Posts Tagged ‘Tech’
May 09
10 Things your IT guy wants you to know
I had this passed along to me and since I am a IT guy, I found some humor in it (truth sprinkled with humor). We deal with so many issues (most of them emergencies) on a regular basis that we have to find ways to be as effective as we can. Sometimes we can come across as a little “matter of fact” about those issues we deal with, but that is not always our intent. So seeing that other techies have the same struggles and how they would address “customers” was fun and funny to read. I thought you may in enjoy it also.
1. If you ask me technical questions please don’t argue with me because you don’t like my answer. If you think you know more about the topic, why ask? And if I’m arguing with you…it’s because I am positive that I am correct, otherwise I’d just say “I don’t know” or give you some tips on where to look it up, I don’t have the time to just argue for the sake of it.
2. Starting a conversation by insulting yourself (i.e. “I’m such an idiot”) will not make me laugh, or feel sorry for you; all it will do is remind me that yes, you are an idiot and that I am going to hate having to talk to you. Trust me; you don’t want to start a call that way.
3. I am ok with you making mistakes, fixing them is my job. I am not ok with you lying to me about a mistake you made. It makes it much harder to resolve and thus makes my job more difficult. Be honest and we can get the problem resolved and continue on with our business.
4. There is no magic “Fix it” button. Everything takes some amount of work to fix, and not everything is worth fixing or even possible to fix. If I say that you just need to re-do a document that you accidentally deleted 2 months ago, please don’t get mad at me. I’m not ignoring your problem, and it’s not that I don’t like you, I just cant always fix everything.
5. Not everything you ask me to do is “urgent”. In fact, by marking things as “urgent” every time, you almost ensure that I treat none of it as a priority.
6. You are not the only one who needs help, and you usually don’t have the most urgent issue. Give me some time to get to your problem, it will get fixed.
7. Emailing me several times about the same issue in the same day is not only unnecessary, it’s highly annoying. Emails will stay until I delete them, I won’t delete them until I’m done with them. I will typically respond as soon as I have a useful update. If it is an urgent issue, let me know (see number 5).
8. Yes, I prefer email over telephone calls. It has nothing to do with being friendly, it’s about efficiency. It is much faster and easier for me to list out a set of questions that I need you to answer than it is for me to call and ask you them one by one. You can find the answers at your leisure and while I’m waiting I can work on other problems.
9. Yes, I seem blunt and rude. It’s not that I mean to, I just don’t have the time to sugar coat things for you. I assume we are both adults and can handle the reality of a problem. If you did something wrong, I will tell you. I don’t care that it was a mistake, because it really makes no difference to me. Don’t take it personal, I just don’t want it to happen again.
10. And finally, yes, I can read your email, I can see what web pages you look at while you are at work, yes, I can access every file on your work computer, and I can tell if you are chatting with people on an instant messenger or chat room (and can also read what you are typing). But no, I don’t do it. It’s unethical, I’m busy, and in all reality you aren’t all that interesting. So unless I am instructed to specifically monitor or investigate your actions, I don’t. There really are much more interesting things on the internet than you.
Apr 09
Tech Tuesday
Here are this weeks technology updates:
Google unveils there server infrastructure. When you see their servers you are going to be shocked. It is pretty unbelievable. Take a look here.
Time Warner was moving in the direction of charging their customers based on their internet usage. Whoops, not such a good idea. Check it out here.
Here is some great assistance on formulating emails. Do you revise it? Do you send it out without looking it over again? Well take a look here and you will become much more efficient at drafting those email messages.
Are you overstressed in your job? Here is some great tips to help. It is amazing to see so many of these line up with Biblical principles. I especially like the “Bonus Tip” about gratitude!
Do you like to tinker with technology? Here is a group that has formed a co-op for just such folks. A very interesting concept. Check it out here.
Till next week!
Apr 09
Technology Free Zone
Have you been in meetings where everyone brings their laptop and cell phone? Regardless of what is happening, someone is always distracted on the other side of that screen. Typing away or something. Then the phone rings (not on vibrate mode) and another person answers it or excuses himself to answer it. What?
I remember meetings where there was no electronics in them what-so-ever. Now, I work in Information Technology and I understand the benefit from what technology can bring to all of us, but I think we are drifting ever so closer to this social facade that acts like real social connections, but without the depth of the real thing.
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- Monarch Butterfly
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- Viceroy Butterfly
Nature is full of these impostors. Mushrooms are a great example. There is the morel, which is like gold for mushroom hunters and the ever present false morel. I good copy-cat but extremely toxic. Then there is the Monarch butterfly and the Viceroy butterfly. The Monarch is toxic to eat so the Viceroy disguises himself to look like a Monarch for protection. You should know the difference. One brings great benefits, one brings great sorrow. If you did not know to look for the difference you would treat them both equally. Look at the two butterflies above. They are hard to tell apart.
So what does this have to do with meetings? The creep of this busyness wrapped up in technology has disguised itself as a form of social connectedness that is really an impostor. When we have the opportunity to really connect, face-to-face, we still are drawn to our technical gadgets. We keep sliding in the wrong direction. Quick sound bites, interruptions, phones ringing in meetings, staying connected at all times.
Let’s all get back to the decorum, manners, and etiquette that we once held in great value. Let’s connect face-to-face by putting away the distractions. Let’s have depth in our relationships as compared to breadth. And, let’s be on alert to recognize those things that slowly creep into our lives promising more and leaving us with less.
Apr 09
Tech Tuesday
Here is this weeks technology highlights:
Is “Flutter” the new twitter? Pretty funny! Check out the video here.
Do you like your email client software? I use Outlook and love it. Is it becoming obsolete though? Read more about here.
Do you have a “Gmail” account? If so, they have some great add0ns for it. Sign into your Gmail account, go to your settings (upper right) and then select “Labs”. They have a lot of goodies. Check it out here.
Here is a list of great keyboard shortcuts for you. Everyone should master these! Check them out here.
Do you use Microsoft Office? Here is a top ten list of useful hidden features. Check them out here.
Well that’s it for this week. Next Tuesday, I hope to have more items of tech interest and also, things that will make your computing life easier. Till then . . .
Apr 09
Backyard Therapy
Now I don’t know about you, but this time of year for me brings renewed hope and excitement as I am finally unlocked from winter’s grip and I am able to get outside. The outdoor season started a little earlier this year because we ventured into syrup making in mid March. This weekend, the weather got into the mid 50′s and the March winds had finally subsided. It was also busy; the Masters was played (a sure sign of Spring), we had commitments on Saturday and Easter was Sunday. Hope and promises were on display all around us in the midst of it all.
Earlier in the week, I picked up seed potatoes for the garden. Now last year, when I got ready to get plant the garden, I waited too long and the seed potatoes were all gone. They sell faster than anything else because they can be put into the ground as soon as the frost is out. Also, the year before, we went on a trip out west and came back to a garden that was lost to the weeds. So, needless to say, I was a little stoked about getting the best of the potatoes, earlier than usual.
I tilled the garden on Friday and I am thinking I can get some cold weather plants in a little early (lettuce, carrots and potatoes). I hacked the raspberry bushes to within a foot of the ground. The trees I trimmed this winter were still on the ground, so I brought those to the composting place. Is everything ready to go? No, but I can feel it. I can see the grass turning from brown to a light green. I can see the buds on the trees plump and full, ready to burst open.
We typically do not take a vacation in the winter so this time of year is especially gratifying. I absolutely love it. In the upcoming weeks we will be moving some shrubs, planting some trees, vegetable garden, and our annual garden, rearranging and expanding our perennial garden, and enjoying every minute of being that much closer to God in the process. We still have a lot of “work” to do, but I cannot wait to get my hands dirty.
With all the changes happening in our lives and the technology world that I live in, this is the best and most satisfying thing that Spring brings. It is theripudic to my soul. This spring, may you also find the time to get your hands dirty and breath in the rich smell of the earth as you plant your own garden.
What I am Reading
