PSEUDO-TECHS

[mikadonovan]

I have to say, it justs gripes my ass when an individual posts on technical discussion when it is PAINFULLY obvious that they are not a tech. Even though they may list themselves in their profile as being one, it only takes one or two posts to reveal their lack of knowledge of even basic machine repair.

I suppose I should not take it so personal, but I use this site for help, and I GIVE help whenever I can. I just don't like people trying to blow smoke up my ass.

Now that I've vented that, I feel much better.

[Kopyrtek]

I have to agree with you on this issue.But have to add one more...its when the person you are trying to help is ACTUALLY a tech.They dont seem to know anything about the machine(and yes,i have worked on copiers i am not trained on) but that is not the same issue.Some dont want to read manuals or pull out the computer to find an answer...just want someone else to fix the problem for them!

[fixthecopier]

I love it when a junior tech ask me a question and when the answer seems to involve work, they go around and ask other people until someone gives them an easy answer. Of course the easy answer never works.

[TheOwl]

Who cares if posters on this forum aren't techs? I know I don't, but yes, it annoys the hell out of me as well when people pretend they are.

Hopefully we can find a way to put this out to everyone just to say be honest. That way we can provide better help and not assume that the obvious things have already been done.

As for juniour techs, my answers are always the same. "What does the service manual say" or "Have you checked the bulletins"? Sometimes you can't help someone that won't help themselves.

[kyoceradude]

Don't forget to throw in "Is the machine firmware up to the current level"? It's an automatic on Kyocera Products. Update the firmware and format the HDD, then ask me a question about a problem.

[Harry]

All My Agrees to Mst. Donavan!
Ive sombody Knows nothing about copyrs is much more work to explain and help This must be the reason this pseudo techs have to be honest with thereself and the rest of the world

[schooltech]

I tend to agree with TheOwl, in that I don't think it really matters if they are or they are not a tech; what matters is that they are asking a question, and as long as they are honest then we seem to be more inclined to help them.

Many times I'll try to help on a machine that I don't know too well (and I say it right up front), but sometimes it's more a matter of getting someone to look at the problem more objectively, and that can be done without having specific knowledge of the equipment, as it's more about concepts and thinking clearly.

If you're not a tech, then say it in your post, I don't think it really matters.

Yes, you can tell after a post or two that HOW they are approaching the problem or HOW they ask the question can be a pretty obvious sign of their particular skill set.

[blackcat4866]

My experience with helping other techs is similar to fixthecopier's. If my suggestion sounds like too much work, they'll just keep asking others until they get a fix that sounds easy.

The next most common is the tech that already has decided what he is going to do, and wants me to agree with him. If I don't agree, they'll go to great lengths to convince me. If I still don't agree, they will get upset and say that I'm not listening to them. (Who's not listening?)

On the forums its a little different. For some techs, a suggestion is not enough. They need to know how many turns of the screwdriver.

Or jamming problems: "No, I don't know the jam code. Does that matter?" Yes!

Or error codes: "It's either a C0840 or a E8400 or maybe a U4008, I think..." Well, which is it?

=^..^=

[Mr Spock]

Can someone give me the step by step instructions for changing a hard drive on a Toshiba 3500c????
I am a computer guy and would like to know if it is windows or unix also....

[mascan42]

I seriously don't care if a junior tech asks a dumb question, because I remember asking my share of forehead-smackers back in the day. What pisses me off more is the ones who don't ask until they've already screwed the machine up worse than when they got there.

We used to have one guy that would constantly put one-way gears in backwards and then leave it for someone else to fix when he couldn't figure out what was wrong. He must have been somebody's cousin or something, because he kept his job for five years despite never learning how to fix a copier properly in all that time. He finally got caught doing networking jobs off the books and pocketing the money himself.

[ToshibaTech]

Only thing that bugs me is when you get the feeling that the first thing someone has done is ask you what you think about the problem... can't you do anything on your own or do you share my brain? And also when you give good advice and get "no, I don't think that's what it is" in response to your advice.... well don't ask for it!

I guess that's two things that bug me, oh well l

The hard drive on a 3500c comes out of the front of the machine. Through the toner slot, it's easy... You can install the copy of VxWorks off your microwave or toaster it's all the same.

[Mr Spock]

The hard drive on a 3500c comes out of the front of the machine. Through the toner slot, it's easy... You can install the copy of VxWorks off your microwave or toaster it's all the same.

Thanks for the info! Another tech pm'd me and said it comes out the finisher and I could not find it.... Where can I find vxworks I have the microwave ready but no copy of this os????

[Vista Tech]

I hate it when salesmen try and be techs. Just cuz they can read a damn sales brochure doesn't mean that the person is qualified to fix the machine. Then they blame it on me for them breaking the machine and us having to come out of pocket for parts!

Sometimes I wish I could have never gone into this field and continued to be a stupid end user and blame everything on the stupid machine (which I've never done). If you really sit back and look at it the majority of our calls (at least 75% of mine) are end user error.

[fixthecopier]

When it is their fault, but they want a new machine because it is always broke, try this line... "A new copier will not make the people using it any smarter than they already are"

I have had great success with that one.

[schooltech]

Vista Tech brought up something that a sales person told a customer once. They had a 2045 that was just installed and the adf wasn't staying up. The sales person told the customer, "I'll have one of my guys out and he'll just tighten up the screw." WTF? Needless to say, he didn't tell anyone back at the office, and it still ended up being a complete cluster for weeks to follow.

It would be nice if they just do what they are being "paid" to do, and we'll just keep the customers happy for the next three-five years over the lease contract.