The angry thread

[talisman56]

"Hello, I'm calling from the Windows support desk and our records show that your PC is generating a lot of errors."

(My previous employment, amongst other things, involved cleaning up after these people when the poor suckers customers allowed them onto their computers...)

Depending on my mood, the response to this is one of the following:

"I don't have a PC, I have an iMac." (I don't).
"The PC that I've just run CCleaner/Malwarebytes/Chkdsk/Disc cleanup on? And they found no issues whatsoever?"
"I am perfectly able to clean up my own PC, I don't need any help from you."
"If I let you on to my computer, will you show me where the warnings in SYSLOG are and I'll tell you what they really mean..."
"Hang on a moment, I'll just switch it on again and we'll see if you can help me." Put phone down. 15 minutes later go back to phone to find they've rang off.
"Listen, I spent a lot of time at work cleaning up after you scammers, why don't you get a proper IT job and help people rather than extorting money out of them?"

What I really want to do one day is to set up an old PC which has working Internet access but everything else is not working and let them on and flounder about a bit.

[Kipper]

My elderly mother's hairdresser came this afternoon. After washing her hair, and putting her under the drier, the hairdresser went into the kitchen to make them some tea. Now, she does this every week, and always leaves the kitchen door open (we tie it back to a veg rack, as it tends to swing closed). Today, for no known reason, she closed the kitchen door behind her, pulling the veg rack over, which jammed behind the door. I came home, through the front door, and found the kitchen door jammed shut. No problem, I would go round the back and go in the back door and free the rack. But, gate key in kitchen, so, into garage and tooled up, tried to get gate open. Screws for top bolt rusted in, and could not undo them (swaying on ladder), so decided to try and prise it off. Easy with crowbar, but that was in shed at bottom of garden. Finally used a large screwdriver to prise bolt free. Not a great deal, except it was sheeting it down, and force 10 gale up the side of the house as well. I did request that this would not happen again - in a forceful way. And the door can swing shut as much as it likes, from now on! Just need a trip to B & Q tomorrow for a new gate bolt.

[daveg]

A fine tale Kipper ( ) and beautifully delivered!

Dave G

[Kipper]

And now the keys have been separated. For some unknown reason, one of each was in a key box on the kitchen wall (behind the door!!), and the copies/spares in a tin in a kitchen cupboard. I have now taken the tin out of the kitchen, and spread the other keys around the house, to avoid this farce again. (we live in hope)

[EtchedPixels]

unprintable comments.  BT don't want to know (like most other things) and while I'm on the subject of BT, have you ever tried actually talking to someone at BT?  They have soon ditched their "It's good to talk" campaign - their new

Telephone preference service is the first thing to be registered for. Then when they tell you the company name, write it down, and report them. BT unfortunately mostly try to sell you services like caller id (ones many others provide for free). If you are not on a long contract threatening to leave may help, leaving may help even more. You can take the number with you.

The technology solution is a bit more complicated to deploy, and involves routing your phone calls incoming via a PC. At that point you can have a lot of fun with these people because you can basically program the computer to play with them.

[Malc]

We are registered with the telephone preference service, but still get some calls. Admittedly, less than we used to. We have a caller ID box and if the call is Withheld, especially if it is during the day, we don't bother answering. It still means we have to go to the phone to see who is calling.

[EtchedPixels]

http://nonodes.spunow.co.uk/2012/11/usb-modem-from-mono-on-raspberry-pi.html

has instructions on how to use a Raspberry PI to answer and immediately hangup on calls with no id or matching idents

[Bealman]

I had a call from some guy who wanted to know if I'd had an accident at work recently. I said yes, I had an accident about 3 weeks ago. He started to get excited  and asked if I wanted to do something about it. I said, I have already done that. He asked me what had I done. I told him that I just came home and changed my underpants. He hung up. No sense of humour these sales types.

[ParkeNd]

Was robbed of the chance to get angry yesterday. Expected to be angry when. I reported that our new roofline work had made one of the widow frames leak. But the same two men who fitted the bit that leaked (huge national company) turned up next morning, spent two hours tracking back from the leak to the source, and then another hour fixing it perfectly.

Almost angry that I was robbed of the opportunity to be properly angry.

[daveg]

We are registered with the telephone preference service, but still get some calls. Admittedly, less than we used to. We have a caller ID box and if the call is Withheld, especially if it is during the day, we don't bother answering. It still means we have to go to the phone to see who is calling.

A lot of the marketing calls still received are made by businesses that haven't signed up to the Marketing Code of Practice (DMA). A large number of these are based overseas (Mumbai, etc) so don't give a hoot about such things.

Dave G

[petercharlesfagg]

Not on this planet!


Telephone rang, nice gentleman asked if I was the owner of "Peters Platters", "Yes" I replied.

"I've been studying the items for sale on your web site"

" I particularly like the one that is marked "not for sale", would you sell it for £20.00?"

I said, "That item is not for sale, it is my company logo, it is placed centrally at every show that I attend to catch the eye, if it were for sale it would cost somewhere in the region of £100.00 because of all the time, effort, insurance and timber costs!"


Long pause!



He then said "Oh!  Would you accept "£25.00 then?"

I laughed quietly, then stated that "You are definitely not listening to a word I say but if you would consider your offer again?"


Another long pause!




"OK" he said.  "£30.00, that's my last offer!"



Concealing my frustrations I gently suggested that he consider studying all the other items in my gallery, that some of them WOULD come within his budget.



"I've looked at all the others but I don't like them, I want that specific item"  He continued "If you are going to be so awkward I shall take my business elsewhere!"



Replacing the receiver, I fumed!   




What does "Not for sale" mean to you?

Regards, Peter.

[Newportnobby]

For nuisance calls I generally ask very politely the name of the company and the name of who is calling, then tell them I will be speaking to my solicitor about 'Invasion of Privacy' and they will hear from said solicitor very soon.
It seems to do the trick mostly

[kevin141]

Why can you never find the part you want but always find something that you had forgotten you had brought small parts,little kits etc OR IS IT ---- LAW at its best
kevin141 

[Newportnobby]

Why can you never find the part you want but always find something that you had forgotten you had brought small parts,little kits etc OR IS IT ---- LAW at its best
kevin141 

In my case it's just a duff memory
I'm getting quite bad at finding a bargain at shows/trade fairs and then 2 weeks later finding the same one I bought last year
My mandrawer overfloweth with rubbish so it's hard to find things anyway

[Bealman]

Dunno if you folk in the UK know what a 'barbeque mate' is - sort of like a multi-purpose spatula - but I've got two drawers full of 'em. I try to give them away but even me mates don't want to know.