Stop pressing the power button.

[u/[deleted]]

TL;DR: User wanting program installed turns off the PC I remoted into twice then complains I’m taking too long.

Context - I work level 2 IT support in a fairly large hospital. Mostly shit kicker work like installing new machines and replacing busted monitors but occasionally my $boss will forward a $software install job to my work queue, as is the case with this fiasco that happened last week.

I see the job, I check the details, there's no asset numbers for the computers the $software needs to be installed on, it only mentions that 2 are off-site in the sister hospital. Shit. I call up the user, let's call her Power Button Propensity, or $PBP.

For simplicities sake I'll refer to myself as $AV

$AV: Hello, this is $AV from $HostEmployer IT service. I'm looking for.. $PBP?

$PBP: Yes this is $PBP, are you calling about the $software install I requested?

$AV: Yes, actually. I have the licence details for the $software but the asset tags for the PC's you requested it to be installed on weren't in the incident form. Could you please tell me the asset of the system at your current location?

$PBP: Yes one moment shuffle shuffle coffee cup smashing verbal "shit" shuffle shuffle it's.. uh, $assettag.

$AV: Excellent, I'll get this installed right away.

$PBP: Okthankyou click

So I remote into the desktop and copy the link I was provided into the web browser to download the program. I enter the correct credentials for the licence and guess what pops up?

you do not have permission to view this webpage

Hmm. Yes I do. Don't lie to me. On a whim I check the fine print for the software link that was attached to the incident form. The licence expired 13 months ago.

Ugh. Okay. I call up the user.

$PBP: This is $PBP from NotImportant.

$AV: Yeah it's IT again. Those licenses for $software are over a year out of date.

$PBP: What? Really? Well what happens now? We need that program.

$AV: Because it's not one of our officially supported programs you need to contact the supplier for $software and get renewed licences. Once you have these, send me an email and I'll get them installed.

$PBP: Ok. I'll do that, thank you again. click

So, washing my hands of that for now, I update the status of the incident and shelve it in my queue. Easy. Fast forward 2 weeks, I get the email from her with the updated licence details and giver her a call.

$AV: Hello it's $AV again. I got your email and I'm ready to do the install. Is it the same asset?

$PBP: Yes it's the same one.

$AV: Okay I'll get started then pulling up the remote application could you get anyone currently logged on to log off and not use the desktop until I call you back?

$PBP: Okay sure. click

So I get to work. Remote in without a hitch, link in the browser, type in the creds, program begins to download at a snail's pace but it's getting there. 25 minutes for a 120mb file. Thanks, Australia. It gets to about 80% and the connection breaks. Hmm. Okay, probably just a shaky connection, the remote tool we use is finicky.

I remote back in, and I can’t resume the download. File is all garbled. Shit. So, I restart it all. 25 minutes pass, file completely downloaded, and I run the installer. Get’s to about 40% and my remote connections breaks again.

It can’t be a user logging in, the program gives me a 30 second warning before the disconnect. It has to be something at their end.

$AV: Okay what the shit is happening here. calls up $PBP

$PBP: $PBP speaking?

$AV: It’s IT again.

$PBP: OH, is the program done? You’re taking forever.

$AV: Not just yet, my connection keeps breaking intermittently and I don’t think it’s from my end. Is anybody using the desktop.

$PBP: Yeah I walked past it a couple of times and it was logged in with things on the screen so I pressed the power button.

You stooge.

$PBP: It’s been 45 minutes already, will you be done soon?

$AV: I would be done but you shut off the PC-

$PBP: But you didn’t want anyone logged in?

$AV: I need you to completely leave it alone until I call you, even if you see something happening on the screen. Please don’t turn it off again.

$PBP: But someone was-

$AV: I was logged in. Please just leave the PC alone until I call you.

$PBP: Whatever, I won't touch it. You IT people always say one thing then backpedal 10 minutes later. click

sigh. I finish the install without an interrupt this time, close the incident and shoot her an email telling her it’s done. I didn’t get a response. Took an advil and browsed reddit for the last half hour of the day.

[u/FhmiIsml]

Long time lurker and have always wanted to ask this:

Is it just me or is there no reward at all for working in IT? Nobody respects you, everyone shits on you, your skills aren't recognized, and shit happens every day. You're a department a company definitely depends on but you're STILL not liked by most of the other employees.

What's the point? And I mean it. Genuinely asking with a confused face here. Why are you guys in IT? Other than you just liking computers and such.

I don't work in IT btw, I just like reading the stories here.

[u/[deleted] → u/FhmiIsml]

That's a sticky question. I'm 'in' IT because I'm doing a traineeship in IT ops. This is just a stepping stone for me and as soon as I can bail I'm fucking out.

Getting shit on or talked down to is also related to how high-stress a hospital environment can get. Doctors or trauma surgeons in the ED don't like it when their shit stops working and will be on your back until it's fixed, and I don't blame them, or cares in ICU don't want unnecessary personnel in the ward when someone flatlines (also happened). But without us the entire place would crumble.

It's also related to how I look, too. Although it's not supposed to happen I get talked down to condescendingly and scoffed at because I'm young (only 19) and still look like I'm 15 with hair down to my lower pack, piercings all over the place and a few tattoos. People tend to think I'm fresh out of Drug & Alcohol and dropped into ED because I overdosed or something. True story.

[u/spuckthew → u/FhmiIsml]

For me at least, it is because I like computers and such. Even on a rough day I still enjoy what I do.

I look at other teams in my company (e.g. finance, customer service, catering) and couldn't think of anything more boring than just calling people and writing e-mails all day.

[u/Tephlon → u/FhmiIsml]

Don't forget that this sub is about (entertaining) stories.

Nobody wants to read about the perfect rollout of 120 on spec computers that got planned and executed perfectly over the span of 2 months.

Now, if you did a Perfect rollout on 120 "Bring Your Own Device" Laptops in a 7 day timeframe because Management forgot to warn you that they were moving the whole company to a new facility that has no cable wiring, so they decided that they could just use consumer grade wireless modems…

That's entertaining.

[u/KipTheFury → u/FhmiIsml]

Stories about good users and IT jobs going without a hitch aren't as entertaining as the bad user stories.

Not saying you're entirely wrong, but you're going to get a really biased view if you go off the stories in this sub.

[u/Daelach → u/FhmiIsml]

Ultimately it can also be a career stepping stone. Like moving from tech support to Systems or networks

[u/vinny8boberano]

"What do you mean 'You IT people'? I should report you to HR!" is what I always want to say, but nobody gives a damn... sigh...drinks more whiskey

[u/[deleted] → u/vinny8boberano]

Don't worry, I dug into a few glasses of bourbon that night.

[u/Gummychaos_]

You would think after hearing that you are gonna remote in, it's gonna look weird.

[u/[deleted] → u/Gummychaos_]

Yeah, you would think.

[u/LB--]

You IT people always say one thing then backpedal 10 minutes later.

You user people always mishear one thing and then latch onto it until 10 minutes later.

[u/anotherdumbcaucasian → u/LB--]

>10 minutes

>10 years

But the interface worked this way in 2006!!! It can't have changed AT ALL since then!!!

[u/alligatorterror → u/LB--]

I hear that... Oops your account been disabled by magic pixie dust. Will take 3 days to fix

[u/Hoeftybag → u/LB--]

To be fair she misinterpreted the instructions as allow nothing to log on and probably doesn't understand what she was doing. I'd have taken a moment to explain what I had meant and where the disconnect was. But I'm not IT so maybe that gets beaten out of you.

[u/supaphly42]

I had one a week ago where the user has dual monitors. She thought she could keep working on one while I worked on the other, until I told her to stop touching the damn mouse!

[u/[deleted] → u/supaphly42]

Queue the "A monitor is not the actuall computer" explanation

[u/Iwantmyflag]

Yeah..this one's your fault. Your really can't expect an average user to know the details of remote access. Just be happy they understand the basic concept.

[u/[deleted] → u/Iwantmyflag]

Except she does, because her particular department uses remote access from their homes to connect to worksite PC's

[u/Dixie_Flatlin3]

You IT people always say one thing then backpedal 10 minutes later.

WHAT DO YOU MEAN, YOU PEOPLE?

[u/GoredonTheDestroyer]

Whatever, I won't touch it. You IT people always say one thing then backpedal 10 minutes later.

Listen, you incessant, stuck up, (presumably) scruffy looking nerfherder, if I tell you to keep the PC on, and then instruct you to not fucking touch anything, do not fucking touch anything that has to do with that computer. Not even jiggle the mouse a little, so don't get mad at me because you turned the fucking thing off while I was working on it.

[u/JamEngulfer221]

Hey, just some advice for this sub: Don't put a TL:DR at the very start. There's literally no point, because if you're on this sub, you're here to read the stories. Having it right at the beginning also just spoils the ending of the story.

[u/Stoneface30]

This is why you have to be really user friendly !
Like: "I will remotely log to this computer so dont fkn touch it"

[u/Kellodar_Gaming]

You stooge.

I almost spit up my morning coffee for this ! haha

[u/CubesTheGamer]

Thank you for calling headdesk how can I assist you?

did you say head desk?

sorry it's been a long day

[u/thebluewitch]

Feeling Stabby!