"Tech Rage"

Discussion in 'hardware' started by hawki, Oct 13, 2016.

  1. hawki

    hawki Registered Member

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    "How many times a day do YOU shout at your PC? Researchers say the average American suffers 40,000 bouts of 'tech rage' over their lifetime.

    Americans will experience 40,800 technology malfunctions in a lifetime

    A new study finds these issues can cause 'tech rage' and 'tech stress'

    Many have reported physical alignments[sic] brought on by this stress

    Experts say working out is the best way to combat the rage and stress"



    "...In April 2015, a man from Colorado Springs, Colorado carried his computer into an alley and shot it eight times with a handgun after a long battle with the uncooperative machine... " [a new method of troubleshooting a PC :) ]

    "...One in seven Americans have thrown their phone across the room in frustration after it failed to function properly.

    Half of the 2,000 individuals in [a] study reported they have also yelled at a piece of technology and 16 percent have been reduced to tears..."

    http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencet...-suffers-40-000-bouts-tech-rage-lifetime.html
     
    Last edited: Oct 13, 2016
  2. Bill_Bright

    Bill_Bright Registered Member

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    What I would really like to know is, how many of those tech malfunctions where really due to "operator error"?
     
  3. plat1098

    plat1098 Guest

    How many affected machines were "wearing" a Microsoft Windows operating system? I bet you almost all of them.
     
  4. Bill_Bright

    Bill_Bright Registered Member

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    That's hardly a fair comment. For computers, the vast majority run Windows so of course, most of those will have a Windows OS. But it is important to put that into perspective. There are over 1.5 billion Windows computers out there and the vast majority are working just fine. And most of those with problems are due to something other than the OS itself, like the programs running on it, the hardware or the hardware drivers (which are the responsibility of the hardware maker, not Microsoft).

    Considering virtually every single one of those 1.5 billion systems became unique within minutes of first power up - as users configure their unique hardware setups (including drives and graphics and peripherals), unique security setups, users and users desktops, network configurations and more - I think it is remarkable how successful Microsoft has been! Of course if just 1% have problems (an outstanding success rate in any industry), that is still 1.5 million upset users. And 1.5 million users can make a lot of noise - especially with unethical journalists and bloggers and others in the IT press who are to seek attention with sensationalized, exaggerated (if not totally false) headlines! :(

    Plus note those "tech rage" figures include cell phone users. Windows Phones make up less than 2% of the market share.

    Article says,
    Nothing there points specifically to the OS.
     
  5. plat1098

    plat1098 Guest

    Of course my comment wasn't fair.- Too bad the study didn't encompass August 1, 2015 and onward, you would have seen a large spike in tech rage, probably taking place in various remote locations around the globe so as to escape detection.

    By the way, this machine runs and has run Windows flawlessly. It's so expected and taken for granted, it wouldn't take much if something went "awry." This is from an end-user's perspective.
     
  6. Bill_Bright

    Bill_Bright Registered Member

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    Not sure what you are suggesting but for sure, it does not include Samsung Note 7 phone users! I note the vast majority of W10 users are very happy with it.
     
  7. lotuseclat79

    lotuseclat79 Registered Member

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    Its all about User Expectations!!! Oftentimes, expectations are just unrealistic.

    -- Tom
     
  8. Bill_Bright

    Bill_Bright Registered Member

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    How true that is!
     
  9. plat1098

    plat1098 Guest

    Voila!

    You have people with unreal pressures, looming disasters, unreal stress, combined with negative experiences with their expensive machines. The vast majority of Windows 10 users may be happy but please acknowledge the significant number who experience disaster, OK? It doesn't take much in today's world. Many of us lack the expertise, insight and patience you have.

    I see you don't reside anywhere near New York City. That of itself can send one teetering on the brink. Trust me.
     
  10. Minimalist

    Minimalist Registered Member

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    I asked myself similar question. I would agree for personal computers, MS' OS is prevalent. But lately, I would say that cracked phone screens cause more tech stress or tech rage then software malfunction :)
     
  11. Bill_Bright

    Bill_Bright Registered Member

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    I did by saying "most", not "all". With an estimated 30 - 50 million lines of code in W10 (depending on version and installation), millions of combinations of hardware and installed software from 1000s of different makers and developers, it is inevitable there will be problems. And if those problems turn your computer into a big paper weight, the problems can undoubtedly be catastrophic - and frustrating.

    I have my own little computer shop so no way can I deny Windows is not infallible. Nor would I. But Windows and Microsoft (and even still Bill Gates) are falsely accused all the time when it is really something else causing the problems. I note Microsoft has been blamed for the entire security mess ever since XP came out when it was the bad guys who perpetrated the offenses, not Microsoft. And it was the anti-malware industry (Norton, McAfee, CA, TrendMicro, AVG, Avira, Bitdefender, Kaspersky, et al) who failed miserably!! :mad:, I might add, to protect us as they promised Congress, the EU, and us consumers it was their job to do! But that's for another discussion.

    That said, I would venture to say the vast majority of people experiencing W10 problems - real "problems", not just "I don't like it" issues - are those who upgraded computers. That is, I believe users with new computers made of hardware designed for and came preinstalled with W10 have fewer problems than those who upgraded older hardware. Admittedly, I am only going by what I personally have seen, which is more than most users but in the grand scheme of things is very limited.

    And the older the hardware, the more problems. This last fact I am sure of. That is, those who upgraded from W7 or before era hardware were more likely to have problems than those who upgraded from W8.1 era hardware. But even still, most W7 to W10 upgrades went smoothly too. But many did not. :(

    That's immaterial. All that means is it make take longer for me to get to the point I throw my phone against the wall. It also suggests I might have fewer user-induced problems. It does not suggest Windows itself is less likely to break.

    In many cases, it is the more experienced user who has problems because they "dink" (a very high-tech term ;)) with Windows more. If users today with modern Windows just left the default settings alone and stopped trying to fix what was not broken by thinking they are smarter than the MS engineers and developers, they would have fewer problems. Of that I have no doubts.
    I can't speak to that, but it would not surprise me. For me, I use my smart phone for... what do they call them? Oh yeah; phone calls! ;) I don't live on my smart phone because I refuse to give up my full size keyboard, mouse, surround sound and two 24" monitors! But I do carry my smart phone with me when go in my truck or hit the bike trails in case I have to make an emergency "phone" call! I don't carry it my back pocket so I don't sit on it. And I also have it in one of those gel protective covers which work great as I have dropped my phone several times and it remains unscathed.
     
  12. For most novice/average users, just turning on the system and finding the applications they want to use is enough to send them over the edge, let alone an issue like say MS update breaking something, or a driver conflict, ect. For those that work on computers on a every day basis, they can attest you will not only begin to swear at some point, but you may actually start inventing new swear words to do it with ;) :)
     
  13. Bill_Bright

    Bill_Bright Registered Member

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    This would certainly be frustrating, and with W10 now automating the process, it happens way more often than it should. But the reality is there are over 300 million W10 users and when these problems occur, it is only with a few 1000 systems. That's clearly a few 1000 too many, but is really just tiny fractions of 1%. But what is worse is not keeping our systems updated. Keeping Windows current is paramount to keeping Windows and our computers secure. And Microsoft puts security first, and I applaud them for that.

    I used to be a real control freak with my computers so I understand too why many want total manual control over Windows Updates. But since W7, Microsoft really has produced some great reliable operating systems. Even W8 was technically a great OS and would have been a great success if the Microsoft marketing people didn't try to jam a lousy UI down on us.

    Driver conflicts are certainly another issue, but Microsoft has published wide and far the standards and protocols hardware makers need to comply with to ensure compatibility. And note these standards and protocols were set and agreed on by the hardware and software industries together. Windows meets those standards so now it is up the hardware makers to ensure "their" drivers adhere to those standards and protocols.

    The problem with hardware support is three-fold. (1) Consumers keep demanding more powerful/faster, smaller, and more efficient hardware. (2) The hardware industries keep advancing the state-of-the-art in their own competitive arenas. (3) There is zero incentive ($0 return on investment) for hardware makers to develop new drivers for their obsolete, superseded legacy hardware.

    So if Epson refuses to make W10 drivers for a 10 year old inkjet that has been out of production for 8 years, we cannot blame Microsoft - but many still do.
     
  14. plat1098

    plat1098 Guest

    Phone?? Who's talking about a phone?? Let us put the little instruments of torture to the side, because it goes without saying. Besides, this study would have had more meat on its bones had the operating systems on the reportedly affected machines been included. Let's see the proportions.

    No it is NOT. The odds that a software/computer expert would go out and shoot his machine are lower than those of anyone else, using the Anniversary Edition as an example. Maybe not as low as before, though. When did clean installs and ISOs become "fashionable?" After the fact, much after. By then, damage was done. And Microsoft is not an innocent lamb (Wilders! No suitable emoji!), it takes two to tango. Always. Maybe if MS wouldn't be out shopping for a new corporation every other month.....never mind.

    I play devil's advocate because I identify strongly with the underdog, "average" user. Experts can generally take care of themselves in this context. And yes, my arguments were driven by something else. I simply cannot stand Microsoft.
     
  15. zapjb

    zapjb Registered Member

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    I did the math.

    Of those tech malfunctions 40,799 were due to operator error.
     
  16. Bill_Bright

    Bill_Bright Registered Member

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    :D :p
    That's true. I was just commenting about the fact of a newbie having problems where an expert will not. I don't think it matters if an expert or not - thus is immaterial.
     
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