[starman]

Topic says it all.

[MacMan4000]

yes.

[ironknee]

yes and money

[Mastrap]

yes

[nerd]

yup

[Randman]

Gotta love it when "friends" are always there when they need you.

[Randman]

d/p

[starman]

Originally Posted by Randman

Gotta love it when "friends" are always there when they need you.

Yeah, especially when they try to guilt you into coming to fix their Outlook when 1) you haven't spoken to them in months and 2) you're at a wedding 600 miles away.

[Railroader]

Yes. The worst part is I haven't use a windows PC regularly for about 7 years and yet I stil know what problems they are experiencing better than they do even though they are using a OS at least 2 generations newer than I am used to.

[teney7]

Hmm.. I work at a tech support place, so if you call our customers "friends", then yes that happens a lot

[Lateralus]

I did, but I treated them like **** for calling me and now I don't.

[Cubeoid]

Yes.

[Warung]

Originally Posted by Railroader

Yes. The worst part is I haven't use a windows PC regularly for about 7 years and yet I stil know what problems they are experiencing better than they do even though they are using a OS at least 2 generations newer than I am used to.

Same here.

It's strange that I can fix PC problems for people eventhough I'm a) not looking at the screen and and b) I neither like nor own a PC.

[alphasubzero949]

Yes and for questions about doing mundane tasks in OS X.

I refuse to help friends with Windows.

[Cubeoid]

Does anybody get calls about BeOS?

[MallyMal]

Yeah, I had a friend that would always call for Mac tech support. She's a school teacher that was kinda new to the Mac. Got to the point that she would openly acknowledge that was the only reason she was calling. I didn't mind at the time because she would occasionally send me nude pix to keep me amused.

[ShotgunEd]

how about family?

My dad will go weeks without talking to me then boom, "the G4 is crashing, any ideas?"

And the g/f's family as well, I had to sort out a modem driver conflict on a pos Windex98 machine the other day.

[Sealobo]

The answer has to be no. They are not my friend.

[Cody Dawg]

Randman said it succinctly and precisely:

Gotta love it when "friends" are always there when they need you.

What a GREAT topic.

I wrote some manuals for a certain sewing machine company (computerized sewing machines - VERY expensive ones) and not only do I get the phone calls, "How do I do such-and-such between my sewing machine and my computer," but I also get the phone calls from people asking for me to give them the books.



In fact, two days ago I received a phone call from someone who called me to ask if I'd mailed out a book that I said I'd send to her.

I'd realized the day before that I seem to only hear from this person when she wants something, so when the phone call came I thought, "Well, maybe she's calling to say hello."

No.

She was calling to see if I'd sent out a book to her.

I told her, "Listen, you don't have to call me just to see where your book is. You can email me." She knew I was offended in some way and she said, "Well, I did call to just say hello, too." I said, "No, you called because you wanted to know where your book is. Admit it." Then I said, "I have to go - talk to you later." And I hung up. She sent me a long rambling email that tries to defend her actions.

I say this: Just call them all on it.

Once or twice is okay.

Three times is pushing it.

Four times or more?

Tell them to call tech support. Have a number ready for them. Or do what I did and tell them that what they're doing is crappy.

[Doofy]

I used to have "friends" who would only call me when they wanted tech support. Then I figured that if they can't call me just to see how I'm doing then they're not my friends. So I told them to go jump.

[Kevin]

The only Windows box I mess with is the one I have at home. And now since it's the one Bekah always uses, she fixes it.

[rickey939]

Definitely.

[nredman]

i have no friends that need help (at least not computer help) but i help out family members when they need it

[sek929]

Not really, though my actual friends often need help with their PCs.

[11011001]

Never let people gain the slightest hint that you know how to use a computer. Instead, ask them very simple (scarily so) questions about mundane computer usage.

When I finish my computer science degree I think I'll tell people I'm a writer. That will scare them away, and technically I'm not really lying.

[Tesseract]

Originally Posted by 11011001

Never let people gain the slightest hint that you know how to use a computer. Instead, ask them very simple (scarily so) questions about mundane computer usage.

When I finish my computer science degree I think I'll tell people I'm a writer. That will scare them away, and technically I'm not really lying.

Who's going to believe that someone named 11011001 knows nothing about computers?

[dcmacdaddy]

Originally Posted by Kevin

The only Windows box I mess with is the one I have at home. And now since it's the one Bekah always uses, she fixes it.

Your girl fixes her own Windows box?!? Good man. She's a keeper!

[dcmacdaddy]

Originally Posted by Tesseract

Who's going to believe that someone named 11011001 knows nothing about computers?

Because I am too lazy too look it up, what does 11011001 translate to in human language?

[TheMosco]

I got a call a while ago from a kid I hadn't talked to in over a year. I didn't even have his # in my phone. He wanted to know how to rip a dvd onto his powerbook.

[Tesseract]

11011001 = Ù (in some encoding)

[rozwado1]

Originally Posted by MallyMal

I didn't mind at the time because she would occasionally send me nude pix to keep me amused.

Am I the only one that caught this?

[Tesseract]

Originally Posted by rozwado1

Am I the only one that caught this?

No. I saw that too.
/me wishes my female friends called for tech support more often

[MaxPower2k3]

Originally Posted by Tesseract

11011001 = Ù (in some encoding)

or 217 in decimal

[PB2K]

i created those people, because I gave them all a mac it's my punishment

my gf has an ibook, she calls me about twice a week about it
my father has an imac on which he cant even find the spacebar
my brother has a bondi blue on which he wants to run reason 2
my sister has an imac that gives sparks when starting up
my sister has an imac with a broken harddisk
my friend has an imac without the G that should be in RGB


and then the people who they know who have a mac too and to whom i am the last hope. i dont help those unless they pay me

people think you like to help them out, they forget that it's my job too. I am more than a "macman" thats why i started learning photography, travel and things..so the subject "mac" gets minimalized

[MallyMal]

Originally Posted by rozwado1

Am I the only one that caught this?

Strangely enough, I have also gotten nude pix for doing some simple photoshop work(different person).

[stevesnj]

Yeah I do...and i don't charge them and usually refuse when they offer money.

[Nexus5]

Oh yes!

[OpenStep]

double post

[Doofy]

Originally Posted by MallyMal

Strangely enough, I have also gotten nude pix for doing some simple photoshop work(different person).

Cue mental image of lots of honeys purposefully damaging their computers and otherwise faking "lost and incapable" just to give them an excuse to go 'round to Mal's place with the intent of getting in his pants.

[el chupacabra]

I dont have any friends because I don't have a personality, but there are a few people in my life that only call when they need stuff from me.

[ReggieX]

No. I have real friends.

[ort888]

No but my wife calls me about 3 times a week with computer questions while she is at work. this company wants us to download these files with an EFF TEE PEE? What is that? Can you open this? What is a .png file? What is? How do we?

I don't mind helping her but sometimes it does get annoying. She's lucky she puts out!

[jonn804]

I don't call them 'friends.'

[mindwaves]

Tech support and homework help and tutoring.

[Salty]

Yes

[Hawkeye_a]

Yup. Fix computer, need a ride somewhere, want a DVD, want this, want that. Its amazing i tell you, of course i manage to cut them off completely after the first couple of times.

As far as Windows....i havent used Windows much since i switched to Macs 1998-9, and ive progressively forgotten a lot....my head fells soooo much lighter now . And i think ive forgotten the basics of XP now as well, which is kinda scary.

I wonder if i do the same in some way to other "friends", like calling them to ask 'em for something. hmmmm

[Athens]

yes and for free

[Azzgunther]

No. I made it a policy to waste a lot of their time with technical sounding crap if they called for only that reason. Now they either call for other reasons, or else don't call at all.

[rambo47]

I've become the default "go-to" guy when folks are looking to buy a new computer. Seems like they come to me with a plan to buy a new pc. Their kid (or they themself?) really wants a Mac ....... What they really want is for me to convince them to go Mac, which takes all of about 2 minutes. They really just want some hand holding while parting with the cash.

Lots of Windows folks have been asking me stuff lately, but to show why I'm the "Alpha-Geek" (def: The guy in the room with the most geek knowledge) by default, here's the latest question I got. My company is big on email. It's like they just discovered it and hold it just above the invention of fire or the wheel as far as man's greatest accomplishments. They just created email accounts for all employees, even those without desks and computers. Those folks can go to any computer, log in with their own Kerbros ID, and check their email. In fact, now they have to. The firm just announced all important communications about policy changes, benefits, and optional perks, etc., will be disseminated via email, and it's the responsibility of everyone to check on it regularly. And you can't check from any computer but those in our building - no outside access. Brilliant for a firm that doesn't even have a desk and computer for everyone, huh?

So now everyone has an email account that needs to be checked. Word came down from on high: "You have until Tuesday to clear your inbox. We'll be checking to see who is in compliance". With all the downsizing we've done recently, folks are scared not to check. Come the next round of layoffs, a black mark like ignoring a firm policy, silly as it might be, could easily make the difference in staying or getting the axe. In what appears to be a nice twist of the corporate knife in the back, the accounts were actually created a month ago, but the notice of these "new" accounts just went out middle of last week. We have great spam filters so nothing gets through, except the corporate spam we create ourselves. And there's a mountain of it. 5 or 6 emals a day. Notice of service outage for the email system, building maintenance on weekends, notice of blahblahblah-heritage month, etc. Mixed in among all the 100+ pieces of spam in each inbox are a few relevant emails that do need attention. Benefit resources, pension contribution election forms, and whatnot. I found myself on Friday after work leading a little class on how to use Microsoft Outlook. Stuff like clicking on the "From" column heading to organize the inbox by sender. Highlighting multiple emails with shift + clicking, then marking them read all at once with control + Q. Delete the bunch while they're all highlighted. Seven or eight co-workers stood around me, mouths agape, like I was a modern man demonstrating a Bic lighter among cavemen. I mean, this was "Quest for Fire" kind of stuff! These poor bastards thought they had to go through each email, one by one, and delete them. They know so little it's scary. If there is no AOL icon to click, they're lost. So now I'm giving another seminar on Monday night, staying late to help them log into computers and sort their email. It seems like such basic stuff, but even a Mac guy like me knows more about Windows then they do. And of course this just cements my position as tech guru at work. "In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king."

[ShotgunEd]

This is funny,

i've been thinking about this for a while

people like you and i, geeks if you like, have got this mental capacity that no other humans on earth possess. We can figure things out, we aren't scared to fiddle with something to see happens. This concept extends far beyond the confines of simple computing, how to work a gui, keyboard shortcuts, but it covers troubleshooting, hardware repair.

Its because we have a thirst for learning and we detest inefficiency.

It applies to all things in life, languages, arts, musical instruments...

We should be happy to lend our <napoleon>skills</napoleon> to those who lack them.

We are the misfits, the rebels, the trouble makers, the round pegs in the square holes...

We think different.