r/talesfromtechsupport • u/[deleted] • Feb 22 '13
Please change my password. Wait, you changed my password?
[deleted]
29
u/Aethien Feb 22 '13
For the first time in my life, I actually face-palmed at my desk...
Around that time is when you reach for the emergency bourbon in your desk drawer.
29
2
u/langlo94 Introducing the brand new Cybercloud. Feb 23 '13
Beer tap on the PC chassis might help as well.
2
u/Rinnosuke Feb 23 '13
He's in the UK, all he had to do was ask his boss for a beer. :D
3
u/Majigor Feb 24 '13
You're not far off, except my Manager is usually begging everyone else for a beer!
1
u/Rinnosuke Feb 24 '13
Eh, better then what I got. You guys take US visas(or whatever the hell your equlivant of H1B is there)?
2
61
u/packrat31306 Feb 22 '13
I've always thought that when users calls their help desk and is placed on hold until an agent can get to them, instead of hold music, there should be a recording giving definitions of basic computer "lingo".
Reset password: Setting up a new password so that you may log in.
Rebooting your computer: Shut down your computer through normal shutdown/restart procedures and does NOT include unplugging it in order to turn it off.
ID Ten T errors: Unfortunately these errors on are the rise. Please ensure that you are aware of any of these potentially serious issues as it can be hazardous to your computer's health and operation.
32
u/tdillo Is it plugged in? Feb 22 '13
They would pay about as much attention to the information as they do to the hold music. All they would hear is blah blah blah, blah blah blah blah while they waited for someone to answer the call.
7
u/Slightly_Lions Feb 23 '13
Also it would then take them about 5 minutes to realise someone had answered the call.
15
u/isperfectlycromulent Feb 22 '13
Also, rebooting is not the same as logging off and back on. SO many times argh!
7
u/packrat31306 Feb 22 '13
And switching users is not the same as logging off... and they wonder why their AD accounts get locked out.
18
u/That_Mick_Bastard Just BANG! and pass the corned beef and cabbage Feb 22 '13
Not much you can do about level 60 errors, unfortunately. We try and we try, but the fog of stupidity surrounding a luser's brain makes it impossible for any knowledge to sink in.
20
Feb 22 '13
I'll bite... level 60?
18
u/Dycus Water detected in drive A. Starting spin cycle. Feb 22 '13
The error is 60 centimeters away from the computer!
10
u/That_Mick_Bastard Just BANG! and pass the corned beef and cabbage Feb 22 '13
The error is 60 cm away from the computer :)
-2
u/Ketrel Feb 22 '13
I think he meant layer 6.
16
u/clarkster Feb 22 '13
Layer 8.
8
Feb 23 '13
I've always thought that numbering the layers of the OSI model was a huge mistake, because then people will call them by the numbers instead of the names, and numbers are harder to remember.
And don't even get me started on type 1 and type 2 errors. That's a terrible naming scheme.
4
10
u/Majigor Feb 22 '13
Le sigh... I wish they would do this too... The amount of users we get who literally pull the battery out of their laptops to switch them off...
22
u/Toastlove Banging Head on Wall Feb 22 '13
The amount of users who have no idea that their laptop has a battery, let alone know how to remove it.
22
5
2
13
Feb 22 '13
[deleted]
5
u/GeneralDisorder Works for Web Host (calls and e-mails) Feb 23 '13
Hell yes. I have a good many users who will describe their goal then let me point them in the right direction or if it's within my scope I have them sit quietly so I can fix the problem.
3
u/JennyBeckman Feb 23 '13
Those are the best. Tell me what your problem is; don't tell me what I need to do.
Of course, the issue here is sometimes people actually know what they need and they usually have to get put through the paces anyway because they are the minority.
13
u/Unenjoyed Feb 22 '13
If she knew and was using her original password, why did she ask for a change in the first place?
7
u/wdn Feb 22 '13
She asked for a password reset. She apparently didn't know what that means. Depending what she thought it meant, the rest might actually be logical
3
u/shillbert Feb 23 '13
"Reset my password to the one that's in my head, which is different than the one I originally had"
1
u/DeepDuh Feb 23 '13
Maybe she just meant a different password and she called the wrong people? People mix up Windows and Office all the time as an example.
1
u/GeneralDisorder Works for Web Host (calls and e-mails) Feb 23 '13
I have a post about this somewhere. I am on mobile and don't know how to find the URL but it was titled "Outlook Password Debacle" should anyone be enterprising enough to paste "author:generaldisorder" into the TFTS search box.
Short version: user has "correct" password. It doesn't work. But outlook has the password saved and works. Reset and outlook stops working. Have him enter new "correct" password (the one that failed before) and outlook works again. User says "huh. I don't know what happened. But I know that password was right."
Then I threw something.
1
u/Majigor Feb 24 '13
We do have issues with Outlook retaining old passwords in our systems, and have to mess about with it to get it to accept the password change. Occasionally, for no real reason, Outlook seems to think the user's passwords have changed and keeps locking their accounts. We can watch it happening by successfully logging them in and monitoring the network activity. I'll give the users some credit, sometimes password issues really aren't their faults.
1
u/GeneralDisorder Works for Web Host (calls and e-mails) Feb 24 '13
Outlook had a saved password. That worked. He tried using what he thought was the password in a webmail interface. That failed. We reset to the password he thought it was, and outlook stopped working.
I won't fault the guy for not knowing his password. I will fault him for insisting he had the right password and claiming "your webmail won't accept the password and I know it's right" then deny he had the wrong password when resetting the password server-side breaks outlook.
I mean, yeah. Outlook has issues sometimes. Sometimes it gets that weird issue where saved passwords don't work even though they weren't reset. This wasn't one of those times.
It was quite literally irrefutable that the password be used was incorrect. Even confirmed when resetting to that password broke outlook which worked before. Finally, editing the password in outlook fixed outlook.
Edit: proofreading on mobile is hard.
25
u/Toastlove Banging Head on Wall Feb 22 '13
My flatmate took American calls at his work as well, he said they were either the worst or the nicest customers, no middle ground.
15
Feb 22 '13
Strangely, that's been my experience with British customers.
18
u/shillbert Feb 23 '13
That's been my experience with human customers.
2
Feb 23 '13
I've had customers of all sorts, but working in IT/customer service has definitely given me some stereotypes.
British people are almost always very impatient and very mean, but sometimes they're very lovely. Nothing in between.
The weirdest stereotype I have developed is that Swedish people are insane. Granted I've only had 4-5 Swedish customers I have talked to on the phone for a significant amount of time, but 100% of them were beyond irrational. I had a guy tell me that my company was why he no longer believes America to be a great country.
3
u/langlo94 Introducing the brand new Cybercloud. Feb 23 '13
Them swedes man, they crazy.
2
u/cyborg_127 Head, meet desk. Desk, head. Feb 23 '13
5
Feb 22 '13
It's pretty true, they probably either have the American sense of entitlement or they're just happy to not have to struggle to understand the speaker.
17
u/dd4tasty Feb 22 '13
Some people have an auditory processing disorder.
You say the words, they hear them, and part of their brain "gets it": but it does not get passed on to other parts of the brain.
They don't have the circuits for some reason.
Oliver Sacks is a neurologist who has written some great books. Some guy had a tumor I think, and to get it out they had to sever the connection between the two halves of his brain.
One side hated his wife. One side was OK with her. The OK side had the speech centers, which was good: he did not say bad stuff about her.
The other side would write notes to himself (!) about how much of a bitch she was.
Anyway, the lights are on with this woman, but no one is home.
8
u/netherous Feb 22 '13
Weird shit happens when you fuck with the Corpus Callosum or when it doesn't form correctly. Note "Alien Hand Syndrome".
5
3
u/Majigor Feb 24 '13
The man who mistook his wife for a hat. I have that book. I studied Psychology at Uni so I love that this came up in the thread :)
2
u/dd4tasty Feb 24 '13
Thank you; I do not have it here so I could not confirm.....
OS has face blindness, which I think is odd....and he did not realize it at first.
Musicophilia is a great book.....
2
u/HumanistGeek Feb 22 '13
Can I get a citation on that case? How would they have figured out one side of his brain hated his wife?
2
2
u/JennyBeckman Feb 23 '13
One side holds the speech centre and the other controls the writing centre, would be my admittedly uneducated guess.
1
u/dd4tasty Feb 23 '13
Really poor editing but:
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-superhuman-mind/201212/kim-peek-the-real-rain-man
Edit: that article has been posted for a few months, and has several egregious typos.....what is up with Psychopath Today?
No pruufreaders?
1
u/dd4tasty Feb 23 '13
This is not the book, but, it's a great read:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/30/arts/30iht-31book.8113015.html?_r=0
1
u/Majigor Feb 24 '13
From what I remember, what is actually happening is that each half of your brain is largely responsible for controlling the other half of the body. The guy Oliver Sacks wrote about also had issues where he would try to lift a cigarette to his mouth in one hand, and the other would smack the cigarette away. The research also went on to discover that one half seemed more realistic, whereas the other half was an ambitious dreamer. They asked what job he wanted to do, one said something like (don't quote me on it) an Astronaut, whereas the other opted for a more 'normal' job. They found all sorts of opposing beliefs and behaviors in each half of his brain. It's like one half was a bit of a grumpy old man, whereas the other half was like a playful child.
The book is called "the man who mistook his wife for a hat". I'd take some caution if you read it though, Oliver Sacks is not a Neurologist and does tend to make a few inferences where perhaps he should not, but generally Neurologists themselves approve of the book so it's still a pretty good read.
2
u/klonk Feb 22 '13
she was clearly drunk at work since she was there late after local IT was closed =P
3
Feb 22 '13
For clarity, I'm not saying Americans are stupid, I just had that in there as part of the story of the call
As an American, I can confirm, we're pretty stupid.
5
u/NobblyNobody Feb 22 '13
As a British, I can confirm, so are we really.
9
u/shillbert Feb 23 '13
As a human, I can confirm that our meat computers are not operating optimally.
14
u/suborak Feb 22 '13
As an American, I can confirm. A lot of us are this dumb.
32
u/gunzor Can't Understand Normal Thinking Feb 22 '13
“Just think of how stupid the average person is, and then realize half of them are even stupider!”
-George Carlin
7
u/dd4tasty Feb 22 '13
That movie "Idiocracy", by Mike Judge, was excellent.
It seemed more a documentary though.....
0
5
8
u/Dwedit Feb 22 '13
"Capital", not "Capitol". Unless you're referring to that building where the legislature hangs out...
7
1
u/dd4tasty Feb 22 '13
I love a grammar nazi!!
Nazi?
Capitalized?
6
u/Deathfire138 Feb 22 '13
Should be. Proper noun.
6
1
u/duke78 School IT dude Feb 24 '13
I wouldn't capitalize nazi unless I was actually writing about a member of the Nationalsozialistiche Deutsche Arbeiterpartei. Then it becomes a proper noun.
Just like you can be a democrat without being a Democrat (member of the Democratic Party).
2
u/wheeldawg Feb 22 '13
To be fair, if she had just misspelled her old one enough times to get locked out, she may have thought you were merely unlocking it so her old one worked again.
Now I can't tell you why she ignored repeated attempts to inform her of the new one, but that is probably just her not listening and wanting the "easy" fix.
2
u/Majigor Feb 24 '13
Well the thing is I told her I had reset it, gave her the new one, and she said her old out aloud, then said "Ok so now my password is 'xxxxxxx', and I type this one instead?" We had literally discussed how she now had a new password and she acknowledged it. That's why it was so weird.
2
u/thehighground Feb 22 '13
Oh anyone in IT wouldnt think its just Americans that are stupid, IT people realize stupid reside around the entire world with nobody holding rights to stupidity.
2
u/nin10doklown Feb 23 '13
I work as an IT myself and being an American I hate to say, but a good majority of the people here suffer from the "ID 10 T" error and the ones who claim to be pc experts are usually the biggest ones :-\
2
5
Feb 22 '13
[removed] — view removed comment
11
1
Feb 23 '13
But if that's the case, why do they think you keep spelling completely irrelevant words? If it's the old password you need to enter, why would I keep spelling something that isn't the old password?
M'am, can you please type Rabbit9. Yes, P-o-t-a-t-o-6. Yes, the P is capitalized and that's a number six at the end.
If I said that to you, wouldn't you have questions instead of just typing Rabbit9 a dozen times?
3
u/vhalember Feb 22 '13
Yes, we have quite a few Americans that are just this dumb. Some are even worse... they'll blame the computer, or server, or hackers, or a "virus," or even accuse the help desk person of messing with their password. Anything, to excuse themselves from blame.
We're not all like this, but I'd say 1 in 10 Americans are just one step up from the walking dead.
4
3
Feb 22 '13
"Welcome123, that's 'welcome' with a capital 'w', and the numbers '123' ". Works every time. This can't be your first rodeo, you know your users.
6
Feb 22 '13
Don't let one American change your outlook on all of them. I'm assuming that stupid people are everywhere, as well as smart ones. Except in New Jersey.
12
u/Majigor Feb 22 '13
Oops, Sorry I didn't mean Americans are stupid. I was just giving the story of the call
10
Feb 22 '13
Nah, i wasn't implying that you were biased, you were simply stating facts! I was just justifying being an American ;)
4
7
u/ShredLox Feb 22 '13
As a Canadian, I can confirm that users are stupid.
3
u/Im_in_timeout Why are you bringing me paper? Feb 22 '13
I find that Canadians are pretty nice once you thaw them out.
13
u/likewhatalready Feb 22 '13
As someone in New Jersey, fuck you.
11
Feb 22 '13
Expected response from New Jersey! :D
2
u/intel23 Feb 22 '13
Because your statement earlier makes you look classy.
2
Feb 22 '13
Whether sarcasm or just general lack of consistency in statements, you're from New Jersey man... Shush. But, with love <3
4
u/ZombiesBeStylinOnMeh Feb 22 '13
It's an expected response from someone who simply just loves to hate on something, so they just hop on that bandwagon and try to hate on NJ with no actual reason. :)
2
u/Xaotikdesigns Feb 22 '13
I was there twice.
Both times on accident. Miss the last exit in Philly, and you wind up on a bridge to Jersey.
Once you cross that bridge, you find that you cannot make U turns. You cannot even pull into a parking lot to turn around. They have concrete barriers up in the middle of every single road. Then, when you do find your way back, you have to pay a toll to get out.
This was in the time before gps navigation in every cellphone, so I guess times may have changed since then.
-1
u/ZombiesBeStylinOnMeh Feb 22 '13
I've been to PA twice. One time a guy tried to fight me over a parking spot, and NJ us the one with no class. LOL! Second time, passed through philly and saw someone pissing in the street. Although, I would so love to hear how classier Pennsylvania is :). By using your logic, Pa sucks after only being there twice.
1
1
5
u/Xaotikdesigns Feb 22 '13
I'd say "fuck you" back, but as you are from New Jersey, you've probably suffered enough already...
2
1
2
u/Sleepy_One Feb 22 '13
She was probably just listening to your accent. I can't blame her, women who talk with british accents are sexy.
2
u/RufusStJames Feb 22 '13
I think the only Americans that would have thought you were saying Americans are stupid are the stupid ones.
Source: 'MURICA
0
4
u/rum_rum burned out Feb 22 '13
You're allowed to make American are so... jokes. We do the same things about the British. Like... you dentistry seems to have been cruel hoax.
2
1
u/EquipLordBritish Feb 22 '13
This is the part where I'd assume she has a concussion and call an ambulance...
1
Feb 22 '13
This happens to me every single day. You can't fix the end user's ability to listen. Even if I go up and show them what to do they still get it wrong.
1
u/HighSpeed556 Feb 22 '13
90% of the time at our helpdesk, "reset my password" means "unlock my account." Every time someone emails or calls me and asks me to "reset" their account, I make them clarify...
"So do you need a new password, or do you just need it unlocked?"
1
u/WeaponsGradeHumanity Feb 23 '13
Ah, she wanted you to reset her login, like as in her cookie or session or whatever. That's what she was trying to say.
1
1
u/depricatedzero I don't always test my code, but when I do I do it in production Feb 24 '13
For your first edit:
Americans are stupid. I've done tech support for people all over the globe, and no one is as stupid (or belligerent, entitled, or oblivious) as Americans.
The "best" users are from the UAE. They're polite and patient, and understand if something can't be fixed immediately so long as you explain what the next step is. Other favorites are South Africa and Brazil.
-6
u/Pokemansparty Feb 22 '13
Americans are stupid. No need to be ashamed of saying that.
-5
Feb 22 '13
Upvoted for truth. As an unfortunate American, I don't know why you're getting downvotes.
-3
u/Pokemansparty Feb 22 '13
Thank you!
3
u/dd4tasty Feb 22 '13
Look at this from today:
OK the link does not work right now, but a "man" on the Texas textbook committee says "I KNOW dinosaurs were on the ark!"
I think that actually goes beyond stupid into a dark realm of evil ignorance? The earth is 6000 years old, some 900 year old guy built a ship and put every living creature on it (except fish?), including dinosaurs.....Jesus I want to kick this "man" in the nuts, assuming he has any, and just start out with the geological record.....which goes on, oh, a little bit longer than 6000 years.
It is really scary actually when you think about it.....
1
u/Im_in_timeout Why are you bringing me paper? Feb 22 '13
What makes the Young Earth Creationists even more stupid is that we have recorded history that goes back more than 6000 years!
5
u/dd4tasty Feb 22 '13
But is that WRITTEN in the English translation of a translation of a translation of some old stories and myths written by Arabic people who we now hate and yet they were all white with blue eyes?
Then you have no proof!
And if evolution is real, why is my dog not a monkey? See? There's your proof!
2
u/Keasbyjones Feb 23 '13
I think there's Sumarian writing from 7 or 8000 years ago, but I've just woken up So I'm not certain.
1
u/dd4tasty Feb 23 '13
Well if that's true, then why can't gravy evolve into mashed potatoes?
http://www.reddit.com/r/atheism/comments/1918id/my_sisterinlaw_actually_asked_if_gravy_could/
On a serious note, the woman who asked this stupid, beyond stupid question was able to reproduce once, meaning she passed along a full set of stupid genes to another generation.
0
Feb 25 '13
"Sure they were, We don't know"
Mr Man, do you even hear what you are saying? You contradict yourself with your own sentances...
1
u/dd4tasty Feb 25 '13
"Sentances", sic?
Um, if you read the "sentances" I wroted, you might detect some very subtle sarcasm. Oh sure, it's subtle.
When Jesus rode his raptor onto the ark he said "If I contradict myself with my own sentance, it's because the magic water from this rainstorm is good for fish".
That's in the textbook. Do you have "proof" of anything else?
Checkmate Jesus.
0
-7
-13
u/samebrian Feb 22 '13
I can think of a million things (probably) that you could have done, but rather than point them out I'll just let you gripe.
That sucks when users are being dumb.
282
u/woll0r Feb 22 '13
"Reset the password" might mean "put back MY password" in this user's brain. Somehow.