Tales from the Book, part LXVI
I rarely regret things. Usually, the things I regret are things I will still regret in a year or so, not tiny little things. But today, after spending half an hour convincing someone that no, I would not help them install their pirated copy of Microsoft Office, I have a regret.
I regret not giving her Microsoft's phone number, and sending her off to ask them for help.
On being told the issue was a server issue, and we would need to fix it from our end:
"The server's on my computer. They're not going to be able to fix it because the server's on my computer, isn't that correct?"
Well, perhaps sir, but I'm sure that Major *ISP* would love to know you have a mirror of their server sitting in your home.
Please note that the caller had followed this instruction with no issue before:
Tech: Close *ISP*.
Caller: It's down behind the sofa, you know.
Tech: *Huh?* No, we're not working with the hardware. Just close *ISP*.
Caller: Restart the computer?
Later she forgot how to open the program, and nearly thirty minutes into the call, I found out she had DSL, not dial-up as she'd insisted.
"My icon is tilted. [An update had change the systray icon.] Is that someone trying to hack my computer?"
Tech: Cancel the error message.
Caller: Leave the error message up there?
This was all one call:
Tech: Hold down the Control, the Alt, and the Delete keys. All at the same time.
Caller: *several repetitions later* Do I need to hold down Control while I"m doing this?
Tech: Did you turn off the tower or the monitor?
Caller: The power. [Not to the power bar. I checked.]
Tech: Double-click on the setup file.
Caller: With the left or the right?
Tech: With the left.
Caller: Oh, a double-click.
"If you have a Microsoft Small Business disc, can't you access a computer from anywhere with a Small Business disc? 'Cause this guy stole my disc and I think he hacked my computer."
Snapping "I use Firefox!" at me in an snobby manner would be a lot more impressive if a) it weren't free, common-use software, and b) you weren't also using AOL.
Edit: I just downloaded Opera. I think I'm in love.
I regret not giving her Microsoft's phone number, and sending her off to ask them for help.
On being told the issue was a server issue, and we would need to fix it from our end:
"The server's on my computer. They're not going to be able to fix it because the server's on my computer, isn't that correct?"
Well, perhaps sir, but I'm sure that Major *ISP* would love to know you have a mirror of their server sitting in your home.
Please note that the caller had followed this instruction with no issue before:
Tech: Close *ISP*.
Caller: It's down behind the sofa, you know.
Tech: *Huh?* No, we're not working with the hardware. Just close *ISP*.
Caller: Restart the computer?
Later she forgot how to open the program, and nearly thirty minutes into the call, I found out she had DSL, not dial-up as she'd insisted.
"My icon is tilted. [An update had change the systray icon.] Is that someone trying to hack my computer?"
Tech: Cancel the error message.
Caller: Leave the error message up there?
This was all one call:
Tech: Hold down the Control, the Alt, and the Delete keys. All at the same time.
Caller: *several repetitions later* Do I need to hold down Control while I"m doing this?
Tech: Did you turn off the tower or the monitor?
Caller: The power. [Not to the power bar. I checked.]
Tech: Double-click on the setup file.
Caller: With the left or the right?
Tech: With the left.
Caller: Oh, a double-click.
"If you have a Microsoft Small Business disc, can't you access a computer from anywhere with a Small Business disc? 'Cause this guy stole my disc and I think he hacked my computer."
Snapping "I use Firefox!" at me in an snobby manner would be a lot more impressive if a) it weren't free, common-use software, and b) you weren't also using AOL.
Edit: I just downloaded Opera. I think I'm in love.