Supporting People & Their Tech

I support technology, and I have done for a long time. This does have its benefits but more often than not, it makes you the repository for everything computer and Internet related. Now this is of course fine provided that the tech does what it's supposed to. Unfortunately too much of it is designed to go wrong. The upside is that it keeps people like me busy - not than I earn a penny from it - and countless IT engineers charging huge amounts per hour to resolve faults easily understood by them but perplexing for the average user. There is good money to be made from it, but none of it comes my way.
Of all the forms of support, help by phone has to be the worst. You are blind and are expecting the person at the other end to see what you need them to. This seldom ever works and is a constant source of frustration. I know only too well how difficult it is to talk someone through reconnecting their WIFI or installing a new device. It is painful and made all the worse as the pain has to be suppressed for the length of the call and no sign given of your frustration with the person at the other end. I have years of practise to rely on and I think I do it quite well.
The advances in technology over the last 10-20 years have been fantastic. We are able to do things now that could only have been dreamt of then. What we haven't done so well is the user help side of things. When a device disconnects itself from a network, the process for reconnecting it is not easy. It should be - especially for the user. For me, the process is relatively straight forward and something I can normally do within a few minutes. I've learnt to spot the signs and indicators. For the user, there really isn't much to help them and certainly nothing that will resolve the fault. The Help System is useless, even in the latest versions of Windows often stating the 'bleedin' obvious', things like 'is it plugged in?' or 'have you installed the correct driver?'. What's needed is inbuilt fault resolution, the ability for a device such as a WIFI adapter to work out what's wrong for itself and actually attempt to apply a fix. I've singled out WIFI as this is probably the most common source of faults nowadays and certainly one that I constantly find myself fixing.
I know that WIFI works and works very well if it setup correctly and not tampered with. I have two wireless networks - one I use for gaming and media, the other I use for Internet browsing and file sharing. This setup works very well. It is stable and very seldom ever causes me problems. The hardware isn't particularly new, I've had it for several years. It isn't the best and certainly not the most expensive, but it does the job.
Most of what I hear when I am asked to fix problems is 'it was working fine yesterday' or 'it started snowing and it stopped working'. The inference that the weather is in some way to blame for the problem is wrong, but it is something that on occasion I've been known to go along with, in the interests of my own sanity.
It is hugely frustrating to me when something I've spent time designing or installing suddenly goes wrong and stops working as it should. It's even worse when having spent half-an-hour on the phone trying to resolve a problem, the fault persists.I hate leaving things like this but having exhausted every telephone skill, I have little option. A visit is now required. I know that within just a few minutes, I will have it working again. It always happens. The shock and surprise etched into the face of the user is something I've grown used to. It's as if I've worked some kind of magic. In almost all cases, I have done exactly what I had described over the phone. I am reluctant to claim any special powers or to suggest ignorance on the part of the user, and I will normally just put it down to gremlins or simply admit that I'm at a loss to explain what had gone wrong. Perhaps the weather at the time had caused it to fail.
I grit my teeth so much that they are now in a terrible state. I find myself doing it more and more, the older I get. It simply isn't worth the hassle to do otherwise. I could explain how it is that I managed to reconnect the laptop to the wireless network in under a minute, but I choose not to. I instead accept explanation from the user as fact and show sympathy that their efforts were in vain.
And then there are those who claim to know far more than you. They confidently boast that they have bought a new drive for their modem or carried out an upgrade of the processor. These people can never be argued with, I know this from experience. I've tried and failed. When it's family members, you have no chance. Again I choose just to go along with them, my sanity intact.
Sometimes I wish they would call on someone else, but I just know that isn't going to happen...

Saving My Tomatoes & Providing Support

I decided to remove the remaining tomatoes from my outdoor plant. Apparently the temperature is set to drop to just above freezing by the end of the week and it's unlikely they will survive in the open. I managed to collect a punnet's worth, so not bad at all.

While I was picking, I was joined by a large Red Admiral butterfly. It looked stunningly beautiful and was a welcome late visitor to the garden and a sign that we're not yet fully in the grip of winter. It lingered long enough for me to take a snap as it sat in the sunshine.

I have mentioned in previous posts my fondness for a You Tube channel, 'Glen1040'. I really enjoyed his videos and I was fascinated by his efforts at self-sufficiency. I notice that his channel has now been closed and I have been unable to discover where he has gone. It's really quite sad and I worry whether something has befallen him.
My watermelons are now the size of small lemons and growing fast. I've had to provide some support for them and being quite high on the plant, I have decided to use tights as suggested previously. For one, I've created a hammock of sorts and for the other, I've supported in from the roof of the conservatory. All very Heath Robinson but it seems to be doing the job.

There will be a degree of despondency from me over the coming weeks as things begin to get difficult. We are lucky to have an insurance policy which protects our mortgage payments, but this claim period will end in February next year. By that time, I need to have found suitable employment and be able to cover the payments. If this doesn't happen then, frankly, the worst will happen. I must admit to trying not to think about it too much. Depression is one of those things that can be triggered very easily and I really don't want to suffer another bout. But as the weeks pass, I (we) will need to start thinking seriously about what we're going to do. I've always said that I never want to return to an IT career, but it is what I know and as I am still unable to complete and achieve my full PCV license due to lack of funds, it may be my only option.
That is the stark reality at the moment...

Brushing-up my French

I have been brushing up my French over the last few days. It's actually a language I like very much and studied it at school many years ago. I do with I paid more attention though. It was one of the few subjects I really enjoyed and to this day, I have retained a few words and phrases. The course I am learning with is from Michel Thomas. It is different to other courses as you are actually the third student - there are two others on the CD and they are learning also, making mistakes so you don't feel you're the only one failing. The system actually works and very well. I have already learnt quite a lot and more importantly, I've retained what I've learnt. One day, I'd really like to visit France again (last time was in 1989) and spend some proper time there. I have suggetsed to my wife that we move there when we retire...

I've heard absolutely nothing from Stagecoach despite two letters, one of them to their head office. I'm convinced now that they don't care and my respect for them has all but disappeared.
I haven't completely given up on my wish to have a PCV career but I am being forced to look for IT-related jobs. I was turned down for the job at the local schoool though I notice they haven't found anyone as their vacancy has been extended. I did though find a vacancy at a components company at Wisbech. I had no idea they existed but a little research threw up the fact that they are one of the UK's largest component suppliers. Quite how I hadn't heard of them I don't know. It just goes to show what's on your doorstep sometimes.
So I've applied for the position of IT Technician looking after the computers and network at their offices. I hope to hear something in the enxt few days. Even if it's a polite 'no thank you' then I still have what's needed for my mortgage insurers to pay out.

I've been able to harvest a few tomatoes which I'm quite pleased about. They taste wonderful - sweet and juicy. There are many more still attached waiting to ripen and I hope that they weather allows for them to turn red before the frosts set in. We are forecast cold temperatures, ice and snow in the coming weeks.

I have been self-pollinating my watermelon plant. The female flowers have a round ovary just beneath the flower and I have been pollinating them by removing the male flowers and bringing the stamen into contact with them. If successful then the ovaries should begin to elongate after a week or so and develop into a water melon. Again I'm hoping the weather doesn't turn too cold as this may affect their growth.





My parents are decorating at the moment. They're currently working on the kitchen and have chosen a greeny-blue colour which frankly I think resembles that of a public convenience. But hey ho I don't have to live there. I visited this morning and was relocated to the front dining room, comfortable and with nice views.
They have a friend coming to visit on the 20th from London, a good friend of the family hence the panic to get everything redecorated in time. I know my father would rather be tinkering in his garden. At 72, he's really too old to be painting ceilings and walls. Well that's my view.
While I sat there with my breakfast, I recorded these images for posterity and it made me realise how we take for granted our location and what's around us.

It struck me that I hadn't really noticed how eleborate the fireplace is...

The view as I sat eating my breakfast and the garden still full of colour...

The view from the front looking out on an almost unspoilt view across the fields toward the Wash...

Besides my French language course, I've been listening to a range of different music types. Music for me is very much like sunshine and has similar effects. It is food for the mind and soul and can alter the way I feel or the way I think. So, I've been feeding my ears with the likes of Rick Wakeman's Myths and Legends of King Arthur how I ever missed this I don't know), Eurovision winning ditties, Gheorghe Zamfir, music from the Soong Sisters and anything else that pushes the right button. I've also added to my already immense MP3 audio book collection - lots of new mysteries and ghost stories, perfect as we approach Hallowe'en.
 Which reminds me, I must ask my father to provide a pumpkin for my little man. I've convinced him we need one so we can scarte away the witches...