When things look the same
My particular relationship with software (I support other users) means that I read screens. Obsessively; if a programmer took the time to design an error dialogue, then it is my destiny to read what has been spawned. Not so, for my co-workers.
If the screen message scolds me by pointing out that my CAP LOCKs are inappropriate, I know how to change things. If a yellow bar has spawned, even I can discern yellow, despite my issues with colour. If the machine “doth protest too much”, there IS a reason. Most of my efforts to support others do not involve feats of mystical prowess.
About two months ago, we “promoted” a user from Outlook Express to Outlook. In corporate terms, we removed the training wheels. The two gigabytes of accumulated dust was duly transferred, because technical support is not there to censor or swab out the stable. All went according to plan, and the user was left with a “better” client. Alas, the old, familiar drew the person back… old familiar ways are so comforting.
Yesterday, for an unrelated reason, the computer was reformatted. Before starting the road to a fresh install, I backed up the personal documents, family photos and the related .PST file, still hovering at the two gigabyte mark. Efforts had been made to clean up, but email continues to “come in”, so the size hadn’t changed. Several hours later, with all software reinstalled and the personal effects returned to the appropriate spaces, the computer went back into service.
About mid-morning today, I received a call to help find a message that had “gone missing”. After carefully searching by any keyword that might unearth the text, I finally had to give up. In point of fact, there were no messages from any time in the last seven weeks. Do you see a pattern here?
The person had simply started using OE again, since we had only removed the shortcuts. When I had made my backup, Outlook was still the default email client, and there was no reason to even consider the OE identity. As a result, it’s as if the person had been off the grid for close to two months.
Is there a moral to the story? Not really. In future, I will simply remember that users will do what you least expect. After all, the computer should do the thinking for them, right?
