Adventures In Retail (Just Smart Enough)

Been a while.  I have been working on a few posts over the last few months but I just have not found the right way to finish up the more serious posts.  So today I want to venture into a different series of posts all centered around the technical side of my life.  So here is the question of the day.

In a retail environment it is better to be a PC Genius; or a PC Idiot?

Now it seems like there is an obvious answer here.  You want to be the PC Genius that comes in where there is a problem.  Tracks down the cause and applies the fix quickly and sends the customer home with their PC running beautifully and everyone is happy.   There is a small problem with this.  It will be more clear as we look further into the retail side of things.  

Getting your PC fixed can be a complicated process.  It involves quite a bit a investigation and a skill set that need a basic understanding of how a computer works and how both the hardware and software complement each other when accomplishing daily tasks.  Seems pretty basic right?  Unfortunately that is not the case.  This kind of knowledge is usually gained by years of experience of troubleshooting systems or having formal training in the area of PC repair.  It gets complicated pretty quick.  The more that I learn about it the more that I think that it is a miracle that it works at all. 

Retail stores want to give customers the all in one experience.  So they set up PC repair shops in the store claiming that they can do it better, faster and cheaper than the specialty stores.   We have already discussed that the knowledge to make these repairs is not the easiest to obtain  So they have hired technicians that can connect remotely to do the work.  For regular tuneups and most of the day to day work the techs have a piece of software that runs and auto tunes the PCs.  This seems like a good idea.  The techs run the software, people get their PCs tuned up and the associates in the store can go back to work with customers in the store.  The truth is that not all PCs have the same problem.  There is no cookie cutter PC fix.  Take this for example:

A customer comes in with a PC that she claims to be slow.  She says that there are a lot of pop ups when she opens Firefox.  She also mentions that her teenage daughter was the last one to use it.  So the techs immediately asses the situation as a virus and the customer spends over a hundred dollars to fix it for her.  The techs set up the PC on the network and run the automated fix for a virus.  She takes the PC home and notices that it is still slow.  She brings it bask to complain that the PC was not cleaned correctly and wants it cleaned out because it did not work the last time.  If the techs would have really taken the time to look through the system they would have noticed that there were a lot of programs installed the day before all having to do with free video editing.  

So what actually happened?  Her daughter wanted to edit some videos and downloaded a bunch of free editors to find one that she liked.  She flew through the install menus and installed all of the toolbars and addons that came with the programs.  This took up valuable resources that slowed down the PC.  

Situations like this are driven by the inexperience of technicians in the retail field.  In my "expert" training courses, I watched a video that stated that there are three things that can go wrong with a PC.  Broken software, broken hardware or a virus.  While quite a few problems can be summarized in one of these three categories the fixes are not as standard.  The problem that it creates is that each area of repair has a standard way (or sale) to fix the problem.  The prices seem to reflect the higher end fixes rather than the  average of all of the fixes that the service would cover.  As a tech that knows how to fix most of the problems on my own, I understand what the necessary steps would be to complete the service.  It's hard for me to charge $130 for a service that I could take care of in under an hour.   

So where is the problem?  If I know how to fix it faster and better than the automated systems, I want to do so.  After all, personal care is always better than an automated system.

Part of the beauty of off site PC repair is that I hand it off to the tech at the remote location and he does the rest.  I can go back on the floor.  Having perfectionist qualities and being well versed in PC repair makes that hard to stand by and let them do the work.  I want to be a part of it because I am genuinely interested in the problems but more importantly, my name is on that repair.  Customers are not going to say that the tech that I connected to was terrible.  They will say that I was terrible.  Even though I did none of the work. This is hardly fair.  If I have my name on the work being done; I want to be the one to service the PC.

So what about the idiot?  Is he better off because he does not aware of how grossly incompetent the remote technicians can be?  It's possible...

Let's take a look at the background of the Service Desk Idiot.  He probably understands how to open ad\remove programs, kill tasks in Task Manager and sell.  The worst part, he probably sees no issue with the "expert" training that the store so kindly gave us to learn from.  Service Desk Idiots are picked out from the other staff members due to their skill in selling, rather than their technical aptitude.  They are taught to use buzz words, be confident in their store's ability to solve any issue regardless of how tough it is.  Repairs are sold as packages.  It's never "we'll get the issue solved"  it's always "We'll solve all your issues, and make everything faster! Up to 30% faster!"

Once they sell you on the highest priced, best looking solution for more than half the cost of the laptop when you bought it new, they hook it up, walk away and get all sorts of congratulations from managers for giving that customer the best experience possible.  Then they go back to selling printers that will barely last the ride home.  With a service plan of course.

If the repair is successful, the customer leaves with a lighter wallet but at least the correct end result was accomplished.  So what happens when it doesn't work?

First the technician with the most experience is called over to take a look at whatever went wrong in the automated process.  In most scenarios, the automated process is run again.  Maybe a chat with the tech on the other end might get started.  He'll claim that the issues are not covered under the service purchased and that everything was done correctly.  Depending on the tech, he might know how to clean out the last of the remaining errors, more likely he just figures out how to disable the warnings and calls it good.  He calls you in, says that the issue was much tougher than he was expecting and tells you that he did everything in his power to fix it.  Then he suggests that it is at the end of it's life, and tries to sell you a new one.

It's amazing how the program is designed to be barely competent.  In the end, it is still about selling more new systems. *Sigh...*

What is the better route to take?  Do you want to stay blissfully ignorant? Would constantly cleaning up after both your other staff members and online technicians be the better choice?

Neither.  Both are horrible positions to take on.  Idiots are just barely above lying to customers to sell more.  Geniuses are constantly battling with themselves on whether or not to apply the easy fix and call it good to keep their customer happy.  Idiots get their self worth from their managers praise, Geniuses really enjoy getting a smile back from the customers who know that both they and their system have been well taken care of.

A word to the wise.  If you have a problem, please attempt to look into it yourself first.  Everyone in technology had to start somewhere.  It always amazes me how many college graduates are baffled when a program is no longer pinned to their taskbar.  If you are stumped, seek the help of a real technician.  Ask them to show you what happened.  It will help you to lean how to avoid mistakes like that in the future.  Who knows, you might even like it...

Because I Can (a reprise)

Well, here I am again. It's 2:30 am and I'm sitting in front of my computer answering others' questions on the forum. While I do get stumped by a few of their questions; I find myself consistently perplexed by my own. Granted my questions are not disputing the compatibility of PC parts, but rather the compatibility of the parts of my life.

When I last spoke on this subject I had repaired the holes in my sails and was swiftly headed towards my goals held up on the winds of confidence. Today I find myself in no such fortune. The wind has left my sails and my compass won't stay steady long enough to give me a direction in life.

It looks as though this semester will fall in line with the other failed semesters. Filled with D's and F's in classes that should be an easy A for any mildly intelligent high school student. How is that possible? You had so much to help you. Well unfortunately for me a lot of help gives off the feeling that I am being smothered with good intentions. I started this semester off with pamphlets and business cards of the people that all claim to be able to help me fix my problems in school. I started out going to disability services that promptly linked me with a note taker for each class, extended test time (that I do not need), reduced distraction filled environment (again I do not need. Actually I find the rustling of papers quite calming during a test.), the request that I get all of my books on audio tape to help me read and a referral to TRIO services in order to obtain a private tutor for all of my classes. This is of course all compiled and sorted out by the cognitive rehabilitation specialist that I meet with twice a week to look at my current performance and try to teach myself how to adapt myself to my mind. (yes the very same mind that I have been living with for the last twenty two years) But for some reason now that I have a documented condition I have a new mind; mind 2.0 if you will.

Mind 2.0 is all about the awareness of self. More specifically, awareness of mind. It is like having an inner dialogue that is constantly making checks and adjustments to your conscious in order to maintain a performance level. This inner dialogue is formed by your understanding of the way that your mind works. Your strengths, your weaknesses. The goals that are attainable, and those that are just out of reach. Then the inner dialouge tells what you what to do (Like taking breaks) in order to make sure that your mind has enough focus to achieve tasks. To simplify, it is thinking about how your mind works and changing yourself to better fit your mind.

For this last semester I met with my cognitive rehabilitation specialist (who we'll call Mr. Mackey) in order to get me to recognize the patters and symptoms of my illness. All of this just to make sure that I get the most of what I study. It started out great where he was helping me to find the holes in my studying and how to maximize the time that I spent with my nose in the books. I learned a lot about how it is not so much how much I worked but how efficient I was during those times that I was engaged in what I was learning. We worked on loads of study strategies and other means to organize my life down to the minutes. It was all very empowering until I started noticing a trend. It seemed that all of the suggestions that Mr. Mackey gave me were bothering me. It was like I felt like I had homework on top of my homework. Just keeping up with the conventions of how to study and what is the proper way to deal with my disability were clouding me so much so that I was worn out by the time that I actually sat down to get my work done. Soon enough I was spending the time that should have been filling the holes in my education on making sure that I had all of my loose ends tied up to show to Mr. Mackey. For some reason I had to show him that I was fine and that I could handle it. Something about first impressions I guess. About half way through the semester I tried to make some suggestions of my own in order to take control of my own study habits. After all, if I no longer hated the way that I studied, maybe I could finally get back on track. Again to no avail. For some reason All I kept hearing was "I like that but..." and "I'm just a bit concerned that...". Those statements were generally followed by the redirection to options that we had talked about previously. Too bad that I had concerns of my own about his suggestions. Not that mine matter; I have no degree to back up my theories.

With a few weeks to the end of the semester I knew that I had dropped the hypothetical ball yet again. I don't seem to look at my test scores anymore. The professor hands it back to me and I shove it in my folder quick enough so that no one else can get a glimpse of all the red markings surrounding all of the knowledge that I had yet again failed to solidify. As we left the room our professor yelled out that the final was comprehensive and that we had better start studying for it soon. Final. The word strikes fear into the hearts of college students everywhere. Not me. At this point I really had no good grades to save. I had no reason to tear through my notes of the last weeks hoping that I can cram in enough information to prove that wasn't BSing my way through the last 4 exams. Judgement day will come and pass, some will move on, but I will still be here. Stuck in my Hell that is general education.

Because I Can (a casual hello)

Well I admit, this is not my regular outlet. I have only recently had the sudden urge to put my thoughts into text displayed for anyone to see. Although that portion of this freaks me out. It is always good to try new things. So where do I start? What do I really want to display? Well for starters, me I guess.

I ended up deleting and revising ten or so sentences that all started with "I am". I didn't find one that I liked and then I realized... What do you describe someone with? I feel to truly understand someone you need to understand where they are in life and what they view as important. My life can be summed up in one simple phrase. Because I can.

This phrase has become more and more important to me in light of recent developments in my mental health. I was diagnosed with a learning disability that prevents me from learning as others do. It is a developmental problem where I don't transfer the information that I hear into instructions that I can understand. I have always have had trouble in school and tests have always been a rough hurdle to pass. In spite of my problems in the classic ways of learning I have learned that Intelligence is not how smart you are but rather how driven you are. In anything that I accomplish, I have to put forth about three times more time and effort than others. This has led to a lot of distress in school but I have learned that I will accomplish what I have set out to do. Even if it takes me a long time to do so.

Shortly after being diagnosed, a friend asked me "So are you happier now that you know?" Yes... and no. It is nice to have the knowledge of why i have been having so much trouble but it will not help the fact that I have so work so much harder for everything that I achieve. Knowing makes me worry that I will disappoint others because they have to keep explaining it to me. Just this week I got back to my summer job coaching volleyball (which I love). This year they made me a head coach. To the normal person this would be a great opportunity to get paid more and have extra responsibilities. Unfortunately this promotion has been nagging at the back of my brain saying "what if you can't understand the drills correctly"... "what if you can't learn the names well enough"... "What if you stutter too much and the drills are not understandable for the girls"... All of these fears can be traced back to knowing about my condition. I can't help but feel so concerned about how my condition is going effect the girls that I coach. Almost to the point that I want to give up coaching so that I don't need to come back as a head coach and take on the added pressure.

So where does this leave me? Well with a lot less confidence and a whole lot more problems and questions that need to be solved. For now all that I can answer to my self is that I can do it. I am my own limitation. I determine my successes, my failures. I have to look to myself to push through the hard times to achieve my goals. Why? Because I can.