't trying, I try to be patient with them.
Vernon on 23/9/2010 at 16:33
"the inetrnet isn't working bawwww - huge tirade about setup of internet in building, all sorts of personal accusations"
"did you press the wireless switch on your piece of shit laptop?"
"omg i'm so sorry for bothering you, I love you you're a genius how do you know all this stuff"
I've got better things to do than fix word processors for the people I live with, but the clincher is when it is someone close to you - you just have to help! Or ignore their emails/texts
Queue on 23/9/2010 at 17:04
I'll hold them, giving them soft words of encouragement, gently guiding them in the right direction, knowing that they'll have to poke and prod around a bit until finally hitting the bullseye and driving it home.
Mmmmmmmm.
Sulphur on 23/9/2010 at 17:25
I generally rip the fucking shit out of them, especially if they're within my age group and haven't a goddamn clue what a 'folder' is or that programs have to be 'installed'.
I mean, seriously :mad:
