Random Thoughts

Who Shot Sam? · Post by **Who Shot Sam?** » Wed Aug 24, 2005 2:14 pm

El Vez wrote:
Who Shot Sam? wrote:I work with one of the most incompetent people on Earth.

Grrrr.
Look, I'm sorry I forgot to change the toner cartridge out but is this really necessary?

It was more like this (regarding an article that she was supposed to have sent to a trade publication on behalf of a client - months ago):

"I'm looking in my e-mail, and I don't have any record of receiving it from you. Maybe you forgot to send it."

"No, I have it right here in my archive, along with your response mentioning that you would send it along to the editor. I can send it to you if you'd like."

"It sounds like you're trying to blame me."

"Maybe that's because it's your fault."

Awkward silence...

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Wed Aug 24, 2005 2:17 pm

Oh yeah, I've definitely busted vendors on stuff like that. Whenever they try to say they have no record of something, I just quote back who I spoke with, what time I spoke with them, and what they said. Crap like that is so very annoying, WSS, and I'm sorry you're having to put up with it.

Post by **BlueChair** » Wed Aug 24, 2005 2:37 pm

My favourite is people who are like "I tried to call you!", despite the fact that you've been near the phone and if not, at least have call display.

Who Shot Sam? · Post by **Who Shot Sam?** » Wed Aug 24, 2005 2:51 pm

BlueChair wrote:My favourite is people who are like "I tried to call you!", despite the fact that you've been near the phone and if not, at least have call display.

Ah, the phantom call! It used to work before people had caller ID and voicemail. Now it's a tactic mostly employed by the dinosaurs of the business world - and people who think you're very naive.

miss buenos aires · Post by **miss buenos aires** » Wed Aug 24, 2005 3:12 pm

But now that we have cell phones (some of us exclusively), there's always, "It said Network busy!" "I didn't have any bars!" "I dropped my phone and my battery drained completely!" "My phone didn't ring, and I didn't even get your message until 5 minutes ago!"

When they finally work out all the kinks, we'll look back fondly on the days of limitless excuses...

Mr. Average · Post by **Mr. Average** » Wed Aug 24, 2005 3:16 pm

The latest email blame target is anti-spyware and anti-spam software that scours a network and captures messages that meet a certain criteria for high risk: messages with attachments, especially executables (.exe) or html (websites), messages with bad words (aka "Boobie") etc. Sometimes, it seems to grab messages arbitrarily, just because it doesn't like the way they look.

I often hear " I sent that email a week ago...You didn't get it? Well, it must have been filtered by your Spyware software. Check with your administrator, but just to be kind, I will send it again."

I always ask that they simply retrieve the sent item from their sent box, but I find it amazing how diligent people are in keeping their SentBox empty, and how these same people seem to be the ones who send me emails that I never receive.

When you get the email and it isn't a resend, but it is dated today (or within 24 hours), then chances are slim that they ever sent it to you to start with.

While it is legitimate that some spyware and antispam programs will glean perfectly legitimate messages and quarantine them, it should be an easy exercise to determine if this has happened. This is USUALLY done through an automated message from the antispyware software that alerts you to the fact that messages have been held.

alexv · Post by **alexv** » Wed Aug 24, 2005 3:35 pm

The Sent Items and Cabinet features are two of the great workplace innovations on earth. I have 9,730 sent items saved (and that does not include my archived sent items), and they save my ass on a daily basis.

Who Shot Sam? · Post by **Who Shot Sam?** » Wed Aug 24, 2005 3:49 pm

alexv wrote:Cabinet features

Is that a Windows thing? I go through my sent items once a year and clean out anything older than a year. Any items I think I might need I archive separately. The work colleague I mentioned is, I think it's fair to say, technologically illiterate, which makes her very inefficient.

little martinet · Post by **little martinet** » Wed Aug 24, 2005 9:13 pm

after working for a big corp. for 3 years in IT and now having returned to university I have come to expect way too much from professors...like actually replying to emails, and hmmm....how about not taking a week off in the middle of our course? I'm beginning to think being a prof can be a pretty sweet job actually!

It's funny, half of them can barely use powerpoint but insist on using it to lecture...then they think I'm an absolute genius when I tell them to hit 'p' to go back a slide. One day the prof was gonna make the whole class move to another room because the mouse didn't work on the PC...I think I blew her mind when I could open her ppt presentation <i>without</i> using a mouse!

...and another thing (while I'm on this rant)! I think powerpoint slides, when used correctly, are alright, but it's been my experience that they just make profs lazy...they just stand there and read directly off the slides and don't actually <i>lecture</i> anymore, know what I mean?

after reading this post I feel like a big nerd that my 17-yr old former self would hate...sigh...

alexv · Post by **alexv** » Wed Aug 24, 2005 9:41 pm

WSS, the cabinet feature is the equivalent of Sent Items, but is used to save items sent to you. It's just an electronic filing cabinet that is searchable through the Tools function.

Who Shot Sam? · Post by **Who Shot Sam?** » Wed Aug 24, 2005 9:46 pm

alexv wrote:WSS, the cabinet feature is the equivalent of Sent Items, but is used to save items sent to you. It's just an electronic filing cabinet that is searchable through the Tools function.

Ah, I see. Haven't used Windows in a while.

mood swung · Post by **mood swung** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 7:48 am

I delete all my mail ASAP - leave no evidence!

bobster · Post by **bobster** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 12:41 pm

PlaythingOrPet wrote:Californian wine makes me want to smoke old man cigarettes.

Being a Californian and all, this has me wondering. I'm no oenophile, but we have a wine glut ongoing (you can by Charles Porter wine, which is fairly drinkable, for $1.99 at Trader Joe's, which has earned it the sobriquet, "two buck Chuck").

And what's an old man cigarette? I know old man cigars (U.S. brands would be White Owl and Dutch Masters, both smoked by long-dead elder relatives of mine) but not the cigs.

mood swung · Post by **mood swung** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 2:43 pm

I found one of these on my tomato plant. I made the mr. kill it.

then I found out I shouldn't have. it's being parasitized (not sure if that's a word, but you know what I mean) by wasp eggs - well, I don't really want wasps either, so I'm NOT SORRY one bit.

selfmademug · Post by **selfmademug** » Thu Aug 25, 2005 2:47 pm

Well, I think you saved it from the fate of being eaten alive from the inside out by larval wasps. I'd say that's a karma point in your favor...

selfmademug · Post by **selfmademug** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 7:56 am

Here goes nothin'..... ulp

Post by **spooky girlfriend** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 8:04 am

Summer colds suck. Worse than I thought they did 2 days ago.

verbal gymnastics · Post by **verbal gymnastics** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 9:08 am

mood swung wrote:I delete all my mail ASAP - leave no evidence!

Phew - does that mean that Mr MDM doesn't know about us?

selfmademug · Post by **selfmademug** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 9:11 am

Spooky, I hope you feel better very soon. The cold I have had really knocked me off my feet for about 5 days solid. I still have it, but it's tolerable now.

mood swung · Post by **mood swung** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 9:32 am

Phew - does that mean that Mr MDM doesn't know about us?

if you knew Mr. MDM, you'd know that he has 2 things to be proud of: 1) he doesn't know HOW to turn on a computer and 2) he's never bought bottled water. It's become his credo, bless his heart.

my throat feels scratchy. can this cold virus spread thru internet contact? nah, it's just the ragweed.

Post by **spooky girlfriend** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 9:36 am

Moody, I love you dearly and would never spread this crud - in person OR on the net. I hope you don't have what I have.

Thanks for the kind words, Mug. It just seems unfair to be so sick when it's so nice outside.

El Vez · Post by **El Vez** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 9:45 am

Jon Stewart's Daily Show interview with Christopher Hitchens was the best five minutes of television I've seen all week. How sad is it when a late night show on Comedy Central is our best chance to see anything like a real adult conversation about what's going on in our world.

Otis Westinghouse · Post by **Otis Westinghouse** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 6:08 pm

Looks like it's now been spread across the pond (here's looking at you, 'Boo!). I too am suffering a summer cold. Mind you, with the weather we've been having of late, I'm surprised there isn't a pneumonia epidemic on the loose.

selfmademug · Post by **selfmademug** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 7:46 pm

selfmademug wrote:Here goes nothin'..... ulp

Update to random thought: well, it was a really nice nothin', but nothin' nonetheless. I know you've all been on the edge of your respective seats...

RedShoes · Post by **RedShoes** » Fri Aug 26, 2005 8:47 pm

I generally think it's a bad sign when your vet tells you "Well THAT doesn't look good" and tells you that they've never had a cat "react quite like this" after being spayed.

We've been to the vet three times this week.