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  • It Happens Every Month

    Dear Users of [System I Support],

    Why do you do this to yourselves? You do work all month long. You know your data entry to document that work is due at the end of the month. You get reminders about this every week.

    So why is it that, on the last working day of the month, about 80% of you call me in a panic? It seems that you can't log in because you forgot your password, which wouldn't be a problem if you used it more than once a month. Or you have several hours of work to do in just one afternoon but you can't because you missed one of the first steps and can't remember how to do it.

    Today, one of you even forgot the name of the data entry system.

    And next week, another 10% of you will complain to me that you thought "due on the last calendar day of the month" means "about a week into next month is fine."

    Seriously: Follow the instructions I gave you years ago and have posted in no fewer than eight places, do you data entry at least in the same week you do the work, and we won't have these problems.

    - HS
    I suspect that... inside every adult (sometimes not very far inside) is a bratty kid who wants everything his own way.
    - Bill Watterson

    My co-workers: They're there when they need me.
    - IPF

  • #2
    Sherman

    "Yes Mr. Peabody?"

    Set the way back machine to 1998

    Back to when I still worked in IT.

    I am in the Midwest and would arrive at work somewhere between 7:30am and 8am (depending on traffic). At approximately 8:30am my office phone would ring (yes you could set your watch to the phone ringing). It was the person on the west coast asking again how to do some system function/procedure.

    Now this person had called and asked the SAME question on procedure EVERY SINGLE MORNING FOR MONTHS. I had even e-mailed him many sets of instructions and spoke many times with their supervisor all to no avail.

    It only stopped when in mid 1999 we upgraded that system to one central system from many on-site systems.
    I'm lost without a paddle and headed up SH*T creek.
    -- Life Sucks Then You Die.


    "I'll believe corp. are people when Texas executes one."

    Comment


    • #3
      him: How do I do X?
      you: The exact same way I told you yesterday.
      Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, you speak with the Fraud department. -- CrazedClerkthe2nd
      OW! Rolled my eyes too hard, saw my brain. -- Seanette
      she seems to top me in crazy, and I'm enough crazy for my family. -- Cooper
      Yes, I am evil. What's your point? -- Jester

      Comment


      • #4
        Yeah, we get this kind of thing at The Client as well. Usually people needing to use the time and attendance system or the performance appraisal system.

        Both of those systems occasionally need to be taken offline while maintenance is done on the servers. And, although I have to believe The Powers That Be try to schedule it appropriately, sometimes that maintenance coincides with the deadline days.

        We time the maintenance to happen after peak hours, to lessen the impact, but we still get people who call us up to WARRRGLBLBL at us about how they need to get their timecards in, or fill out their performance appraisal, never mind that they've known they were due for several days, it's not our fault you waited until the last minute.
        PWNADE(TM) - Serve up a glass today! | PWNZER - An act of pwnage so awesome, it's like the victim got hit by a tank.

        There are only Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse because I choose to walk!

        Comment


        • #5
          Quoth Deserted View Post
          him: How do I do X?
          you: The exact same way I told you yesterday.
          That pretty much sums up my arrival at work for months on end
          I'm lost without a paddle and headed up SH*T creek.
          -- Life Sucks Then You Die.


          "I'll believe corp. are people when Texas executes one."

          Comment


          • #6
            Quoth Deserted View Post
            him: How do I do X?
            you: The exact same way I told you yesterday.
            This is my CW "Betty." I find it amazing that she "can't remember" how to do something (usually because she "doesn't feel well" which is different how from every other day??) when I am in the office.....but when I am not there she mysteriously, somehow, manages to remember how to do All The Things.
            When you start at zero, everything's progress.

            Comment


            • #7
              In my experience, the people who "forget" how to do things are fishing for you to get fed up with explaining, and just do it for them. At the very least, your showing them takes some of the responsibility off of their shoulders-if something is done incorrectly, they can whine, "But that's how XXXXX showed me to do it!"
              "She didn't observe the cardinal rule: Don't F**K with people who handle your food"
              -Ryan Reynolds in 'Waiting'

              Comment


              • #8
                Quoth Deserted View Post
                him: How do I do X?
                you: The exact same way I told you yesterday five minutes ago.
                Fixed that for today's experience. All this happened via instant message.

                User: Hey, I need to do [Process], but I forgot how to get it started. Can you remind me?
                Me: Sure. First, do [Step 1]. Then do [Step 2]. And when the system tells you it's done with that, do [Step 3].
                User: Got it! Thanks!

                *Five Minutes*

                User: Hey, HS. It's not working.
                Me: What's not working?
                User: [Process].
                Me: Did you do [Step 1]?
                User: Yeah. But it's not working.
                Me: Did you do [Step 2]?
                User: No, I didn't. Is that what I'm supposed to do next?
                Me: Yes. After you do [Step 1], do [Step 2]. When the system tells you it's done with that, do [Step 3].
                User: Okay, I'll give it a try.

                *Five Minutes*

                User: Sorry to bug you again, HS, but it's still not working.
                Me: What's not working.
                User: [Process].
                Me: What part of [Process] is not working? What is it doing incorrectly or failing to do correctly?
                User: [Process].
                Me: Did you do [Step 1]?
                User: Yeah.
                Me: Did you do [Step 2]?
                User: Yeah, just like you said.
                Me: Did you get the confirmation message?
                User: Yeah.
                Me: And then did you do [Step 3]?
                User: No.
                Me: Why not?
                User: Because I didn't think it worked, so I went back and did [Step 1] again.
                Me: Which means I've got a file stuck in the queue now. Hang on.
                *Click click click*
                Me: Okay, I cleared that out. You can start over now.
                User: Start over?
                Me: Yes. Just do [Step 1], then [Step 2], then [Step 3] like I described.
                User: You think that will work?
                Me: It will if you do all three steps in order.
                User: If you say so...

                *Five Minutes*

                User: HS, I don't know what the deal is, but it's still not working. I tried to do [Step 3], but there's no [Thing] to open!
                Me: Did you do [Step 1]?
                User: No.
                Me: You need to start with [Step 1].
                User: I'm really confused now.
                Me: Okay, I'll walk you through it, one step at a time. First, do [Step 1], and tell me when you're done.
                User: ... Okay, done. Now what?
                Me: Now do [Step 2].
                User: ... I did it. ... Oh, and there's the message about it.
                Me: Good. Now, do [Step 3].
                User: Are you sure?
                Me: Yes.
                User: ... Oh! It worked now! Must be like taking your car to the shop--whatever is broken doesn't look or act broken when the mechanic is there to look at it, right? LOL.
                Me: Something like that.

                I suspect that... inside every adult (sometimes not very far inside) is a bratty kid who wants everything his own way.
                - Bill Watterson

                My co-workers: They're there when they need me.
                - IPF

                Comment


                • #9
                  Sweet Mother of Murgatroyd, HawaiianShirts, I'd have resorted to murder.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Quoth HawaiianShirts View Post
                    I've had something like that happen to me once. Sent a user their temp password for one of our networks. Because at the time, it wasn't unheard of for the users to get errors even with a correct password, I got into the habit of including, in the email with the temp passwords, a message to the effect of:

                    "If you receive an error reading [error] or [error], please go to another [network] terminal and log in there using the temporary password provided. After logging in, you may change your password, then log off again, and log in at your regular [network] terminal at your convenience."

                    I put this message in red text too.

                    Still didn't stop some people from calling me back or emailing me back and going, "Yeah, I'm getting [error], what do I do?"

                    Invariably, I would reply, "As I stated in the email..." and repeat the instructions verbatim.
                    PWNADE(TM) - Serve up a glass today! | PWNZER - An act of pwnage so awesome, it's like the victim got hit by a tank.

                    There are only Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse because I choose to walk!

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Quoth Jay 2K Winger View Post
                      Invariably, I would reply, "As I stated in the email..." and repeat the instructions verbatim.
                      You rock!

                      I've discovered the shaming power of a phone call that includes the phrase "Hang on a second while I bring up the email I sent you about this.."

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        I recall reading somewhere (here?) about someone who emails instructions, and then when the person needs the instructions again, the email is forwarded to them, complete with the original mailing info (i.e. To: Idiot, From: Sender, Subject: Fwd: Instructions I sent you last week).
                        Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, you speak with the Fraud department. -- CrazedClerkthe2nd
                        OW! Rolled my eyes too hard, saw my brain. -- Seanette
                        she seems to top me in crazy, and I'm enough crazy for my family. -- Cooper
                        Yes, I am evil. What's your point? -- Jester

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Quoth Deserted View Post
                          I recall reading somewhere (here?) about someone who emails instructions, and then when the person needs the instructions again, the email is forwarded to them, complete with the original mailing info (i.e. To: Idiot, From: Sender, Subject: Fwd: Instructions I sent you last week).
                          I tried that way back when (see my above posts) and it did not work.

                          ****** commence headdesking ********
                          I'm lost without a paddle and headed up SH*T creek.
                          -- Life Sucks Then You Die.


                          "I'll believe corp. are people when Texas executes one."

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            No, I mean, the email always included the full list of headers. Like:
                            To: Idiot
                            From: Sender
                            Subject: Fwd: Instructions

                            ---contents of forwarded message---
                            To: Idiot
                            From: Sender
                            So it showed the idiot how many times they'd received the same instructions.
                            Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, you speak with the Fraud department. -- CrazedClerkthe2nd
                            OW! Rolled my eyes too hard, saw my brain. -- Seanette
                            she seems to top me in crazy, and I'm enough crazy for my family. -- Cooper
                            Yes, I am evil. What's your point? -- Jester

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Quoth Deserted View Post
                              So it showed the idiot how many times they'd received the same instructions.
                              After the 4th or 5th time, I'd start cc'ing the idiot's boss. Maybe they'd light a fire under idiot's butt for wasting company time.
                              "It is traditional when asking for help or advice to listen to the answers you receive" - RealUnimportant

                              Rev that Engine Louder, I Can't Hear How Small Your Dick Is - Jay 2K Winger

                              The Darwin Awards The best site to visit to restore your faith in instant karma.

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