this isn't really technically inept but I didn't feel like making a whole new thread for it.

on CFI's college loan website (I have my remaining loans from NCSU through there) they have an area to update your profile for a change of address etc. So, naturally, when I moved into a house a few months back I updated my address and submitted it to them. Well, 4 months later I am still receiving mail from them at the old address (getting forwarded for now but won't forever).

I call them about it and the lady says "oh yes, I'm very sorry but changing your mailing address on our website does not change your listed mailing address in our central database, it only changes what is listed in your profile on the website. I can update this address for you right now if you would like"....

Why in the world do they have a section on the website to update my address if it doesn't actually go anywhere? Who was the genius who thought that one up?

6/24/2010 2:14:20 PM

That's on the same level as my experience getting Internet service from Time Warner hooked up at my house. I scheduled an installation on their site but never got a confirmation. I called in to follow up on it, and the lady asked me, "You didn't schedule installation on the website, did you?"

"Well, yeah," I said.

"Okay, you should never do it that way, for future reference. Just call us."

"Why not?"

"Because it's not reliable."

"So let me get this straight," I said. "My Internet service provider is telling me not to schedule service through their own website because it's unreliable."

"Yeah," she said.

"That's...ridiculous."

[Edited on June 24, 2010 at 2:34 PM. Reason : verb conjugation]

6/24/2010 2:26:01 PM

6/24/2010 2:32:39 PM

I was having problems with some channels pixelating or not even coming in at all recently. I rebooted everything by disconnecting power as I know this is a favorite troubleshooting task for 1st line support. After that failed I open up a web chat with AT&T U-Verse support. The guy has me doing all types of stupid stuff that have nothing to do with my signal to the cable box being bad. I play along as he tells me to change the aspect ratio and all these other stupid things. Then he tells me the next step in troubleshooting the failure of my live tv feed is to delete all of the recordings from my DVR. I told him I was done playing games and it was time to escalate my case or send a tech. And to think we pay these people nearly $.30 an hour and this is the level of quality we're supposed to expect?

6/25/2010 9:49:54 AM

Someone at work sent out a zipped .xls which for some reason my Macbook didn't like. I could have booted my Windows VM and opened it there but I was feeling lazy so I responded asking for him to just send the .xls. He responds that he doesn't have it, only the file he sent me...

6/25/2010 9:15:16 PM

^ Hahaha, I once had a consultant mail me a printed spreadsheet that was over 300 pages printed. I asked her why she didnt send me the file and she said she didnt have it. I said.. "How did you print it?".

Hilarity ensued.

In the end, it turns out when I said "mail me the document" she took it literally.

[Edited on June 25, 2010 at 9:37 PM. Reason : ,]

6/25/2010 9:36:13 PM

^^

if i sent someone an xls in a zip file and they came back and wanted me to resend just the xls i would think that person was...

6/27/2010 10:48:05 PM

^ yep, just goes to show that there are always two sides to a "technically inept" story. The guy who sent the excel could have easily come on here and posted about Opstand, without knowing more about his situation

6/28/2010 8:31:47 AM

It was probably an xlsx file which unless you have the latest Office for Mac, you’ll need the free XML doc converter from Microsoft to open.

6/28/2010 9:34:43 AM

^^^ If you ever work at company even pretending to be secure you're likely to run into all sort of random issues with sending/receiving binary files. I've received lots of zip files and pdfs that were completely useless (for instance just a few weeks ago I got a pdf sent to my work and gmail accounts, at work it came through as a 0kb file and completely unusable...worked fine through gmail).

One of our vendors even tells us not to send them zip files at all, but to ftp them up.

6/28/2010 3:10:29 PM

Again from clientsfromhell.com

Quote :

"Me: “Did you get the files I sent you?” Client: “Yes, but they were huge!” Me: “The files I sent you were well under the limit of something you could email.” Client: “They were 122 mega bitmaps each.” Me: ”They were both a little over 1MB, which is a fairly small file.” Client: “I don’t care how many megabytes they were. It’s all those bitmaps that are bringing my computer to its knees!”"

7/6/2010 11:31:47 AM

Did you mean: clientsfromhell.net

7/6/2010 11:35:05 AM

sure

7/6/2010 12:54:02 PM

lol: http://clientsfromhell.net/

7/6/2010 5:10:47 PM

An employee at a client of mine called over the weekend to tell me she couldn't connect to the VPN remotely and to ask if she was doing something wrong. I quickly checked and couldn't get a connection myself and the server monitoring service was showing there was no connection there either.

So I told her that either there was a power outage at the office or the internet was down.

"Oh no, I don't think it's the power. My computer is working just fine, and I can get webpages."

FACEPALM

7/12/2010 11:16:25 AM

^ rofl

7/12/2010 4:16:56 PM

Quote :

"the internet was down"

not to be a dick, but that should count as an example as well.

7/12/2010 4:35:32 PM

^ You have to get on their level though

7/12/2010 5:24:08 PM

That's the only way she would have understood that her ISP was having an outage.

7/12/2010 8:25:10 PM

Is technically advanced ineptitude allowed ?

Client is screaming that warning/alert messages (sent via snmp) are no longer being sent on their network, so they don't get any tickets about issues. Scream, shout, blame use for poor equipment quality etc. Upon deep diving they issue (because it had been working for years) locate a new access control list on outbound interfaces that is blocking all snmp traffic...

7/13/2010 8:50:19 AM

I used to work for a anti-spam company that installs transports on Exchange. 95% of my job was proving that mail issues were not being caused by our software.

This one dude got really pissed at me when I suggested that he was having bigger problems since we couldn't 1)telnet to it on port 25 or 2)ping it at all.

"Hold on, I'll go to the fucking server room and uninstall your piece of shit software"...

few minutes later "Fuck, the cleaning lady must have unplugged the UPS." Asshole didn't even apologize for his attitude.

7/13/2010 8:58:22 AM

Little off topic

how do you guys deal with these "technically inept" people? the same people when the minute something goes wrong they call you. The minute they have an idea for a new design/or can we do this/that they call you. They have no concept for dev time or if their idea is even feasible. Then when shit breaks, or stops working, they hover over shoulder and go "did you fix it? i have to do this" on repeat every 5 minutes.

7/13/2010 9:03:47 AM

On the off chance something actually goes wrong with the handful of clients i'll acknowledge issues from, someone sets up regular con calls/a standing con call and we work our balls off till its fixed. If they want something new that's a whole other channel they have to go though and i normally just work with that at the final design phase -> deployment.

7/13/2010 9:08:39 AM

^^tequila and video games.

Usually these people's opinion of me is integral to me keeping my job and possibly getting raises so I am as nice as I can be and help them. But of course, you have to be careful not to sound condescending or they'll be pissed even when you do help them.

7/13/2010 10:14:09 AM

I sometimes struggle with the not being condescending part. But I'm running my own bidness now, so I'd feel it if one them got pissed and dropped.

7/13/2010 10:25:06 AM

All of the above is why we have this thread. Let your frustrations out in a safe environment

7/13/2010 10:41:27 AM

Lol, I have people that get pissed for being too technical and then other people are pissed that I'm being too casual.

Some people will be angry no matter what. I used to have management that got this.

7/13/2010 1:20:00 PM

http://thewolfweb.com/message_topic.aspx?topic=600253

8/11/2010 3:17:35 PM

Quote :

"because it is currently in the the year of our Lord two thosand and ten and it's pretty fucking obvious how to interact in gmail in such a way as to not do what you did."

lmao.

8/11/2010 3:24:17 PM

just found this:

8/23/2010 10:57:21 AM

8/23/2010 4:14:05 PM

dat 190% rad dosage?

8/24/2010 7:43:51 PM

omg my cupholder broke where do i get a new one

8/24/2010 10:56:39 PM

This is an email I just received from a colleague:

Quote :

"Hi Bobby, How are you? Hope your day is going great! Bobby, jim bob and jane doe were mentioning an email that they received either yesterday or today, authored by you, that I did not receive. I learned yesterday that I am not on all the right email lists, which I need to address, so I wondered if you could resend the email to me, so I could view the lists copied."

I so want to type something to the effect of

Sure, attached are all of the emails I've sent out in the last two days. Hope you find what you're looking for

8/26/2010 4:45:59 PM

Dad: I got the office compatibility pack, but it's not working.
Me: Did you do a windows update? Restart?
Dad: No.
Me: Well, I'm not aware of any issues with the pack so try those first.
Dad: how?
Me: how what?
Dad: how to I update my windows?
Me: what OS?
Dad: what?
Me: Windows XP, Vista, or 7?
Dad: Vista, it sucks.
Me: It always worked perfectly fine for me, must be user error. Hit start, type "windows update", look in the start menu for "windows update", click it, and follow the instructions.
Dad: there is no start button.
Me: yes there is, start just isn't written on it anymore, it's the same thing though. the button in the lower left corner.
Dad: click on windows?
Me: ehhh, yeh.
Dad: ok?
Me: type "window's update"
Dad: where?
Me: in the text field at the bottom of the start menu... should be a little white box.
Dad: I don't see that. I can start search though.
Me: you don't have a text field/little white box you can type in?
Dad: no, but I can type where it says start search.
Me: THEN TYPE THERE.
Dad: ok
Me: do you see windows update?
Dad: yeh, I just typed that.
Me: ABOVE THERE, IN THE PROGRAMS LIST
Dad: (5 minutes later) I found windows update
Me: click
Dad: (1 hr later) it's still updating
Me: you should update more often. call back when it's done
Dad: it's done but the pack doesn't work
Me: you updated and restarted and it doesn't work?
Dad: no
Me: did you install the compatibility pack?
Dad: ?
Me: did you download the pack?
Dad: yes
Me: did you install it?
Dad: I don't know what that means.

...

...

...

Me: Call me tomorrow.

8/27/2010 8:14:45 PM

FML

I just got called to troubleshoot a friends PC - her mom just got DSL installed and they wanted it to work on their 'older' PC too. Just for email and stuff.

After having her check the filters, ensure the modem was working, ensure she was getting an IP address, etc - we hit a snag. I'm trying to walk her through making sure it's not looking for a proxy or anything crazy.

So I'm walking her through step-by-step and eventually she says "I don't see any of the buttons you're talking about." "ok - what version are you using?"

help->about

"We're running Internet Explorer version 4.0 on windows 98"

8/31/2010 9:39:24 PM

So yesterday, the guy who sits behind me was helping an end user with laptop issues while traveling. He wasn't able to find his hardware switch for the wireless antenna, so my buddy is trying to walk him through where to find it. Turns out the guy not only took his laptop with him on the road, but his docking station, which he had plugged the laptop into. Only issue, he didn't bring a monitor, keyboard, mouse, or anything else. I guess he thought the docking station was something the laptop needed to run properly. I love it.

10/14/2010 9:02:01 AM

^ I had the exact opposite experience where a lady I was working with as an IT guy apparently thought her docking station was, in itself, a computer, and she could do work on it without attaching her laptop to it, which she left at home.

It's so awkward trying to explain stuff like that in a way that doesn't make you look like an ass/trying-to-be-superior or making them look/feel like a complete idiot... I don't like them.


and lol to the dad . My dad is a csc guy, too, so luckily I never dealt with anything like that from immediate family. My god, though, was it hard to get around the parental controls he set up for me when I was a kid...

10/14/2010 2:49:47 PM

^^ im gonna start using that phrase:

"it worked fine for me...must be user error"

10/14/2010 2:49:58 PM

Aunt: we got this old computer from work today!
Me: ok.
Aunt: so i was thinking we could take my old computer in my office and take this one and make one good computer
Me: ok.

10/14/2010 4:01:53 PM

Novacaine -

10/15/2010 10:29:40 AM

Not sure where else to put this, though maybe it points to me being inept.

I just got an email from an Indian consulting firm saying that they wanted to redesign my personal portfolio/resume site. The site in question is meant to show off my web development skills. Wouldn't it be kind of pointless to have a consulting company write the site for me?

I'm wondering if this guy contacted me because I have a ".in" domain?

10/19/2010 6:19:37 AM

10/21/2010 5:15:25 PM

lol

10/22/2010 10:33:45 AM

My wife was trying to apply for jobs at pcmh.com. Their new job application system was completely broken, so she had to call somebody:

Quote :

" Wife: Your job application system is broken. I need to send in my resume. What's the email address I should send it to? Woman A: pcmh.com Wife: No, what's your email address? Woman A: pcmh.com Wife: That's your website. What's your email? Woman A: It is an email! (Wife hangs up and calls back 15 minutes later getting a different woman) Wife: Your job application system is broken. I need to send in my resume. What's the email address I should send it to? Woman B: pcmh.com Wife: That's a website. It is NOT an email address. Woman B: Yes it is. Wife: Ok, try this. Open up Outlook, send a new message to "pcmh.com" and see what happens. Woman B: Why would I do that? I couldn't send email to "pcmh.com" because it's not an email address. "

If I didn't live in Greenville, I would think these kinds of stories were made up.

[Edited on October 23, 2010 at 7:45 AM. Reason : sfdgsdfg]

10/23/2010 7:43:04 AM

Quote :

"Dad: I got the office compatibility pack, but it's not working. Me: Did you do a windows update? Restart? Dad: No. Me: Well, I'm not aware of any issues with the pack so try those first. Dad: how? Me: how what? Dad: how to I update my windows? Me: what OS? Dad: what? Me: Windows XP, Vista, or 7? Dad: Vista, it sucks. Me: It always worked perfectly fine for me, must be user error. Hit start, type "windows update", look in the start menu for "windows update", click it, and follow the instructions. Dad: there is no start button. Me: yes there is, start just isn't written on it anymore, it's the same thing though. the button in the lower left corner. Dad: click on windows? Me: ehhh, yeh. Dad: ok? Me: type "window's update" Dad: where? Me: in the text field at the bottom of the start menu... should be a little white box. Dad: I don't see that. I can start search though. Me: you don't have a text field/little white box you can type in? Dad: no, but I can type where it says start search. Me: THEN TYPE THERE. Dad: ok Me: do you see windows update? Dad: yeh, I just typed that. Me: ABOVE THERE, IN THE PROGRAMS LIST Dad: (5 minutes later) I found windows update Me: click Dad: (1 hr later) it's still updating Me: you should update more often. call back when it's done Dad: it's done but the pack doesn't work Me: you updated and restarted and it doesn't work? Dad: no Me: did you install the compatibility pack? Dad: ? Me: did you download the pack? Dad: yes Me: did you install it? Dad: I don't know what that means. ... ... ... Me: Call me tomorrow."

I don't see how anything you told your dad to do was intuitive, and I certainly understand his problems.

10/24/2010 12:57:54 PM

^

10/24/2010 1:22:11 PM

^^agreed. Needs more technically inept and less asshole son.

[Edited on October 24, 2010 at 2:04 PM. Reason : and a little humor wouldn't hurt for the purposes of the thread]

10/24/2010 2:03:31 PM

To be fair not all downloaded software needs to be installed; many a command-line app merely needs to be placed somewhere in the PATH, like the Windows directory, or an app encompassing several directories may need its location added to the PATH, which I'll admit is a more advanced skill than double-clicking an installer.

10/24/2010 2:27:34 PM

I'm sure that's what his dad was thinking

Good call

10/24/2010 9:05:23 PM