IT Geeks. Gotta love 'em.

**Insanity_rules** · 5th May 2006, 23:56

Originally Posted by Edbear

I'd like to thank most of you on this thread for helping me learn a lot more about IT than I knew. It has been very entertaining and informative. Now if we could all take a moment to consider how we could avoid misjudging one another quite so much we could all have a group hug.

IT people need to stop treating the user like twats and users need to understand that even though the technology exists it cant be implimented by simply pressing a button. Thats that.

Before I get totally panned, I'm self employed in the IT industry and generally when a client wants something done I try to explain in simple terms the good points, the bad points and roughly how long it wil take to impliment and when it can be done. Then I leave the decision up to them. I provide a reasonably proactive service to my small but loyal clientelle and try to shape their IT requirements into a responsible model with the user having a basic understanding of whats going on.

I for one think both sides need to stop and think!

Now shake hands.

**SN4PD** · 6th May 2006, 00:20

Well said

**MOTOXXX** · 6th May 2006, 10:34

Originally Posted by Insanity_rules

IT people need to stop treating the user like twats and users need to understand that even though the technology exists it cant be implimented by simply pressing a button. Thats that.

Before I get totally panned, I'm self employed in the IT industry and generally when a client wants something done I try to explain in simple terms the good points, the bad points and roughly how long it wil take to impliment and when it can be done. Then I leave the decision up to them. I provide a reasonably proactive service to my small but loyal clientelle and try to shape their IT requirements into a responsible model with the user having a basic understanding of whats going on.

I for one think both sides need to stop and think!

Now shake hands.

Yes its a good way to communicate with the client. At the end of the day its how much risk they want to take and how much they want to spend.

well said

**Ixion** · 6th May 2006, 10:48

'Tis not so easy in corporate world, but. Self employed contractor, you are probably dealing direct with the guy that owns the busines, or nearly so, someone who actually cares what things cost, and what they cost if things go wrong, anyway.

So when you lay out "Here are your options, here's what they cost, here are the pros and cons" they consider them sensibly.(I've been there, done that, on both sides of the desk) .

Corporate wallies don't give a stuff about that, they're not paying anything for what IS provide, they won't be the ones who are stuffed up if it turns to shit. All they care about is "I WANT. I WANT RIGHT NOW!. STUFF EVERYBODY ELSE. I WANT. I DON'T CARE ABOUT ANY OF THAT CRAP. I WANT. GIMME NOW GIMME !GIMME!GIMME!"

Not all like that. But enough are. And it only takes a couple of dozen like that. While everyone in IS is trying to shut up their whining, screeching and demanding, the several hundred folk who ask nicely, who follow the rules, who are polite and reasonable, who DESERVE to have their requirements attended to get ignored, lost in the noise of the GIMME brigade.

Ah well, that's human beings for y'. No wonder I prefer animals. And machines.

**kro** · 6th May 2006, 22:15

Business is war, is it not?. If Seargent Jones won't issue the lads with rifles, do the troops go off to battle with a fork they stole from the mess tent?, no they inform the next in charge.

Some of you have a severely twisted grasp on corporate protocols sorry. Lou's partner did what was needed to get the job done, end of story.
If it fucks the IT dept off, then the IT dept need to deal, and deal big time, and perhaps look at what value they add to the business if they think a remote setup is anything major. I have no IT training whatsoever, and I have set one up with a list of instructions emailed to me from the IT troops in my company, who are the friendliest, and most helpful bunch you ever met.

Good work Lous wife !!

**SN4PD** · 7th May 2006, 10:06

Remote access, with windows boxes its a pice of cake (so is mac), dont know what all the fuss is about, would setup about 2 of these a week. Click click on the client machine, pinhole the firewall/router and send the user a RDP shortcut to their home email addy, even a moron could do that in under 30 mins! And if ya really OVER PARINOID about security then setup a vpn to run the RDP over.

All of my clients have remote access from home, infact 90% of them have T3G (mobile internet) cards in their laptops so they can take 3 day weekends and still hook into the system when fishing in the gulf, surfing in ragland, or on a conference in sydney!

I feel sorry for you people with useless IT depts,

they need to remember that IT is there to empower users, make them more productive, not less!

**SN4PD** · 7th May 2006, 10:39

After re-reading the thread, sounds like most of you are caught up in the bullshit of corporate bureaucracies, rules regulations etc. I work for some large corporations too, who have internal it support, while being treated like gods a bit , (wearing Armani suits and driving Mercedes sports cars), they are the most approachable people in the company and have a very can do attitude, nothing reasonable that would benefit the bottom line is too much trouble. They generally don’t run up long lists of things to because they plan ahead! Infact they anticipate user demand for things like VPN's and remote accesses and implement them in advanced, so it is as simple as flicking a switch when a user asks, (fail to plan and you plan to fail). We even train some of our users / managers on how to operate some less critical servers, so it a problem arises they can often fix it themselves.

Their use of outsourced it support also helps a lot, if the problem doesn’t get fixed then the contractor doesn’t get paid, makes for a very 'can-do' attitude on the part of the contractor, (of which I am one).

**Sniper** · 7th May 2006, 10:47

Originally Posted by nz_liam

I feel sorry for you people with useless IT depts,

they need to remember that IT is there to empower users, make them more productive, not less!

Wanna comw work with me. I bet I can change that outlook. I agree that we are here to make users work harder and more productivly, but I'll be fucked if I empower them with anything. They work by fear and its fear that makes them work hard.......

**SN4PD** · 7th May 2006, 11:00

Originally Posted by Sniper

Wanna comw work with me. I bet I can change that outlook. I agree that we are here to make users work harder and more productivly, but I'll be fucked if I empower them with anything. They work by fear and its fear that makes them work hard.......

Nothing personal, but as a ex GM of a sales & service orientated business I find that my employees work harder and go that extra mile if you are supportive of them (motivating, kind, caring, understanding etc, but still firm, after all the reason you employ them is to make money off their labours at the end of the day), rather than being abusive (managing by fear & secrets etc). Unless of course they’re total disrespective jerks, if they don’t want to work for the company then they’re no longer an employee; on ya bike and down the road mate!

Get your boss to send you on some management courses and give you some share options…. It helps with the attitude and general outlook on things, (or find a new boss)

(Again don’t take this the wrong way)