computer knowledge

bdlanier · 10-07-2013

i have been tech for twenty plus years, i however have very little computer knowledge. the company i am curently working for is pushing me to become more computer savy. i was wondering how many other techs are strickly copier repair and very little if any computer work as am i?

**Akitu** · 10-07-2013

I happen to be of a younger generation, been building computers since I was 10 years old. It's ingrained in me by nature, I live around them, breathe them, eat ROM chips for breakfast and pass faulty HDDs by evening.

In the line of work however, my computer interaction is limited mostly to driver installations and scan to email/folder/desktop setups. If requested of me to be doing any router work or networking setup, there's a rather hefty hourly fee and a liability waiver my customers sign stating that any faults that occur after I leave are not a fault of my own doing.

It covers all the bases and leaves me free of worrying about the old "you were in here and did X, and now W, Y and Z don't work!" two weeks after I've already left and everything was running smoothly.

Computers aren't for everyone, they're a bit of a hassle to learn, but once you get the hang of it and learn the art of Google-fu, there's very little computer problems you can't learn to solve without a bit of digging. I would compare it to the old analog techs having to learn some of the digital age equipment, it's just different is all.

**emujo** · 10-07-2013

How would you like to be the customer that is told "sorry, I only fix mechanical issues, I have to send out the networking guy"? I'm not saying you have to be an IT expert to do our job, but if you use your laptop for solitare and checking your email only then you need to get up to speed. You need to have a good handle on how networks function, how the MFP interfaces when printing and scanning, and what to do when they stop printing/scanning. All the techs at my company must be able to connect their laptops to the MFP and test print/scan functionality, and assist the customer in troubleshooting the failure point. I'm not saying they must correct the issue, but they must be able to point out that, for instance, the scans are failing due to a login error, or they are printing to the incorrect IP address ect..Soon, all of our techs will have to install and configure advanced scanning software. We have techs that will get involved at a higher level if needed. Most companies offer training to get you where you need to be, but you can also do it on your own through online or physical classrooms. Catch up or be left behind (hopefully with some kind of severance package) Emujo

**Eric1968** · 10-07-2013

Since all machines are multifunctionals these days, I think it's essential to have some network knowledge. I don't think it's neccessary to become a network administrator, but some basic knowledge of networking is very important to do the work properly. You just can't install a multifunctial and then telling the customer : "Here are the DVD's that come with the machine, and have fun setting up printing and scanning!". That just doesn't work these days. At my company we install drivers and set up scanning if the customer doesn't have a network administrator, and for the more complex tasks like setting up document management software we hire our own network administrator to do the job.

If I were you I would take every course your boss if offering you. I even think that techs that only service the machine are out of work pretty soon.

**banginbishop** · 10-07-2013

there are 2 sides to this. im not trained on networking etc but I have built my own pc and trouble shooted the blue screen of death etc. My old company had its own IT and a separate IT contract so we were advised to inform the customer of any IT issues to speak to their IT first and if they still had a problem then we would send out our IT as it was chargeable - hence why we never touched IT issues.

My new company does trouble shoot IT issues via the engineer and I will be sent on a course but its not always black and white. I'm always one for learning as it helps both parties to work together.

innovision237 · 10-07-2013

Originally Posted by bdlanier

i have been tech for twenty plus years, i however have very little computer knowledge. the company i am curently working for is pushing me to become more computer savy. i was wondering how many other techs are strickly copier repair and very little if any computer work as am i?

I have been a tech for 30 years and I have kept up with the times. I have extensive computer knowledge as well as networking knowledge, all learned on the job. I have taken advantage of many networking training offerings by the various manufacturers that we represent. I do, however have one tech who started the same time as I did and who has not kept up to date. His value to our company has taken a hit as a result. I have seen his confidence level drop significantly as well, thus is attitude has also become an issue. This tech refuses to learn the skills that are required of him and it becomes harder to justify keeping him as the world moves on without him. My advice is for you to face your fears and get on track or hope that Wal-mart in your area is hiring, because this industry has no need for old guys like myself unless they have kept up with the pace. I sincerely hope that you will follow through.

**Eric1968** · 10-07-2013

Originally Posted by innovision237

I have been a tech for 30 years and I have kept up with the times. I have extensive computer knowledge as well as networking knowledge, all learned on the job. I have taken advantage of many networking training offerings by the various manufacturers that we represent. I do, however have one tech who started the same time as I did and who has not kept up to date. His value to our company has taken a hit as a result. I have seen his confidence level drop significantly as well, thus is attitude has also become an issue. This tech refuses to learn the skills that are required of him and it becomes harder to justify keeping him as the world moves on without him. My advice is for you to face your fears and get on track or hope that Wal-mart in your area is hiring, because this industry has no need for old guys like myself unless they have kept up with the pace. I sincerely hope that you will follow through.

Agreed, I've started with MS-DOS (with the big 5 1/4 floppy's) in the older days at school and when I started working my boss always gave me the chance to keep up with the latest developments. If you don't keep up, you're out of business...

**Kidaver** · 10-07-2013

We delivered a machine last week to a school and I went in to the IT's dept room and lo and behold they actually still had a working Apple IIe..I spent a few years of my life fixing those things....Apple supported them for many years after they could have stopped....my senior year in high school I worked part time with my school district's IT...mostly Macintosh comps and printers, and making, running, punching down Cat 5 cable...I started full time with them after I graduated and worked for them several years.....I've worked on industrial line printers, laser printer, dot matrix printers, and thermal printers...I'd say I work on inkjet printers but we all know the universal fix for inkjets is to just buy a new one...I've stayed up on OS on the windows side more than the Mac but I can get around on a Mac if need be...been trained to fix biomedical equipment as well....and all those years of learning all of that stuff.....I'm still learning stuff and will learn lots of new stuff....if a customer asks me something and I don't know the answer I will go and find the answer even if I need to or not...I always enjoy learning new things...and it looks good to the boss too if you do this....makes them want to keep you around...