...but not at the expense of your responsibilities here at the office.
Sounded simple enough, if they needed help and I wasn't busy, then help out. Seemed like something I could get behind.
Until I found out he said it but didn't really mean it.
One day around lunch I was sitting and reading about WORM technology, someone thought it was the new thing to sell with our DMS (which I nicknamed DAMNS) for archiving old files. So I sit in a chair, swinging back and forth reading about how WORM technology is basically the same as CDR technology, but with more media options and better retention.
Rep: Hey, my name is Tim, I was told you are pretty good with networks.
Me: Yep, nice to meet you. What do you need help with?
Rep: I have a site that needs some cable trouble shooting done, well, connection trouble shooting done. It's 10base-t and they really are upset that we can't fix it, we meaning me. I was told you might have some ideas.
Me: Cat 3?
Rep: Yep, they just ran new cabling to the computers, but it's for shit, slow speed and connection drops.
Me: They were all text based unix dummies and they are starting to use more windows right?
Rep: Yes, they got the new (finger quote) GUI software and it's not doing to well there, but it works great in the other sites.
Me: Well, what did you need from me?
Rep: Can you run out to the site with me and take a look at the setup?
Me: I might, let me ask the boss.
But the boss was out, and I can't decide if reading for a presentation in 4 days counts as too busy to help.
Me: How far is it to the site?
Rep: 25 minutes max.
We head out to the site, it's about 20 minutes away, but he was driving a bit over the speed limit. We get in the building and he has to talk to everyone before we get back to the problem computer. It's a register kiosk over on the far side of the building. I look at it's running fine, but they say its great until the get busy.
I look at the setup and nothing screams look at me, so I ask the Rep about the cable. He flops down and points up under the counter. It runs down and is taped to the bottom of the counter, these counters have various doors, drawers, some of them have chiller bays and there are two small refrigerators with glass doors, rows and rows of milk, plain and chocolate. I ask for a chocolate and get one, it's nice reminds me of elementary school milk.
The chiller bays are off, the refrigerators are humming along, and it only messes up when they are busy.
Me: Can we turn everything on like when it's busy?
Worker: Sure, if it will help fix this, and she goes over to a wall and starts flipping switches.
One of the chillers has a bad compressor, I can feel it spinning up.
Me: Was the cable always taped to the bottom of this counter?
Rep: No, it should be run up that post and over across the ceiling.
Me: It didn't work at all with the up cable, and works like crap when they are serving with the taped cable?
Rep: Pretty much, that mean something?
Me: Yeah, CAT3 is unshielded, you're getting EM off something in one of the chiller bat compressors, I bet it the one vibrating, might be both in tandem tho.
Rep: Argh, so she will have to wait til they can run another cable?
Me: Yeah, unless she has some aluminum foil and more tape...
We wrap the CAT3 in foil and tape it to the floor, then bid our farewells. He is very animated on the way back, saying he has other stuff I could help with, if that fixed the problem.
Me: Oh that was a band-aid fix, their guys still need to run a new cable.
Rep: They will, it might not be til next year tho, not the swiftest of support.
He drops me off and I head in the building, and catch one of the worst chewing outs that I have ever received that didn't involve a switch.
My boss was in a fury, he was slinging fingers and even spitting a little about me disappearing for 2 hours.
Me: It was only 1.5 hours, and I was only doing what I was told.
Boss: Who told you to leave for 2 hours?
Me: 1.5, you told me to help anyone I could help as long as it didn't affect my work.
Boss: Yes, I vaguely remember telling you that....
Me: I was helping Tim out with a network issue.
Boss: Tim? Who is Tim? The FIELD REP TIM? (yep those last three words were at a yell)
Me: Yeah, he was having trouble with a network problem at a site, you said help so I helped.
He sat fuming for the longest time, then he finally let me leave with an amendment.
Boss: You help anyone IN THIS BUILDING, if you leave like that again without letting me know you don't worry about coming back. Anyone in this building, if it is something in the parking lot outside this building you tell me first or you do not go out the door.
Me: Yes sir.
I went back to my desk and started reading about WORM drives again.
Submitted October 06, 2014 at 09:00AM by GonzoMojo http://ift.tt/1vEnrNi talesfromtechsupport
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