Useless Conversation

[Ironwood]

Yeah, you got a keeper.

[HaemishM]

My fiance asked me what I was thinking once. <Danny Vermin> Once </Danny Vermin>. Unfortunately for her, I told her.

That's usually about the only number of times it ever happens. They ask and you tell... once. And then they either realize they should never have married you or you realize you really shouldn't have told them that. So long as you can deal with the consequences of either outcome, go for it.

[Sir T]

The Cat just crapped all over my CD collection. I'm taking this as a reflection on the wuality of music I listen to.

Just thought I'd share.

[Yegolev]

Your capitalization of Cat has me worried.

[Pennilenko]

The Cat just crapped all over my CD collection. I'm taking this as a reflection on the wuality of music I listen to.

Just thought I'd share.

Burn it with fire?

[WayAbvPar]

Your capitalization of Cat has me worried.

Maybe it was Danny John-Jules?

[Merusk]

And I knew that you knew that I knew that Ironwood was jesting.  White text that should be green is far more intersting than actual green text.

And I suspected that you knew that I knew that you knew Ironwood was jesting.  However, I felt the need to clarify for the peanut gallery.

[Chimpy]

I'm taking this as a reflection on the wuality of music I listen to.

While others focus on the capitalization of the feline, this disturbed me more.

[WayAbvPar]

I'm taking this as a reflection on the wuality of music I listen to.

While others focus on the capitalization of the feline, this disturbed me more.

Cocksucka!

[Chimpy]

So I just had yet another "shake my head" moment at the sad state of society.

AMC (which stands for American Movie Classics) is showing TIMECOP.


TIMECOP is now considered a "Classic"?

 

[Merusk]

I think this was covered when I had the same bitch in another thread, after seeing Dracula 200 or some other shlock on the channel.  They dropped the "American Movie Classics" shtick a while ago and decided they're just a movie channel, because there weren't enough viewers for actual Black & White classics or movies from the 50's.   There was some hullabaloo about it with one of the major cable providers, because other channels were in a snit about the competition but that blew over quickly.

[Samwise]

Your capitalization of Cat has me worried.

Maybe it was Danny John-Jules?

WAP.geekCred++;

[Selby]

AMC (which stands for American Movie Classics) is showing TIMECOP.

Ted Turner unveiled Turner Classic Movies, which was supposed to be the "black & white classics" channel a while back.  But I mean for crying out loud they show Smokey & the Bandit on AMC, so it isn't like they are going for high quality cinema of yesteryear.

[Chimpy]

AMC (which stands for American Movie Classics) is showing TIMECOP.

Ted Turner unveiled Turner Classic Movies, which was supposed to be the "black & white classics" channel a while back.  But I mean for crying out loud they show Smokey & the Bandit on AMC, so it isn't like they are going for high quality cinema of yesteryear.

Smokey & the Bandit isn't a classic?

[Sky]

Just like A&E is all Cops and Intervention and Paranormal shit. There are a whole lot of channels that really are poorly named. We won't mention the abortion that is G4. Cops, that's like a game, right?

Nothing but love for Wu and Al http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rGU2xwSsFs

[Yegolev]

I should have smelled a rat.  The VP of IT sent out an invitation for an all-hamds meeting via teleconference.  Normally we have these in the auditorium with option to view highlights on the intranet later.  Why would a VP not want to be in the same room as his employees for a meeting?  That's right, to avoid physical harm.  Apparently the IT division needs to cut $40 million, and rather than cut loose some of these silly projects they are going to lay off people.  Whee.  Now we all get to sweat for a few months while they stew over who's getting it and who isn't.  I already don't like our new CEO.

[Prospero]

That's why I have a strict rule about not working for any company where I have to walk more than 200 feet from my cube to punch the executive staff. I think it helps minimize that shit.

[Salamok]

I should have smelled a rat.  The VP of IT sent out an invitation for an all-hamds meeting via teleconference.  Normally we have these in the auditorium with option to view highlights on the intranet later.  Why would a VP not want to be in the same room as his employees for a meeting?  That's right, to avoid physical harm.  Apparently the IT division needs to cut $40 million, and rather than cut loose some of these silly projects they are going to lay off people.  Whee.  Now we all get to sweat for a few months while they stew over who's getting it and who isn't.  I already don't like our new CEO.

That's almost as good as inviting everyone outside to the parking lot for a meeting!

[Yegolev]

Yeah, I probably have several months to look around at places like Cap Gemini or Home Depot or even Delta, on the off chance.  It's a great time to punch up that performance plan.

I can at least console myself that my team is already understaffed and AIX isn't going anywhere.  There is plenty of fat in our IT division, but it sure isn't on my team.  200 AIX servers and 30 linux between three datacenters which are supported by eight people?  Here's hoping I survive another round of layoffs.

[Selby]

I can at least console myself that my team is already understaffed and AIX isn't going anywhere.  There is plenty of fat in our IT division, but it sure isn't on my team.

That's what our software department told themselves: "we only have 4 people who have ever programmed the OS for our control system, they can't let us go."  The VP of HR stood up at a meeting and said that software was something "anyone" could do and that they were looking to make changes.  They laid off the entire team and outsourced it all!  There isn't more than 1-2 people who have been there longer than I have now.

[Engels]

Yeah, I probably have several months to look around at places like Cap Gemini or Home Depot or even Delta, on the off chance.  It's a great time to punch up that performance plan.

I can at least console myself that my team is already understaffed and AIX isn't going anywhere.  There is plenty of fat in our IT division, but it sure isn't on my team.  200 AIX servers and 30 linux between three datacenters which are supported by eight people?  Here's hoping I survive another round of layoffs.

Do not ever underestimate the ability of bean counters to do something that has no logic and irreperably harms the company's ability to function.

"AIX? What's that? That sounds like old computer systems. And Linux? Isn't that some hippy shit software company? Out you go, go on. We have a team ready to deploy Google Aps."

[Merusk]

The man speaks the truth.  We had 6 people left in IS Monday, and they decided someone had to go.  It wasn't the 2 programmers, one of the 2 managers or the guy who runs the phones & e-mail server that got the axe.  It was the last desktop and web app support guy.. the guy who made sure the sale people had computers that ran and were virus free.

Yes, our salespeople are as stupid as any salespeople anywhere, and so I expect he'll be laughing as the 2 managers now become desktop support and find out just how bad people can fuck up a computer these days.

[Murgos]

Why are we spending all this money on IT?  The servers work fine, they haven't crashed in years.

[Selby]

"AIX? What's that? That sounds like old computer systems. And Linux? Isn't that some hippy shit software company? Out you go, go on. We have a team ready to deploy Google Aps."

Our new CIO basically did that, except he traded everything for "Windows and Exchange" because he was sold some package...

[Yegolev]

Sold a package, yep, familiar with that one.  That's why I have been installing LANDesk on my servers, so middle management can count licenses.  I could have written a shell script to do that.  Would have saved some of that money they apparently need.  They just need to sell more fucking soda.  Incidentally we were joking about Goggle Apps during this Office 2007 upgrade, which I had to take a class on.

I'd really like to think that we have given management the impression that we are doing a job that not just anyone can do, but who the hell knows?  I don't mean to be a computer bigot, but I'm not fucking desktop support.  Although if I do get dropped and consultants are brought in, I can possibly finagle a job with the consultant company since I do know how The Company works and whatnot.

[Merusk]

Why are we spending all this money on IT?  The servers work fine, they haven't crashed in years.

Funnily enough.. it has. Often.   One of the programmers told me about a year ago we're running all the web apps, the company's website, the file system and the sales system off of the same server.   We now get intermittent server hangs that last up to 2 1/2 minutes since they also run windows server, and some of the requests use up all processing power making everyone else wait.   When you do a lot of access to the file server like AutoCAD use does those can add up to a good 45 minutes to an hour over a few days. 

[Ironwood]

Speaking as an IT Director, if I ever told people about layoffs over the phone, I'd expect them ALL to come round to my house and kick the shit out of me.

What a classless and spineless move.

[JWIV]

Speaking as an IT Director, if I ever told people about layoffs over the phone, I'd expect them ALL to come round to my house and kick the shit out of me.

What a classless and spineless move.

But completely classic for mediocre management.  Layoffs and firing people should typically be some of the hardest decisions that a manager has to make. Both are sometimes necessary, and when they are, there is a right and a wrong way to do it.  You can either treat your people with the respect and dignity that they deserve (and if they don't, you fucked up in hiring them in the first place), or you can be a spineless weasel, delegate it to some poor low level sod who is powerless to do anything other read some generic form letter form HR, and go into hiding until it's all over.

Good leaders choose the first option.  Most management types chooses the second.

[Sir T]

I'd really like to think that we have given management the impression that we are doing a job that not just anyone can do, but who the hell knows?  I don't mean to be a computer bigot, but I'm not fucking desktop support.

Speaking as a guy whos done that, desktop support needs a different skillset. You need to be able to have social skills. theres a way of bing respectful and making people not feel stupid when you point out that they have been doing wrong. Yes it probably needs less technical skill, but it does require other skills on top. I can only imagine the chaos that would happen if you dragged one of the boys from the backroom out to real with Real People (tm).

Anyway friend of mine told me that he was the guy that got handed the really complex jobs that he had to spend hours wrangling with. Then his manager brought him in and told him he wasn't pulling his weight because he was handling less jobs than everyone else and they had a quota to fill. He got so mad he immediately quit.

[Salamok]

Of course there are plenty of companies that wouldn't have said shit about it and made it and pink slips would have been the first sign of the apocalypse.

[Sir T]

Of course there are plenty of companies that wouldn't have said shit about it and made it and pink slips would have been the first sign of the apocalypse.

Shh. Your inter fearing with our righteous indignation.

[Yegolev]

Speaking as a guy whos done that, desktop support needs a different skillset. You need to be able to have social skills. theres a way of bing respectful and making people not feel stupid when you point out that they have been doing wrong. Yes it probably needs less technical skill, but it does require other skills on top. I can only imagine the chaos that would happen if you dragged one of the boys from the backroom out to real with Real People (tm).

Yeah, I agree.  One of the greatest parts of my job is that I don't talk to end-users.  This is beneficial to everyone.

Desktop support is also hard, don't think I'm being an ass about it, but it falls into the same general arena as linux because it's relatively easy to gain XP as that class.  On the other hand, it's pretty damn hard to get started with commercial UNIX or, god forbid, mainframe.  It's more to do with supply/demand of the technicians.  I'd wager most people know a Linux Admin, but who knows an AIX Support Specialist?  Other than me, of course.

Yes, I do think of Real Life as a massive online RPG with a complex and broad skill-based advancement system.

[Sky]

I gimped myself by going up the apple tree. Granted, there are a lot of unix skills in the tree, but I don't have the time to get xp in them.

Also, I do a lot of end-user support despite not having very good "Don't make people feel stupid" skills (my perennial review negative), nobody else in the raid group to tackle the job.

[Brogarn]

Solaris admin here. Feel like a dying breed somedays.

[Lantyssa]

Yeah.  I ended up being our VAX specialist because no one else had the time or inclination.  Thankfully we got rid of those machines a few years ago.  (There isn't a greater feeling than rolling a million dollar machine outside -- end over end. )

I need to work on my Linux skills so I can make myself indispensable again.