[OPLINLIST] It's time to give up

[SWON Info]

Don’t you hate when technology stops working? I sure do, and not just because I do a lot of tech support. When something doesn’t work it can bring your day to a halt. 


One of the challenges of working with technology is that there are often many ways things can run. For example, lots of people get to their email by googling their email provider. Yes, people google “Gmail” instead of typing “gmail.com” in the address bar. Running a search isn’t as efficient as typing in an address, but it does work. 

Well, things work until they don’t. When things don’t work, here are a few steps I take to find the problem and (hopefully) fix it. I start down a checklist: check cable connections; make sure the network connection is working; quit and reopen the file/program; maybe close everything and restart the computer. Whatever I can check, I check. 

If those steps don’t fix the issue, it’s time to look at the process. “Can you show me how it usually works?” Sometimes there’s a step in there we can fix or catch a small error. But sometimes everything’s apparently as it should be and it still doesn’t work. That’s when it’s time to give up on that process. I try doing it a different way, or try googling the problem to find other possible solutions. Sometimes the fix you find leads to a better way of working, too. 

I’ll share more ways to troubleshoot at SWON’s Staff Training Symposium, October 23rd at the Boone County Public Library. Our theme for the Symposium is “Triage.” So whether it’s dealing with a difficult customer, a patron in sudden physical distress, touchy technology, or supporting distance-learning students, we’ll help you prepare to help others. And we’ll take care of you, with massage therapists and an ice cream sundae bar also on the day’s schedule. 

Catch our special Early Bird pricing when you sign up soon. Get full details and register here: http://tiny.cc/sts_triage 

Nathan Swartzendruber, SWON Technology Educator 
Connect to SWON online: Website : Calendar : Facebook : Twitter 
Calendar excerpts from the next two weeks. ( Please register for online classes at least two days before they take place.) 

    * The First 90 Days in Your Management or Supervisory Position - (9/5/2013) - Online 
    * Adult Planning and Services (SIG) Meeting - (9/9/2013) - Dayton Metro Library, Main Branch 
    * Master the Art of Connection and Communication - (9/10/2013) - Online 
    * ROYAL Review (SIG) Meeting - (9/10/2013) - SWON Conference Room 
    * ROYAL Review (SIG) Meeting - (9/10/2013) - Boone County Public Library, Main Branch 
    * Level-Up Lab: LinkedIn - (9/12/2013) - SWON Conference Room 
    * Time Management Tune-Up - (9/12/2013) - Online 
    * Library Directors & Personnel Directors (SIG) Meeting - (9/13/2013) - SWON Conference Room 
    * Delegating: When, How, and To Whom? - (9/17/2013) - Online 

SWON Libraries - http://www.swonlibraries.org 
10250 Alliance Road, Suite 225 
Blue Ash, OH 45242 
phone (513) 751-4422 - fax (513) 751-0463 
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