This tech support pilot fish already has experience with the
user who's currently on the line.
"She's a particularly obnoxious client who struggled in the past to
comprehend the difference between her monitor (which clearly was
her
computer) and the base machine (obviously her hard drive) --
terminology that all support staff clearly need to learn," fish
says.
Today the problem is that the keyboard won't clear the PC's screen
saver, so the computer can't be used.
"All the usual methods were tried," says fish. "Moving the mouse.
Clicking with the mouse. Hitting the Enter key. Even trying the
Ctrl-Alt-Delete combination, which, I might point out, requires an
enormous amount of coordination and skill to perform from verbal
instructions. All to no avail.
"So when all else fails, press the reset switch on the hard drive
-- difficult to describe where to find over the phone, but luckily
this is a known button."
Unfortunately, even pressing reset doesn't help. The PC appears to
be locked up solidly -- but with the screen saver still
running.
Fish goes back to square one. Please explain again, for the second
time, exactly what the problem is, he tells the user.
"The screen saver is staying up and the mouse and keyboard do not
work," user says.
Most problems are the result of a change, fish thinks -- usually a
change made by the user. Is there anything different about the
computer today from the way it worked yesterday? he asks.
"Yes," she says. "The screen saver is different."
How is it different?
"It has a message that says 'Check Signal.' "
Problem solved! fish tells user. That means the base machine -- the
hard drive -- is not switched on.
"The computer must be on," she replies. "Otherwise the screen saver
would not be working!"
