When you get an error message, do something!

The BBQ Pit
1

I realize, dear coworker, that your word search puzzle keeps you very busy, and I wouldn’t want the office environment to involve any tension for you. But perhaps, just perhaps, when your computer has been giving you an error message for 45 minutes informing you the printer is offline, perhaps, just perhaps, you could shift your wheelie chair the 2.5 feet it would take for you to ascertain if the printer is, indeed, offline and if so, to push the button that will put the printer back online.

No, no. I take it back. I know that I and the rest of your coworkers ask too much of you. What with the word search puzzles and the online shopping, I know that your fingers are like little nubbins of overworked pain. You are a saint to put up with us and our unreasonable demands. Why, just now, when coworker Chris came to my office and said that he’s having computer problems again, I said, “Coworker Chris, I recognize that you are having computer problems again, but I noticed that you walked past the office of our dear, beloved, overworked coworker without any bowing or scraping. That won’t do!”

And it was just as we both went to your office to bow and scrape that we saw the printer was offline, and we discovered that Coworker Chris’s computer ailment was a program that was hanging as it was trying to print, and it froze the whole network. And we saw on your computer monitor an error that told you the printer was offline and, upon gently questioning that such a tumultuous error would deign to infringe upon your day, we learned that the error simply wouldn’t go away, no matter that you had been ignoring it for nearly a solid hour!

The affront! The indignity!

I heard a horrible rumor that last week, while I was gone, when you courageously tried to reboot your computer by turning the monitor off, Coworker Eric had the unmitigated gall to correct you! I am ashamed of my workplace.

I think we need to hire you an assistant, one to turn the pages of your word search puzzle book and to deal with those saucy error messages before the day comes when they cause you a moment’s qualm. Let’s nip that in the bud right now, dearest, most beloved coworker! Because, as always, your happiness means more to me than anything.

Yours truly,

Coworker Julie

2

Here’s your problem. You need to find a peripheral that is activated by the error sound and administers a painful electric jolt through her office chair. She probably still wouldn’t fix the printer, being too stupid to figure it out, but the whimpers of pain would brighten your holiday season :).

Daniel

3

Don’t you go make me laugh when I’m trying to hold on to righteous indignation here! shakes fist

4

bzzzzzt!
whimper
…
…
bzzzzzt!
whimper
…
…
bzzzzzt!
whimper

I dunno; I figure indignation is really just the fuel for the righteous flames of vengeance.

Daniel

5

Why is she still working there? Are the word search puzzles critical to your company’s bottom line?

6

I must admit, just the thought of someone being electrocuted repeatedly brightens my holiday mood. Thanks for the happy thought, LHoD. :cool:

7

Ivy,

this is all to common in the world of IT.

And of course, though she did the word search for the past 4 hours, the job she needs to print RIGHT NOW, is critical to her boss’s meeting, in 10 minutes!

<grumbles about stupid users>

-Butler

8

No problem–and I have a new product idea. Off to get a patent and get it produced before Christmas 2006!

Daniel

9

Explain casually to co-worker that someone printing word search puzzles seems to have jammed up the printer. You’re going to have to do a manual search to find out from whom the print queue was coming before you report it. (Why yes, I am a bastard).

10

I’m actually glad she was just doing puzzles and not tying up the company telephone lines like normal.

At this point, I’m beginning to wonder what she has hanging over my boss’s head.

This woman eavesdrops, writes emails like this, eavesdrops some more and tattles about it.

Gah.

11

Oh, LHoD, that was great, especially the “in action” description. Thanks!

12

Ah, it reminds me of a work situation.

#1 (new person): I got an error message when doing this task. What should I do?
#2 (other person): Ignore it.
Me: :smack:

13

Well, to be fair, I’ve dealt with systems which were constantly spitting out bullshit error messages. In some cases, the problem could be easily fixed, but folks were just too lazy to do it, in other cases, there was simply no way to fix the problem, unless you hired a specialized tech who charged $50/hr or so, and given that if you just closed out the error message or ignored it, the machine would do what you wanted to, there wasn’t any reason to justify the expense. Then, there was the time I worked for SprintPCS and there were certain error messages you didn’t want to report, because after the IT guys got done “fixing” the problem, you’d be in worse shape than before they did anything.

Not saying that applies to the situation you describe or that the OP’s talking about, but there are times when error messages can safely be ignored.

14

I know you can sometimes ignore error messages (been there, done that) but this was not one to ignore.