Pineapple Express: Someone Is Wrong on the Internet?

[Ryujin]

I have a friend who used to work IT Tech Support calls.

One day, he got one that took him hours. He had asked about whether the device was properly plugged in, and it was. He tried everything he knew, and he asked for help from his coworkers and supervisor. Nothing worked.

Eventually, he told the customer to try calling the manufacturer. The guy said he’d try in the morning.

“Why?” asked my friend. “Their help desk is open 24-7.”

“Because the power has been out for hours, and my phone is running out of charge.”

Stories identical to that have been all over the internet since before the WWW existed. I remember them from the old newsgroups.

In a previous job I actually received the "The cup holder on my computer stopped working" call.

Regarding "Did you try turning it off and back on again" - Some years back I received a work order that stated a professor's computer was dead and he was demanding a tech go on-site IMMEDIATELY. After all, he's a professor. He's important! I went up, spoke to the incensed professor, surveyed the situation for maybe 20 seconds, reached down, and turned his power bar on. I then left without saying another word.

 

[Thomas Shey]

Or how often the customer says they've done something and they haven't. Back when I was doing 1st line broadband/tv support, one of our requirements before escalating something to 2nd line was to tell the customer that if this ends up with us sending a technician to their home and it turns out they haven't done the things we ask them to (turn it on and off, try a different cable, etc.), we'd charge them a fee for the tech visit.

On the other hand, I've started exchanges with tech support telling them what I've done so far, and have them either not believe me or act like they haven't heard me. Since some of these things are time consuming in a few cases, I don't appreciate it, and the fact some other people are idiots doesn't change that.

 

[pukunui]

I was thinking this as I was watching Stranger Things and as someone who was exactly the same age as those kids in those years, there is A LOT less smoking than I remember both by adults and teens. I understand not wanting to "promote" smoking - but I also think it is possible to show some accuracy while making sure to frame it with a current sensibility.

I feel like the smoking in Stranger Things was like the sexposition in Game of Thrones - in the beginning, there was a lot more of it, but complaints and criticism from viewers/actors, there was markedly less of it.

As for people of color showing up in European time periods folks tend to think of as all-white, I think most folks don't realize how diverse older times and places could be - and there are scholars and efforts to convey a better picture of the kinds of people that were around in a time or place.

Indeed.

 

[Ryujin]

On the other hand, I've started exchanges with tech support telling them what I've done so far, and have them either not believe me or act like they haven't heard me. Since some of these things are time consuming in a few cases, I don't appreciate it, and the fact some other people are idiots doesn't change that.

Oh, the 'conversations' I've had with my ISP, back in the day.

Problem: Using FTP to update a few hundred small files on my web page. Connection drops after a couple of dozen files, consistently.

"Did you unplug the modem for 5 minutes then plug it back in, to see if it corrected the problem?"

"I power cycled the modem. I tried three different FTP applications. I tried 4 different operating systems, on three different computers. I tried network cards from different manufacturers. Is there anything else you would suggest? It seems like the problem is on your end."

"We are now de-certifying your area for high speed internet. You can continue to use it, but we cannot provide support."

A week later my cable modem was (ahem) "struck by lightning." The replacement worked perfectly.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

I feel like the smoking in Stranger Things was like the sexposition in Game of Thrones - in the beginning, there was a lot more of it, but complaints and criticism from viewers/actors, there was markedly less of it.

Maybe Netflix finally listened to all the criticism they got over 13 Reasons Why, which seems scientifically engineered to create suicidal contagion.

 

[pukunui]

Maybe Netflix finally listened to all the criticism they got over 13 Reasons Why, which seems scientifically engineered to create suicidal contagion.

Oh man! I tried watching that one scene to see what all the fuss was about. Couldn't manage it. Far too real.

There's a reason why the NZ media won't include the details of suicides in this country (and they always include a list of helplines and such at the end of an article).

 

[prabe]

My Brothers in Dice, do you remember the art for D&D 2Ed Legends & Lore’s Egyptian Pantheon?

View attachment 429023

That is ... really something. Like, not even arguably Ptolemaic.

 

[Whizbang Dustyboots]

Oh man! I tried watching that one scene to see what all the fuss was about. Couldn't manage it. Far too real.

There's a reason why the NZ media won't include the details of suicides in this country (and they always include a list of helplines and such at the end of an article).

And then idolizing a kid who killed herself, which sends the wrong message to vulnerable kids.

 

[Gradine]

There's a really great podcast episode about how the public health response specifically in Seattle to the news of Kurt Cobain's death completely changed the way we address suicide and suicidal contagion in the US:
Kurt Cobain and “Copycat Suicide”

 

[Thomas Shey]

That is ... really something. Like, not even arguably Ptolemaic.

That was my reaction: "You could have at least made them look Greek."