Uneducated IT Managers, and How to Deal? 811
R.Mason asks: "I work in an IT department for a small to medium sized family owned business. The job is great, except for our boss. He simply doesn't know nearly as much as he should. Our team finds ourselves teaching him or explaining remedial things far too often. Even when his own computer is acting up, he doesn't know what to do with it and has us fix it while he sits and watches. He spends hours and hours on the most insignificant tasks as if he has nothing better to do. Is it ignorant to believe an IT manager should be a knowledgeable in technology as a whole? A person you respect and frequently learn from? It creates an extremely frustrating work environment, and our team doesn't know how to approach the problem. It's becoming too much to simply "put up with it." What advice do those of you in the IT field have for this issue?"
You know (Score:5, Funny)
How to deal? (Score:1, Funny)
fire him! (Score:2, Funny)
On the other hand... (Score:5, Funny)
Bruce
Dear Slashdot, my boss sucks... (Score:5, Funny)
This is Slashdot. We're ALL smarter than our bosses. You don't catch us whining about it. Much.
Possibilities (Score:3, Funny)
Re:fire him! (Score:4, Funny)
Contingency For Ethernet (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Send Link to this article. (Score:3, Funny)
Re:On the other hand... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:5, Funny)
Re:You know (Score:3, Funny)
Lucifer
Re:On the other hand... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Be Thankful (Score:3, Funny)
We had a boss that was just as you described. We, the peons, created a "Two Person Integrity" rule, because if any of us were with this guy when he destroyed something, he'd blame us, and there'd be no witnesses to back our side of the story.
If our boss' boss was less understanding, we'd have had people fired. It was a scary situation.
He once said: "I can unplug this token ring and plug it back in again before the systems notice." Then did so, and all hell broke loose. Then he said promptly "My, look at the time, I have to pick my kids up from school." And walked out. I'm not kidding.
-ave
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:5, Funny)
You should have gotten the other IT guys in on your action, and told the boss "Sir, you're absolutely right! We'll need a company credit card and a paid day off to go to CompUSA, BestBuy, and Staples and research alternative solutions!"
Spend 7 hours drinking at the strip bar and one hour buying some wireless networking gear. Presto! Everybody's happy!
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:3, Funny)
duurrrrr (Score:1, Funny)
Re:Indeed (Score:3, Funny)
And now, let the flaming begin.
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:5, Funny)
Nazgul-Net was a much better solution...
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:5, Funny)
No man, you've got this completely wrong. This is slashdot! We all know that if a slashdotter were given the day off, a credit card, and orders to go to a computer store and buy shit until the card is maxed out, that's what he would do! Are you really telling me that you'd rather see some girls take off their bathing suits instead of setting a up a massively parallel RAID-5 array of 300G SATA-150 disks!?
If so, you fail at being a computer nerd!
Answer (Score:2, Funny)
Unfortunately, the lesson is how fast you can pull a Houdini and dial 911.
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:2, Funny)
About four or five days later, his own (secondary) computer started making a bit of fan noise, but just on boot up. He pointed the noise out to me, and I said a new fan would cost them about $6.00- I'd go pick the thing up tomorrow morning.
The next morning I come in to check on the box, and it has a two inch hole drilled in the side of the case, which is covered in packing tape. Curious, I pulled the box out to take a closer look, and found two more holes on the other side of the computer.
When he comes in a few hours later, I ask him about the holes. His explaination:
Well, I was worried about the computer overheating and frying this one too- so after you left last night, I took the case off and cut a hole in the side with the dremel tool so I could look in and check on the fan to make sure it was spinning. But I cut the hole on the wrong side and all I could see was the bottom of the motherboard, so I took it back off and drilled another hole on the opposite side.
Except now, when I look in the hole, my face blocks all the light, and I can't see in to see the fan anyways. So I drilled another hole to shine my penlight in. It took me about three hours to get it all working, but now I can check the fan any time I want just by climing under my desk and shining the penlight in.
At this point, the look on his face made it very apparent that he was sure I was about to comment on his un-hindered genius. It was everything I could do not to double over on the floor when I explained that I could install BIOS fan monitoring software, or, since it was his second and normally unused computer- He could have just turned it off for the night, and I could replace the fan now for $6.00 and five minutes.
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:5, Funny)
Are you really telling me that you'd rather see some girls take off their bathing suits instead of setting a up a massively parallel RAID-5 array of 300G SATA-150 disks!?
Indeed! Just imagine all the pr0n you would be able to store on that machine!
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:5, Funny)
No man, you've got this completely wrong. This is slashdot! We all know that if a slashdotter were given the day off, a credit card, and orders to go to a computer store and buy shit until the card is maxed out, that's what he would do! Are you really telling me that you'd rather see some girls take off their bathing suits instead of setting a up a massively parallel RAID-5 array of 300G SATA-150 disks!?
If so, you fail at being a computer nerd! :)
No you've got to get two credit cards and two days. The first day you go to COMPUSA, Fry's is better, where you buy the hardware then take it back and set it up. The second day is spent grabbing some chicks and showing them what you did.
FalconRe:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:3, Funny)
Jesus Christ... I can't believe you guys (Score:5, Funny)
Oh and hey my DHCP is DNSing again.
Re:You know (Score:5, Funny)
I can't tell, is that blasphemy or not?
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:1, Funny)
Re:On the other hand... (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:2, Funny)
The boss'll probably think it stands for Threaded Local Computing or something
Wireless Token Ring (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Jesus Christ... I can't believe you guys (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:5, Funny)
I was once consulting for a firm that wanted to expand their organisation and communicate over the internet. I mentioned that it was imperitive that they use a firewall for security. The IT manager gave me a testy look and said "Well, that goes without saying, doesn't it?".
Fast forward three weeks. I turn up for another meeting and notice a bunch of workmen demolishing the computer room. I ask one of them what's going on and he says that they are installing fire-rated dry wall to replace the existing dry wall!
I walk into the meeting with a VERY large grin on my face and proceed to explain to the IT manager exactly what a firewall is. He turns bright red and then says to me "Well we were planning to fire-proof the computer room anyway!"
Re:Indeed (Score:1, Funny)
It's the brestesses.
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:3, Funny)
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:4, Funny)
Re:Contingency For Ethernet (Score:3, Funny)
Seriously, though, you've got me confused with a dweeb. I'm a BPFH (Bastard Programmer From Hell), which although not quite as powerful as a BOFH, is still quite sneaky, horny, and a complete degenerate.
I'll take hot nekkid chicks over server setup any day!
Re:You know (Score:4, Funny)
Lawful -1
Neutral 0
Chaotic +1