RL Rant / Story Time
 

I work as a web developer for a custom motorcycle company, weird combo I know. Anyways, because I'm really the only person in the building who knows how to operate a computer, I'm also impromptu IT. To be fair, I'm really nowhere near professional IT, but I've worked with computers for a long time, and can help out with a lot of simple problems.

So today I come in and the wireless network is down. Everyone who is hardwired on the first floor is fine, but all of us on the second floor who use wireless aren't getting any internet. So I go down to our server/networking room and start poking around to see what I can figure out.

Common sense tells me that our wireless router (an apple airport) isn't working, and sure enough the light is blinking orange. So I try a bunch of different things, swapping out ethernet cables, rebooting the router, logging into the router admin and checking all the wireless settings, etc. Can't get anything to work. So I dig around and find a Linksys router, set it up, create a new wireless network, etc, works fine. I go around and get everyone set up on the new network, then we're good to go.

Everyone is happy except one guy who swears that I'm wrong, the router works fine, and is determined to prove me wrong. Keep in mind that this guy is a certified douche bag and this isn't the first time he's tried to one-up me in front of most of our company. All his efforts always end hilariously bad for him. So after about an hour of everyone getting back to work, he bursts into my office and declares that he has gotten the Airport to work.

Now like I said, I'm no networking or IT expert, but I know my shit fairly well, however I wasn't 100% positive the airport was broken, it was just my best guess. I walk over to his office and he proudly loads up a webpage. So I have him open his wireless network list and point out that he is connected to the new network that I set up. What's more, I don't even SEE the old network on the list. He begins ranting that he swears he had it working and he will fix it shortly. So I walk out to check the airport itself. It's plugged in to the wall, but there are 0 ethernet cables running into or out of it.

I told him to keep working on it and let me know when he had it working again.

hehehehe, i liked this story

I 110% understand what you went through Jela, i'm one of two IT specialists for 300+ people and am constantly being bombarded for advice on everything from stereo equipment to phones. They assume because it's electronic, I should know about it...usually it turns out i do, but it's still annoying :P!

WHaaaaa! you mean you can't help me set up my ipod? QQ Beep Beep! QQ!

That reminds me man, could you help me figure out how to program my DVR later? Also, mp3 player... it won't go... make work better!

Today someone couldn't figure out why a customer room computer wouldn't turn on. I plugged it into the other outlet...like magic it got power and turned on.

ya i get this a lot too. i was hired to do tech support for the products my company mfgs, which is eletric motors and controls. But what i also do, is IT for the whole office, i mean like it all, cell phones, microwave, light bulb....yea...

and i mean its not like i dont care to help em with it, i mean im getting paid so w/e, and its not hard and i know how, but thats the part thats annoying...its not hard, and they should now how to do it.

i think its b/c we grew up with electronics. we are not "afraid" of them. most of us know, or at least have a general idea, of how they work and what not. older people though, its like they think if they do it wrong or even un-plug it or plug it in it will blow up or something extra crazy like that.

That's funny.

I'm no IT, but isnt it possible to still connect to it as a local network even if theres no cables going into it?

I'm still trying to figure out how to plug cat5 into a C64 and load HLFS :o