This is why I'm glad I'm not in support

kranky

Elite Member
Oct 9, 1999
21,019
156
106
Computerworld magazine has stories every week from IT people and things that happened in the workplace. Always good for a chuckle.

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User stops support person in the hall and says, "My laptop won't connect to the Internet at home anymore."
Support Person: Did we configure the laptop for wireless?
User: I don't know.
SP: Who is your ISP?
User: I don't know.
SP: Did you set up your own wireless system at home?
User: I don't know.
SP: (Hmmm....) Did someone close by move recently?
User: Yes, my upstairs neighbor.
SP: I think it's time for you to move.

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This company is changing to using email addresses for login IDs. The new format is firstname.lastname@companyname.com. They send a memo about the change that includes an example: jill.employee@companyname.com. Support person gets an email from a user asking "Hi, if my email is rita.employee@companyname.com, what about those of us who share a first name with several people (Jennifer, Steve, Kim, etc.)?"

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Frantic new sales guy grabs support person as he walks by and asks why the printers don't work. "He showed me the problem printout, which had been unceremoniously discarded in the trash," support person says. "I asked which pages were missing. 'All the even pages,' he said. I took the pages out of the salesman's hands, flipped them over, handed them back - and asked, 'Now what pages are missing?'"

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User: "My keyboard isn't working anymore."
Support person: "Are you sure it's plugged into the computer?"
User: "No, I can't get behind the computer."
SP: "Pick up your keyboard and walk 10 paces back. "
User: "OK."
(Pause.)
Fish: Did the keyboard come with you?
User: "Yes."
Fish: That means the keyboard isn't plugged in. Is there another keyboard?
User: "Yes, there's another one here. Ah, that one does work."

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Database admin support person is showing the new-hire help desk guy the server room. See this red button under the plastic flip cover? SP says. Do not press it. Which new hire proceeds to do - and down goes a custom financial app. Why did you do that? sputters SP. "Oh, just turn the power back on," new guy says, "nothing important is running." Sighs SP, "After a few more incidents, he was gone -- as he told everyone - to pursue his dream job as a mainframe guru."

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User: 5 have a *r6b3e0 - gfs f5xed 0y c60*4ter b4t n6w 0y ca*s 36c2 see0s t6 be *er0anent3y 36c2ed - any s4gget56ns+

Support person: Wanna try that one again in non-l33tspeak?

User: can't
User: st4c2 that way
User: gfs d5d 5t

SP: Um, you have your num lock on?

User: n6
User: c64rse n6t

Support person: Shift ScrLk

(A pause.)

User: you are just so awesome
User: thanks!!!!!
 
Aug 23, 2000
15,509
1
81
I have one I delt with yesterday. The help desk calls me saying one of the users can't log into their PC on the manufacturing line. I go to the location, hmm, There's a keyboard, a mous, a monitor (no signal) and a scanner there.
I move the mouse thinking it will wake up the PC. nothing. I look around and there's no damn computer there. I told the person that the reason they couldn't log in is because some stole their PC.
 

JS80

Lifer
Oct 24, 2005
26,271
7
81
can someone translate "User: 5 have a *r6b3e0 - gfs f5xed 0y c60*4ter b4t n6w 0y ca*s 36c2 see0s t6 be *er0anent3y 36c2ed - any s4gget56ns+ "
 

rh71

No Lifer
Aug 28, 2001
52,844
1,049
126
Originally posted by: JS80
can someone translate "User: 5 have a *r6b3e0 - gfs f5xed 0y c60*4ter b4t n6w 0y ca*s 36c2 see0s t6 be *er0anent3y 36c2ed - any s4gget56ns+ "
I don't fully see the message either... here's the numlock translations....

1=J
2=K
3=L
4=U
5=I
6=O
0=M
*=P

what's "gfs" ? EDIT>> I guess it's just an abbrev for a dept.
 

sao123

Lifer
May 27, 2002
12,653
205
106
Originally posted by: JS80
can someone translate "User: 5 have a *r6b3e0 - gfs f5xed 0y c60*4ter b4t n6w 0y ca*s 36c2 see0s t6 be *er0anent3y 36c2ed - any s4gget56ns+ "

User: i have a problem : gfs fixed my computer but now my caps lock seems to be permanently locked : any suggetions? "
 

Riverhound777

Diamond Member
Aug 13, 2003
3,360
61
91
I had a good one the other day. The CEO of one of our biggest cutomers had a laptop and he couldn't get any of the desktop icons to work. After scanning for viruses and trying a few other things I had him go into the mouse options and turn the double click speed off of its fastest setting... guess he was trying to be more productive and didn't want to waste time double clicking so slowly.