Article: 10434 of alt.sysadmin.recovery From: "Ralph Wade Phillips" Newsgroups: alt.sysadmin.recovery References: <9g68pv$lei$1@doppler.a2000.nl> Subject: Re: Lart by DNS Date: Tue, 12 Jun 2001 23:15:03 -0500 Keywords: B Sharp Approved: What he said! Lines: 58 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="Windows-1252" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Newsreader: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.50.4522.1200 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.50.4522.1200 Message-ID: <3b26e7b2_3@spamkiller.newsfeeds.com> X-Authenticated-User: ralphp1024 X-Comments: This message was posted through Spamkiller.Newsfeeds.com X-Comments2: IMPORTANT: Newsfeeds.com does not condone, nor support, spam or any illegal or copyrighted postings. X-Comments3: IMPORTANT: Under NO circumstances will postings containing illegal or copyrighted material through this service be tolerated!! X-Report: Please report illegal or inappropriate use to You may also use our online abuse reporting from: http://www.newsfeeds.com/abuseform.htm X-Abuse-Info: Please be sure to forward a copy of ALL headers, INCLUDING the body (DO NOT SEND ATTACHMENTS) Organization: Newsfeeds.com http://www.newsfeeds.com 73,000+ UNCENSORED Newsgroups. Path: news.meer.net!sea-read.news.verio.net!dfw-artgen.news.verio.net!dfw-peer.news.verio.net!news.verio.net!newsfeed.mathworks.com!arclight.uoregon.edu!hammer.uoregon.edu!feed.textport.net!local-out2.newsfeeds.com!spamkiller Xref: archive.mv.meer.net alt.sysadmin.recovery:10434 Grr ... "David P. Murphy" wrote in message news:tidk1dkhlrn9fa@news.supernews.com... > Paul Boven wrote: > > > Suuure. I wonder why anyone still bothers to code distinct > > error-messages into their software. You really just need two messages: > > "A strange thing has happened", and "A strange error has happened" > > for the serious errors. > > > > Ok, I'm exaggerating. > > > No, you're bloody well not. > Ah, a change from years gone by, back when people would actually READ the error messages. Two related ones - One, a customer of mine (who used to do COBOL programming on TRS-80 Model 16s running XENIX-68K) recently updated some software that's mission critical from the DOS version to a Windows version (don't laugh - it WAS an improvement!). So, he pops over to a local burn site (customer disposes of medical waste, such as sharps and soiled linen), and installs the update. He heads back to his office, and when he gets there (a 1 hour trip), he's got a voice mail that "This new computer you gave me{1} has this help-3 error on it, and we can't get any work done!" Being as how he has the source code, and there !IS! no "Help-3" error, or any variation thereof, he blows it off for a while as he's handling the corporate president's PHB-isness after said PHB has had a lapdance from a co-lo provider{2}. He gets four MORE calls about this same "Help-3" error. He calls the lady up, tries to explain to here that there's NOT a "Help-3" error and asks for exactly what does the error say? The lady says, and this is as exact a quote as I can get it third hand, "I don't care, I'm not going to read it, there IS such an error message, and you're going to give me back my old computer!"{3}. Customer drives back to burn site, goes in and looks at the computer that has on the screen "HP-III Error: Out of Paper" ... Two - Said customer's main accounting program DID have the error message "Shut her down! She's pumping mud!" in an oilfield accounting package he wrote ... RwP {1} Hmmm? Changed ONE shortcut and loaded a .INI file, and it's a new computer? Were that ALL upgrades were that nice. (2) Different rant, to come later. (3) See {1}.