It is well documented that IT support professionals receive plenty of amusing questions, queries, and support requests. In this article, we have scoured some of the internet’s sites and forums to highlight some of the funniest.
The Brain Mill
Support: “Tell me, is the cursor still there?”
Caller: “No, I’m alone right now.”
Support: “Where in the building is your printer located?”
Caller: “Middle of my desk.”
Support: “If I have to give someone directions, where do I tell them to go?”
Caller: “In the middle of my desk where I work.”
Microsoft Developer Network
Support: “What kind of computer do you have?”
Caller: “A white one.”
Support: “Your password is the small letter a, a capital letter V, and the number 7.”
Caller: “Is that 7 in capital letters?”
Caller: “I have a huge problem. A friend has placed a screen saver on my computer, but every time I move the mouse, it disappears.”
Support: “How may I help you?”
Caller: “I’m writing my first e-mail.”
Support: “OK, and what seems to be the problem?”
Caller: “Well, I have the letter ‘a’ in the address, but how do I get the circle around it?”
Here’s a good one from the forums
Caller: “The cup holder on my PC is broken and I am within my warranty period. How do I go about getting that fixed?”
Support: “I’m sorry, but did you say a cup holder?”
Caller: “Yes, it’s attached to the front of my computer.”
Support: “Please excuse me. If I seem a bit stumped, it’s because I am. Did you receive this as part of a promotional at a trade show? How did you get this cup holder?
Caller: It came with my computer. I don’t know anything about a promotion. It just has ‘4X’ on it.”
Turns out that the caller had been using the computer’s CD-ROM drive as a cup holder and had snapped it off!
Here are some more stories (you never know, some may be myths!)
“Compaq is considering changing the command “Press Any Key” to “Press Return Key” because of the flood of calls asking where the “Any” key is.”
“An exasperated caller to Dell Computer Tech Support couldn’t get her new Dell Computer to turn on. After ensuring the computer was plugged in, the technician asked her what happened when she pushed the power button. Her response, “I pushed and pushed on this foot pedal and nothing happens.” The “foot pedal” turned out to be the computer’s mouse.”
“Another Dell customer called to say he couldn’t get his computer to fax anything. After 40 minutes of troubleshooting, the technician discovered the man was trying to fax a piece of paper by holding it in front of the monitor screen and hitting the “send” key.”
And to finish up, here’s some brilliance from Computer Weekly
Caller: “How much do Windows cost?”
Support: “Windows costs about $100”
Caller: “Oh, that’s kind of expensive. Can I buy just one Window?”
Caller: “My computer has locked up, and no matter how many times I type eleven, it won’t unfreeze.”
Support: “What do you mean, ‘type eleven’?
Caller: “The message on my screen says, ‘Error Type 11’!”
Support: “May I ask what operating system you are running today?”
Caller: “A computer.”
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