Best Reddit Ever - IT doesn't think you're necessarily stupid, honest

I work in IT. It's a pretty good assumption that you or someone you know work in IT also. Unfortunately, we get denigrated as not liking people and are seen to have an arrogance about people who can't use their computers. This topic came up on Reddit last week, and here's the best response to these types of characterizations ever. (I couldn't find the original post to give credit, so if you happen to find it or know who it was, please post the source in the comments.)


Not Everyone Is An Idiot, but here's why IT thinks some people are... -- 

We don't think users are complete idiots for not knowing how to set up a server rack, or configure their WAN, or setup their raid array.

We think users are idiots when they don't understand what the start menu is, how to type in a web address, or what right-click means.

We understand not everyone is an IT person. What we don't excuse are users who RELY on their computer every day of their career, and don't understand the simplest of tasks.

I use my car every day to get to work. I am not a mechanic but I understand how to put gas in my tank, change my oil, change a tire, and how to check fluids. 

I am not a carpenter, but I no what side of a hammer to use, how to use a level, a tape measure, and how to use a saw. 

I'm not a doctor, but I know to drink more water and maybe some Tylenol for a headache, how to stop bleeding of an open wound, how a tourniquet works, and not to mix pain killers and alcohol.

We aren't asking you to be super advanced with computers. Just learn the basics to do your job. That is 99% of our complaints. We understand our job is to support the users, but turning on someone’s computer, or how to click File > Save, or what the start menu is is basic stuff.

I don't go to my mechanic and have him put gas in my car. I don't get a carpenter to hang a picture. I don't have a doctor treat a papercut.

I learn the basics so I don't waste my time nor the professionals time. I would expect users to do the same.

I see a lot of people saying we expect too much and to be happy because it keeps us employed. Well, when you have users who don't bog you down with simple shit, you get proactive IT staff that get to work on minimizing downtime and upgrading the infrastructure.

Stop pampering ignorant users and blaming tech support for expecting too much of users.