2018-11-12 Users

Users. They literally keep me employed but, boy, do they drive me
crazy sometimes! I saw this today on mastodon.sdf.org
(https://mastodon.sdf.org/@ephzero/101003880951079789/):

"Normal people are so freaking helpless with technology.

And they definitely don't know how to provide enough information for
troubleshooting.

That is all.

#complaints"

It really hit home.

The users I help are scattered all over our organization which is
spread across multiple buildings on multiple physical sites. I can't
go see them physically so I'm relying on the information they give
first-level support personnel and the additional information they give
to me directly on the phone. In the vast majority of cases, I'm not
given a key piece information that would point to the source of the
issue almost immediately. They often blame our system for a problem
they're having when the issue is really with what input they're giving
the application: "garbage in, garbage out". When I work on-call it's
an exercise in patience and empathy. Otherwise, I'd lose my mind. The
exception is when a user is rude to me. Fortunately, this is a rare
occurrence. 

******

Nearly done with my week rotation on-call. I'm looking forward to just
having my regular work to focus on.