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  • 13

    10 midyear resolutions for support techs

    Looking ahead is an occupational necessity in the IT field, whether you're assessing new technologies, planning for future bandwidth needs, or building project plans. With the second half of 2007...

    Posted by Becky Roberts | July 10, 2007, 12:57 PM PDT | Latest comment by OldMarine

  • 5

    Ask the right kind of question to get the right kind of answer

     This information is also available as a PDF download. "There are no stupid questions," as the saying goes. Of course, the cynic will continue by adding, "Only stupid people who ask questions."...

    Posted by Calvin Sun | July 10, 2007, 11:19 AM PDT | Latest comment by porsche993997

  • 12

    When to end the call: further thoughts on rude treatment by customers

    Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you will be like him yourself. Answer a fool according to his folly, or he will be wise in his own eyes. Jeff Dray offered some great insights...

    Posted by Calvin Sun | July 9, 2007, 7:36 AM PDT | Latest comment by sketchy_2001

  • 2

    "This page intentionally left blank"

    This sentence, when I first saw it in an IBM manual, totally confused me. "What is the point," I asked myself, "of having this sentence? Of course I can see that the page is blank. What's more,...

    Posted by Calvin Sun | July 2, 2007, 8:55 AM PDT | Latest comment by misseva580

  • 48

    Rudeness, we don't have to tolerate it - From anyone!

    I must be getting old because it seems to me that good manners seem to be a thing of the past.  People are so keen to assert themselves and protect their rights that they seem to forget that both...

    Posted by Jeff Dray | June 30, 2007, 3:52 AM PDT | Latest comment by Sereniti

  • 5

    10 ways to make desktop visits more effective

    This information is also available as a PDF download. Visiting a customer's workplace represents a considerable investment in time and resources. As field engineers, we must take great care to...

    Posted by Jeff Dray | June 25, 2007, 1:44 PM PDT | Latest comment by Andy4961

  • 0

    One of the Lads

    Continuing my quest for the bathroom beautiful I decided that Dodgy Dave’s quote was a bit high.   For about half a week’s work he quoted me just under £5000, a price that did not include...

    Posted by Jeff Dray | June 25, 2007, 1:19 PM PDT

  • 30

    5 MORE e-mail habits that waste time and cause problems

    In a previous article, I discussed a few common blunders associated with e-mail, such as veering off onto a new message topic without changing the subject line, omitting a subject line altogether,...

    Posted by Calvin Sun | June 25, 2007, 12:41 PM PDT | Latest comment by kgartner@...

  • 2

    Frustration with Cathay Pacific web site, part I

    My wife, Michelle, and two daughters, Elise and Rayna, just left for Asia. They flew from the U.S. to Beijing, but coming back from Hong Kong, all on Continental. Therefore, during that trip,...

    Posted by Calvin Sun | June 24, 2007, 6:50 PM PDT | Latest comment by simon9985@...

  • 85

    5 e-mail habits that waste time and cause problems

    Few communications tools give you as much exposure as e-mail. Unfortunately, mistakes in your e-mail will receive that same exposure as well. Depending on who sees your e-mail, your job,...

    Posted by Calvin Sun | June 20, 2007, 8:40 AM PDT | Latest comment by CharlieSpencer_Palmetto

  • 2

    Five reasons customers get grumpy (and one way to deal with them)

    This information is also available as a PDF download. Grumpy customers. We've all had them. No matter what you do and how hard you try to please, they won't be happy. The good news is that this...

    Posted by Jeff Dray | June 20, 2007, 8:08 AM PDT | Latest comment by mdixon@...

  • 2

    Perceptions do matter

    It happened to me again recently. I don't know why, but it seems that wherever I am, even if it's far away from my home, people stop me and ask for directions. I was in Washington, D.C. on...

    Posted by Calvin Sun | June 18, 2007, 5:54 AM PDT | Latest comment by ng_kai_choy@...

  • 14

    The Flashing Zero Generation

    As I passed through this veil of tears that is IT support I have experienced most of the types of caller, I have even created a taxonomic classification system for user types which has been the...

    Posted by Jeff Dray | June 17, 2007, 1:04 AM PDT | Latest comment by Absolutely

  • 1

    Make sure your customers can find you

    I was in a great mood the other day, after concluding a visit to the University of Maryland. For that reason, I decided to stop at a Starbucks before driving back to Philadelphia. Not knowing...

    Posted by Calvin Sun | June 11, 2007, 6:12 AM PDT

  • 39

    Combating prejudice on the Helpdesk

    We had a caller who would describe himself as "Old School." One of the young women on the help desk took the call and was very brusquely asked to put him through to a "proper" engineer. Whether...

    Posted by Jeff Dray | June 10, 2007, 11:15 AM PDT | Latest comment by ttolentino@...

  • 5

    What can we learn from Rita's Water Ice?

    My older daughter, Elise, just started working at a Rita's Water Ice store near our home. I've been to the store (when she isn't working, of course, so as not to embarrass her), was impressed by...

    Posted by Calvin Sun | June 3, 2007, 9:36 PM PDT | Latest comment by rob.easton@...

  • 1

    Wake up and smell the coffee

    Many years ago, I was occupying a desk on the corner of a college’s IT facility. For some reason, any phone call for the department would be routed to my desk, and I spent a good proportion of...

    Posted by Jeff Dray | June 1, 2007, 1:14 PM PDT

  • 3

    Portraying a positive image

    There was a calamity at the cottage recently. The bathroom developed a leak and fluids of varying degrees of unpleasantness started to drip through the sitting room ceiling. I took a look behind...

    Posted by Jeff Dray | May 29, 2007, 9:33 AM PDT | Latest comment by michael.baldelli@...

  • 2

    Do your customers think country music when they deal with you?

    This past Tuesday, I won tickets to the Cowtown Rodeo in New Jersey. I was listening to the Evans and Andie show on WXTU, 92.5 FM www.925xtu.com, when they ran their "My Three Songs" contest....

    Posted by Calvin Sun | May 28, 2007, 4:23 AM PDT | Latest comment by OldER Mycroft

  • 8

    Call priorities - Are we giving the end user the best service?

    In recent years there has been a trend for helpdesks to become nothing more than call loggers. The desk used to resolve a lot of problems without passing them to back line support, but now the...

    Posted by Jeff Dray | May 24, 2007, 2:24 PM PDT | Latest comment by fractalzoom

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