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114 Comments
- swillies, on 10/12/2007, -0/+40I work every day with computer techs and I agree 100% - they get way less than the respect they deserve. Sometimes I have trouble understanding it. So, here is my thanks to all the hard-working computer techs who make my life easier day after day after day.
- kevyn, on 10/12/2007, -1/+38nice story, especially for someone who feels like they are in that position!
I used to do hardware installs/repairs/upgrades/cleaning of computers... and for a crappy pay wage, and terrible greedy boss, and a rubbish enviroment...but it did after all help land me my current job.
remember the little guy! - jawagas, on 10/12/2007, -1/+31Yes we don't get the recognition and pay we deserve, but what really gets me is the lies I was fed about all the girls techs get.
- whereisian, on 10/12/2007, -0/+27I went to school for some tech training. On the first day of class, my prof said these prophetic words "If you want to succeed in the line of work, you have to understand one thing: people hate technicians". The only reason someone talks to you is if they are having a problem or are confused - both of which make the person feel stupid and irritable. Wiser words were never said. I've gone on to learn that most of what the author says is all too true.
I've moved on to more interesting things in the tech world, but 5 years working as a phone and field tech serving every skill level from end user to Cisco certified has taught me: you better have passion for your work, because the rewards are few and far between. I've seen too many amazing techs leave because they got sick of being ***** on and under appreciated, and too many ***** tech size in the ranks because they are yes-men. And we wonder why the state of tech support is such a joke. - Nougat, on 10/12/2007, -0/+23If it's so easy, then why do users need PC techs at all? Why don't users just fix their own computers, if it's so easy?
- 4bit, on 10/12/2007, -0/+20Because when the payroll computer goes down, and you're the one who has to fix it, the responsibility is huge.
When email grinds to a halt due to a technical glitch and the company can't communicate in or outside of the building, the responsibility is huge.
Because when the contractor unplugs the server to recharge his laptop, and doesn't tell anyone, so accounting can't do billing today, and we're going to be late and have to wait two weeks for the next time we can submit the bill, so there won't be money to cover payroll, unless you find out why, the responsibility is huge.
None of those are necessarily hard things to do. But the people counting on you, who don't even end up touching a computer, puts a lot of pressure on you to keep things going smoothly.
So, no this isn't a service industry like plumbing, or cleaning, or food prep. While sometimes they're replacing mice, installing a new monitor, or just laying cable, there are times when you can't just hang an out of order sign on the door. - adml_shake, on 10/12/2007, -0/+15Your a ***** idiot. Theres a difference between being able to do it, and being able to do it RIGHT and Fast. In some cases someone with a book could probably fix a majority of the problems. But how fast are they going to be able to do that? The reason why we went to school in this area was to getting a better understanding of how all this stuff works and to be able to look at something, see whats wrong and have a pretty good idea on how to fix it in a timely manner. You think it's like flipping burgers? ***** you. Maybe once you get out of McD's and get a real job you'll think twice.
- loobis, on 10/12/2007, -1/+14@goot. What a pretentious dick.
- czimmerman, on 10/12/2007, -0/+12Seriously...most people who start in IT start in Help Desk or start doing hardware repair or stuff like that. Its the traditional paying your dues. Stuff I learn now doing Help Desk for a pretty big company is stuff that is going to pay off down the road.
Everyone tells you in IT that you are going to start out making big bucks (stupid ads on terrestrial radio for example), but it doesn't happen, or if it does, very rarely. You pay your dues, and I respect everyone here who is younger and is trying to make a break in the industry. I'd rather have quality kids who stuck through this stage than people who gave up right away and got promoted and didn't know crap. - benenglish, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11Hmmm. I make 65Gs. No certs. No degree. Just 15 years or so of *really* enjoying jobs where people are in trouble and I can get them out of it. My customers don't hate techs; well, at least they don't hate me. Why? Because I always keep this in mind:
"People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care. Once they know how much you care, they don't care how much you know."
Think about that. I don't belittle my customers. I don't act superior. I assure them it could happen to anyone. Then I fix their problem and leave. Their lives are better for having had contact with me, so they don't mind calling on me again. And when they call on me for something that stumps me, I can just tell them "I'm stumped. I'm gonna go do some research." and they're fine with that. It's all because I care and they know it. They know I'll be back, that I won't abandon them, and that I *will* get that problem fixed, eventually, no matter what.
Fact is, I'm not a great tech. I couldn't run down the basic processors and mobo chipsets currently on the market if my life depended on it. But I have at least a hundred customers who will cancel their trouble tickets and call me directly if anyone else gets assigned to work with them. That's job satisfaction and, after a lot of years, I've managed to wind up being paid well for what I do. - meanfish, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11A company is having one of their biggest events of the year, and their website is critical to their ability to register people for the event. It's the day before the event and the web server breaks. Every minute the server is down, the company is losing thousands of dollars. You have the coordinator screaming at you over the phone while you're remoted into the machine and trying to help them fix it over the phone.
Nope, no pressure there... - Vertabreaker, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10*sits in the corner and twitches*
Just thinking of my first job out of college gives me chills. But as Kev says, what you do now will help you in the future. Although my first job out of college sucked, I wouldn't change working there if I had the chance again because it all worked out in the end.
As Calvin's dad would say, "It builds character" - consonance, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10It's easy to build one when you have all the right parts, a set of hints, and the right tools. But when one part fails, how will you know which part it is? When two parts fail, how will you know which two are the problem? This isn't about building computers; this about getting into the nitty gritty of making them work again.
- twinklyJesus, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10Are they "baring" it, or are they "bearing" it? No one wants a geek flasher in their office.
- bcnw, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10Here's a huge responsibility scenario, for you techie-hatas:
"It had been running slow and doing some funny things for a few months now, programs were crashing and sometimes it would take, like 15 minutes to open a program. Then today, I turned it on and the screen was black and it said "Operating System not found." What does that mean?
...
My hard drive failed? Well, can you fix it?
...
What's a data backup?
...
Well, yeah, my business quickbooks file is on there, my wedding pictures and baby pictures. Plus I've got a ton of music on there as well."
As opposed to the other end of the "service industry" spectrum:
"Oh, you don't like your meal sir? Would you like something else off the menu? Or would you just like us to comp your meal?" - ThePerp, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10So tell me, gootdude...how long have you been a Unix admin? Here's hoping the help desk calls your cell phone while you're at the bar tonight, Mr. Important!
Love it when the guy with the grossly-inflated self-worth mocks the "lower class" about their inflated self-worth. - touch0ph, on 10/12/2007, -0/+10You must be in management, right?
- shakin, on 10/12/2007, -1/+11A computer technician is a low-end job. It's your first job out of school, it's easy to do, and tons of people can do it. That's why the pay sucks. It's a stepping stone to a higher position just like any junior office job.
In fact, I've seen more non-tech office workers get the pay and promotion shaft more often than computer techs. As a tech you probably have some networking, sysadmin and security knowledge (or should be learning if you don't) so after a few years as a tech you can probably get a junior sysadmin position if you keep your skills current. There are also plenty of high-end tech jobs around like for specialty products and systems. Once you get away from supporting desktop systems it gets pretty good.
The only people who really complain about computer tech pay are people who have been doing it for many years expecting something to fall into their lap. - ideagirl, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9Gootdude wrote:
"If you're a tech you're doing a job any monkey who can read a simple book can do."
I have made a LOT of $$ from people with your attitude, hehehe. Just keep it up, Christmas is only a few weeks away!
My favorite story is a local realtor who hired her neighbor's 14 yr old to work on a database she had been building for years. Kid lost the whole thing.
And what makes you think techs haven't been to college? Every tech I know has a degree, as well as certifications. Your ignorance is unbecoming. - whereisian, on 10/12/2007, -0/+9The same can be said of car mechanics, ambulance workers, or anything that ends with 'technician' - you could learn it out of a book.
Let's see you look up how to use a defibrillator when you're having a heart attack. Or maybe when you're car breaks down, you'll pull out your magic book and figure out how to fix it so you don't have to pay some mechanic to help you.
Everybody is easily replaceable when there are more people to fill their place. But that's not always the case. Can't get enough nurses around my parts. Good luck finding an honest mechanic. Keep alienating the people who actually do the work and there won't be anyone there to fill their shoes when they tell you to ***** off.
Arrogant twit. Grow up. - datastorageguy, on 10/12/2007, -3/+11"Yes we don't get the recognition and pay we deserve"
Lets face it, there are so many PC tech people out there its ridiculous. The market is completely saturated, hence the low wages. Fixing PCs is nothing more than a stepping stone to move on to bigger and better things.
Thats why the pay is low and so is the recognition. - bobcrotch, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8@Gootdude
Might we ask what you do that is so important? - Flamekebab, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8I've no certification and I manage our company's IT infrastructure without problem. I've seen the people with certification try, jesus they made a mess.
It's not about learning things from a book, it's about knowing how the system works and being able to think about IT problems laterally in order to find a solution.
It's not a step-by-step process in many cases (although you do get the odd routine task like updating programs).
How's the view up there on your high horse? - fanboydcs, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7If your a software / hardware tech, and you have some certs to back you up, you can do consulting and make some serious money.
But you need to be diverse and learn about data recovery, sql, webservers, LDAP..etc, plus it doesnt hurt to know how to set up a professional raid.
Knowing Linux, Windows and Macosx doesnt hurt either... - Flamekebab, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7What about the IT systems of the hospital or the communications systems at the heating company's HQ?
Without the comms systems, it's not easy. - dhughes, on 10/12/2007, -1/+7 Experience in the field can teach you far more than you can learn from a book, both are good but one isn't a replacement for the other.
( and btw it's "bear" not "bare" ) - smhill, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6@Flamekebab
"I've no certification and I manage our company's IT infrastructure without problem. I've seen the people with certification try, jesus they made a mess."
That is why these entry level jobs are so important as a way to find good people. I have seen exactly what you are describing.
Tech skills are not really easily verifiable/measurable without actual observation. The last company I worked at, the head of IT had multiple certifications, a degree in CS and all kinds of training and classes under his belt. He really didn't know ***** about computers. We hired in a girl as a part time tech who had no computer education background, and it was her first job. Entry level, low pay, part-time. However she was a hardcore geek and a freaking genius. Two months later, he was gone and she was in charge. She demonstrated skills that couldn't be show on paper or with a certification. - bobcrotch, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6Yes the only problem with your advice is that you cannot teach these sorts of skills to a person really. The people who will succeed already know what you have said here.
- inactive, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7"I have often seen technicians dive into a book as soon as they hit a problem; these guys almost never become any good."
I have to disagree with this comment, sure ask a question if some1 is handy, have a stab at it if your certain that nothing bad can happen (ie data loss) but failing those 2 jumping onto a book/ google is the best quality I see in computer technicians. Never be afraid to look something up, we all learn somehow.
Its my experience after many years on and off in the field (even done the self employment thing) is that people who balk at a problem are useless. If you give up or simply halt you not worth the minimum wage. Asking some1 every now and then is fine, but running every tiny problem by another technician chews up their valuable time. It also shows your unable to learn by yourself. I find nothing more impressive than when some1 comes to me with a problem that they have researched.
Its a balance of asking when appropiate, researching without dawdling and experimenting when safe. - elnerdo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+5If it's 50 below outside, it's time to move somewhere else.
- Flamekebab, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4A modern company uses IT a lot. It's the backbone to the accounting department, the communications systems and a whole host of other things. If they have problems and there's no one there to fix it, the company loses a lot very quickly.
If our internet connection goes down, or out intranet server kicks the bucket, the scene is not pretty.
I know you won't find the boss running around with the screwdrivers, rescue discs and backups. - moosepile, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Configuring systems, and replacing systems HAS gotten much easier. However I think part of the gyst (sp?) of the article is not the skill level to prep or repair computers, it's the fact that people are so reliant on computers as the tools of their trade - the front-line technician has, in many areas, become:
- underpaid. Yes.
- Under very high pressure to rectify issues NOW. Not now, RIGHT NOW. "Leave it with me for a few hours" is not acceptible anymore.
- On-call 24/7 - copilot, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Heh, nice to see a story that relates to my situation. The only reason I endure the ***** is for the experience. I get to work with hundreds of different hardware and software configurations and one day it will take me out of this ***** and into a job that pays more than crumbs from management/sales table.
- Reddog_x2000, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4@ copilot.
I hear ya. I spent 5 FREAKING YEARS in ***** jobs before I got my current job. I'm talking places that:
1. Demand your super-premium service at your deep discount rate.
2. Demand that you be availble whenever they want, nights, weekends, holidays, whenever.
3. Change schedules at the drop of a hat and expect that you will drop whatever plans you may have in order to accomodate them.
4. May change schedules in a way that demands that you work 9 straight days, but won't even necessarily give you two days off in a row.
5. Schedule so tight that you can't ever take the vacation that you are theoretically given. Your requests are all denied Then, at the end of the year, they take back the time because you didn't use it.
6. Have an endless work supply. The phone practically never stopped ringing.
7. Expect you to take on new responsibilites with no warning or training.
8. Expect you to lie to your customers.
9. Routinely stole commissions from salespeople by changing commission plans in the middle of a pay period.
But, after 5 years of putting up with that *****, I finally ( This Tuesday) got a decent job with (mostly) reasonable demands and respectable pay. So, hang in there. It can get better. - ivachen, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Another type of computer related people that are under appreciated, and often outright forgottened - the operations folks.
I had a brief internship with them. Most operations people were lock up inside the data center so normal users almost never ever going to see them around. And yet they always have to be alert and available 24/7 because they are at the front line against any kind of computer failure to the most mission critical machines of the whole company.
Personally I wouldn't chose to live a life waiting for disasters to happen, but for those who does, I have great respect for them.... Althought partially because if the ***** I wrote fails, they are the first ones to know =PPP - elnerdo, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Here's one thing I don't get. He says always hire people who are experiences, not necessarily the ones with qualifications. Now, don't get me wrong, I'm sure he's right, but if everybody does that, how do new people get experience?
- TheMadCow, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4It would sound like most of the gripes are coming from the Corporate & PC IT positions. I'd be interested to hear it from the Macintosh side, too. Hiring a good Support person inhouse or field is crucial to my business. They are the backbone of a service oriented company. We offer certification, recognition, growth and reasonable pay. On the other hand, I expect either a willingness to learn or excellent people skills, manners and good personal hygene. After all, we're there to serve, so the egos get parked at the door. It becomes readily apparent who excels, the clients start "requiring" them to service them. On the other hand, I know some excellent support guys who just aren't allowed to interact with customers. You keep them in the back - doing what the prefer doing best - interacting with computers.
As other posters have stated, you really have to love what you do. You do this because you'd do it anyway. The trick is finding that match with a company that shares that goal with you and will pay you a fair wage with opportunity for growth. - mabhatter, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4yeah, but computer techs tend to fall in the category as plumbers... while the tech may make low wages, the company employing them often charges $25+ per hour which most people thing is excessive. So when their computer breaks and they have to pay "high" prices, they feel the same as when they have to pay a "low skilled" plumber $50 per hour to stop the S*** dumping on their floor!
- nofxjunkee, on 10/12/2007, -7/+11translation out of boredom;
"01101100 01101111 01101100 00101100
01101110 00110000 00110000 01100010 01110011"
lol,
n00bs
On the plus side I found a handy macro for C that converts 01101101 to the proper integer so you can use B8(01101101) as a binary literal... cool. - adml_shake, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I don't know, most of the kids in some of the Cisco classes i'm taking at the local college don't seem to have any problems figuring this out. Theres a few that think they are going to get thier CCNA's, A+, and degree and be making 60 grand right out the door. But I'd say that they are the minority, at least where i'm at.
- scpen20, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4I was in phone tech support for two years, once for sony computer and then for Adelphia cable Internet tech support, then I went to field support, doing contract jobs for two years, doing deployments, refreshes, installs, etc. then I though I had a gig with Dell through banctec doing home warranty work I lasted three months, they paid $25 a call (trip) they didn't pay for milage or cell phone usage (which I had to use to check in/out and to order new supplies if needed) sometimes I only got three calls but were all separated long distances, I was actually losing money, and hearing the customers (in person) complaining about the people in India when the call tech support. when I quit that, the contract jobs were rare, sometimes three month gaps. So I took a job with the TSA as a screener for something steady in a different state, at the sametime taking some tech classes at a online university keeping up my skills. Now I had my resume professionally done and ready to get back in the IT job search again. The key whatever you do, keep up on your skills.
- theendcrazyeye, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Iam in the same position right now and seriously looking for something better. But the experience is the key, that what i keep telling myself so as to endure till i get a new position.
- Precision, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3yeah and now we got sata drives and no more pata master-slave jumper configuration confusion... it's getting easier than before for sure..
- eexlebots, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3You're the kind of jerk I worked under for a while; huge god complex and a big mouth, but in the end utterly incompetent and fired in pretty much the most humiliating fashion possible.
- bobcrotch, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Really great stuff, I've been doing this for almost 10 years now and this man has hit it right on.
Crossing my fingers my new job works out =) - ritec, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Working in the trenches of IT, that is, being the "tech guy" or as my manager likes to call me "IT head" (I hate it), is 50% about people skills. You have to know how to treat your "customers" and how to solve their problems fast. One of the worst things you can do is be pretentious about your knowledge, since one day they could be helping you.
So try to be friendly next time the password for the email is not working because CAPS lock is on. ; ) - Chompy, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5Don't forget the old "Control+" to get the font size up. Yeesh what was that thing published in, 6 point?
- SmacNhawaii, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I was an Ag. Tech for USDA (24 yrs). In '84, we started getting computers and I was picked to work on / with them. I taught users programs, set up computers, reinstalled OS's, and, in general, provided the tech interface. I went on to set up hubs, wired four 2-story buildings for fiber, built servers. With over 80 staff, I was very busy. Too busy to take classes. All the learning I did was OJT. In '97, management decided to advertise the position. I was told that I could not apply due to no certifications. The job was sent in and classified as a $60K a year pay class. They canned the position and gave it to a office clerk. In the meantime, I retired - gratefully.
- guy.gregory, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3"You used to have to configure your ip address, sub-net, & DNS. None of these things matter much these days."
They matter quite a lot where I work... - xeomage, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3I started my first hardware tech job about ten years ago making $5 an hour. I did PC assembly, software installs, cleaning, on-site service, troubleshooting, repair, sales, you name it. I got a second job loading trucks for UPS, making more money there than at my tech job. Even though I was getting paid less to fix and build systems than to load trucks, guess which one wound up paying off? You've got to start somewhere.
Yeah, the pay sucks and there's little respect, but that's the job that lead to the consulting job that lead to desktop tech, that lead to senior desktop tech, that lead to a promotion to being an IT project manager, setting software standards, scripting, repackaging and delivering software to thousands of computers, and making a respectable wage doing it. I don't think for a moment that this is the last stop, either. So put up with the crappy customers, cheap managers, and dust-filled boxen. If you're good at it and sieze opportunities that come along, it's worth it. -
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