Experiences with non-techies

[sub68]

this

https://cheezburger.com/5494345984/keep-your-computer-cool-and-your-coffee-hot

[da na]

My friend asked me why I had two computers. (He's smart enough to see the 2 boxes on the floor, and knows that a monitor is not a computer.) I explained that they run different operating systems. After a long pause he asked, and I quote, "How is one a Mac if they're both PCs?", looking genuinely confused. I couldn't help but laugh. 

One is Ubuntu and one is Windows btw.

[da na]

Another story hot off the press from my second period English. Teacher was talking about the "HDM-One" on the smart board... (HDMI?)

[da na]

On 4/15/2021 at 9:08 PM, SpiderMan said:

So my mother has a Samsung S10 and her default web browser is the Samsung Internet App. When she goes to click on separate links in her emails, it automatically creates a new tab to that link. She exits the tab and goes on her way in emails and other things; creating more and more tabs until the app reaches 99 tabs open. She comes to me and says "Hey, can you fix this for me, it's saying there are too many tabs open and I don't know how to close them," so I help her and I show her what to do to clear all the tabs with a click of a button. I asked her if she understood how to clear them on her own and she said, "Yes, I can do that". 

 

A day or two goes by and we're back to the same position as when I showed her, "Hey, it's not allowing me to create a new tab again and I can't see XYZ". I do this so often, you think her doing her puzzle game everyday would make it actually *click* on what to do. 

 

I know it might sound...harsh, to be on your own parents but I expect if someone shows someone else something, to know how to do it after a couple tries before finally being able to do the task independently, but not constantly!!

My mom does that with the background apps on her iphone... Complains about it running slowly but cant figure out how to close the 30-ish bg apps...

[sub68]

Are school Chromebooks are very easy to fix software issues. (basically restart)

So a classmate has a crashed Chromebook and I just did a restart by power, esc and refresh.

of course it fixed itself and the kid goes how did you do that.

I just sigh really deeply

[CommanderAlex]

Just now, wat3rmelon_man2 said:

My mom does that with the background apps on her iphone... Complains about it running slowly but cant figure out how to close the 30-ish bg apps...

And even showing them how to close them and still not coming to fruition on how to do so from recollection....*sigh*

[Helpful Tech Witch]

1 minute ago, sub68 said:

Are school Chromebooks are very easy to fix software issues. (basically restart)

So a classmate has a crashed Chromebook and I just did a restart by power, esc and refresh.

of course it fixed itself and the kid goes how did you do that.

I just sigh really deeply

Omfg Ido that for everyone in my class. Sometrs they just black screen on boot

But it's daily, and still no one remembers.

Makes me think about taking basic understanding of technology for granted.

[sub68]

2 minutes ago, HelpfulTechWizard said:

But it's daily, and still no one remembers.

mine is once a month

2 minutes ago, HelpfulTechWizard said:

Makes me think about taking basic understanding of technology for granted.

me too

2 minutes ago, HelpfulTechWizard said:

Omfg Ido that for everyone in my class. Sometrs they just black screen on boot

oh boy I wish I had a school recovery flash drive with me

[soldier_ph]

Best ones are always when they don't know how to close an application or worse don't know how to properly shutdown a device.

[pythonmegapixel]

1 minute ago, soldier_ph said:

Best ones are always when they don't know how to close an application or worse don't know how to properly shutdown a device.

I've experienced the other way round - they will always fully shut down the computer rather than just suspending/hibernating, even if there's no need to.

[da na]

Ah yes the other post reminded me, half the time our school macbooks won't turn on. Like, refuse to boot. (You kinda just mash the power button a few times and swear and they work fine.) Or sometimes you close the lid, open it again and they've turned fully off and you have to boot them again.

[Drama Lama]

5 minutes ago, pythonmegapixel said:

I've experienced the other way round - they will always fully shut down the computer rather than just suspending/hibernating, even if there's no need to.

[Bitter]

11 minutes ago, pythonmegapixel said:

I've experienced the other way round - they will always fully shut down the computer rather than just suspending/hibernating, even if there's no need to.

Had to show my boss that push the power button meant push and release, not push and hold till it turns off. He still does it when he borrows my flashlight, which turns it off and locks it from accidentally turning on.

Watching him use a computer is frustrating.

[Ankh Tech]

10 hours ago, HelpfulTechWizard said:

Omfg Ido that for everyone in my class. Sometrs they just black screen on boot

But it's daily, and still no one remembers.

Makes me think about taking basic understanding of technology for granted.

I feel bad for you guys, in our schools they do have basic understanding of technology, or most of them, some don't know how to open google. But most do. Anyways, if you do a shortcut or anything "cool" they thing you're a pc nerd, and now because I know scratch, I'm a computer legend in my school

[GDRRiley]

1 minute ago, Ankh Tech said:

 I'm a computer legend in my school

you don't earn that title until you've been inside the server rooms and network closets.

[Helpful Tech Witch]

Just now, GDRRiley said:

you don't earn that title until you've been inside the server rooms and network closets.

At (at least my) school, its

you need to know how to use scratch to become somewhat familiar with tech

you need to know how to use shortcuts (mainly ctrl+w, ctrl+tab, ctrl+1(or 2, or 3, etc) to become a computer legend

if you can use a linux terminal your a hacker.

[Ankh Tech]

13 minutes ago, GDRRiley said:

you don't earn that title until you've been inside the server rooms and network closets.

nah in our school, know how to program something simple and everybody calls you that

[pythonmegapixel]

56 minutes ago, GDRRiley said:

you don't earn that title until you've been inside the server rooms and network closets.

I have been inside the server rooms and network closets - well, some of them, anyway - and it's not really that exciting if I'm honest.

 

Honestly most of the teachers and lecturers are reasonably good with the tech. It did amuse me though when it required two IT support staff and several minutes of work to replace an audio cable (and it wasn't nicely routed or anything, just went from the desktop PC to a small amplifier unit on the wall next to it).

[GDRRiley]

Just now, pythonmegapixel said:

I have been inside the server rooms and network closets, and it's not really that exciting if I'm honest.

its not exciting but it is funny to look at the mess, most in schools are just thrown together 0 care

[da na]

9 hours ago, pythonmegapixel said:

I have been inside the server rooms and network closets - well, some of them, anyway - and it's not really that exciting if I'm honest.

 

Honestly most of the teachers and lecturers are reasonably good with the tech. It did amuse me though when it required two IT support staff and several minutes of work to replace an audio cable (and it wasn't nicely routed or anything, just went from the desktop PC to a small amplifier unit on the wall next to it).

Our server closet is dusty as hell. I feel bad for the servers choking in there. There's also pretty much no ventilation and it's a tiny room.

[da na]

My friend (same one from my last post) asked me why astronauts use Linux. I explained how it was an open source operating system and etc and how it could be modified to their needs. He just goes, "no, because they can't open Windows in space." I laughed until I realized he was dead serious. Think it was a joke he found online but didn't understand and thought it was some fact about how your license key doesn't work off-planet...

[WhitetailAni]

Just now, wat3rmelon_man2 said:

My friend (same one from my last post) asked me why astronauts use Linux. I explained how it was an open source operating system and etc and how it could be modified to their needs. He just goes, "no, because they can't open Windows in space." I laughed until I realized he was dead serious. Think it was a joke he found online but didn't understand and thought it was some fact about how your license key doesn't work off-planet...

Telling this to my dad.

 

Had a new experience today.

 

I guess I had a floppy disk in my jacket pocket (I visited my grandparents' house on Sunday and brought one home) but forgot about it. So I took it out during lunch and set it on the table.

Some random kid walks by, looks at it, then asks me "What is that thing?"
I reply "It's a floppy disk."
He says "Oh, those things that you put in a CD player and it spun around?"
Me: "No, that's a CD. This came before the CD."
Him: "So what do you put it in?"
Me: "A floppy drive."
He says (and I kid you not) "But how does it stay in if it can't hold its shape?"

[da na]

1 minute ago, FakeKGB said:

Telling this to my dad.

 

Had a new experience today.

 

I guess I had a floppy disk in my jacket pocket (I visited my grandparents' house on Sunday and brought one home) but forgot about it. So I took it out during lunch and set it on the table.

Some random kid walks by, looks at it, then asks me "What is that thing?"
I reply "It's a floppy disk."
He says "Oh, those things that you put in a CD player and it spun around?"
Me: "No, that's a CD. This came before the CD."
Him: "So what do you put it in?"
Me: "A floppy drive."
He says (and I kid you not) "But how does it stay in if it can't hold its shape?"

Well...

I'm guessing it was a 3.5? 

Also, I can tell something is hard plastic just by looking at it, and I think one of those would pretty obviously appear so. What kind of troglodytes do you go to school with? I've never had a floppy dissolve on me, personally. But that's just my limited experience.

[pythonmegapixel]

16 minutes ago, wat3rmelon_man2 said:

Our server closet is dusty as hell. I feel bad for the servers choking in there. There's also pretty much no ventilation and it's a tiny room.

Wow... ours actually has its own AC/ventilation separate from (and much better than) the rest of the building. As for the dust, there's a little bit but I wouldn't say they're choking.

[WhitetailAni]

9 minutes ago, wat3rmelon_man2 said:

Well...

I'm guessing it was a 3.5? 

Also, I can tell something is hard plastic just by looking at it, and I think one of those would pretty obviously appear so. What kind of troglodytes do you go to school with? I've never had a floppy dissolve on me, personally. But that's just my limited experience.

It was a 3.5" disk, but when I told him it went in a "floppy drive" he asked how the disk fit in if it flopped about.

Sorry that wasn't so clear.