Author Topic: The computing stuff rant thread  (Read 396392 times)

Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1525 on: 06 November, 2017, 09:17:41 am »
I can't get my IP phone to register in order to use it. I don't have administrator rights to install IP telephony to use instead. The page on the IT website to raise a request is a 404.

I'm using my personal mobile.
Quote from: Kim
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SoreTween

  • Most of me survived the Pennine Bridleway.
Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1526 on: 07 November, 2017, 04:31:03 pm »
I don't know whether to blame our mind-bogglingly useless IT dept or Microsoft but this:
'There are no logon servers available to service the logon request'
Is not a helpful message when hurtling at 100+ mph north on a beardy train towards a site demo in the morning.
2023 targets: Survive. Maybe.
There is only one infinite resource in this universe; human stupidity.

Feanor

  • It's mostly downhill from here.
Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1527 on: 07 November, 2017, 06:00:16 pm »
It means that your laptop is not connected to your work's domain network, and so it failed to contact a Domain Controller to check your Username / Password.

If you have previously logged on to that laptop when it *was* connected to the domain, then the laptop should have cached a copy of your credentials so that you can logon when you are offline from the domain.

But the first time a user logs onto a machine, it needs to be connected to the domain, usually by wired Ethernet.
Subsequent logins can be off-line from the domain.


Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1528 on: 07 November, 2017, 06:47:56 pm »
If the wifi provider is hijacking DNS and returning "helpful" responses when your laptop looks up something that a public server can't resolve, instead of the proper NXDOMAIN response, they're pointed at the web server that is supposed to return an advert-laden suggestion of what your typo-ed URL might have been. Obviously that web server can't respond to a login request, but because the DNS lookup didn't fail, the client can be fooled into thinking it's on the home network and the domain controller is down, with predictably hilarious results.

So it might be neither Microsoft nor your IT department, but beardy train man's WiFi breaking the rules that's causing the problem

ian

Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1529 on: 07 November, 2017, 07:34:24 pm »
Back when I had a Dell, it used to give me the same message at least once a week when there really was a logon server. The solution was to flip the wifi switch to off and plug in an ethernet cable at which point a logon server kindly made itself known and 'serviced my request.' I guess that relates to the explanations above.

Owing to the wonders of our outsourced IT I'm two weeks into not being able to access anything because they failed to 'migrate my domain' (top tip IT people, this means nothing to non-IT people). I'm not clear what they want me to do about it. I don't really much care, it's only SAP and Salesforce that need the VPN, and oh well, I'm heartbroken I can't get to those. Long may the incompetence continue. It's going to be a very long time if they're expecting me to fix it.

SoreTween

  • Most of me survived the Pennine Bridleway.
Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1530 on: 07 November, 2017, 10:08:02 pm »
The critical word in Feanors post is 'should'. It's a new to me laptop delivered yesterday (2 weeks late) but rebooted on the lan numerous times. Several reboots off the lan too to check the vpn via the guest network.
After 50 minutes in my hotel waiting in the queue just for my call to IT to be answered I gave up. 
A year or so ago I had some wierd shit going on with my old desktop, when talking the IT team through how they might diagnose it (I didn't have admin rights then) I suggested checking event viewer. 'We don't have that on our PCs was the answer.
They also do not understand the difference between connecting with whatever viewer they use to take over the mouse and keyboard of my session vs making a connection with their own admin credentials. Proved that when I couldn't do something so I called IT and they connected via viewer to do it....
Useless.
2023 targets: Survive. Maybe.
There is only one infinite resource in this universe; human stupidity.

Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1531 on: 09 November, 2017, 12:23:54 pm »
rebooted on the lan numerous times. Several reboots off the lan

IRTA

Quote
rebooted on the ian numerous times. Several reboots off the ian

And thought 'have you not read his post above'

Grow a brain Si.

TheLurker

  • Goes well with magnolia.
Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1532 on: 09 November, 2017, 07:02:52 pm »
Microsoft, p'raps I've said enough already?  No?  OK. 

For reasons that _totally_ escape me it decided in its infinite wisdom that when returning JSON from a WebMethod on an ASPX page (don't ask; you _really_ don't want to know) that instead of its built in converter handing out POJ  it wraps it so instead of the client getting what you think you've sent, say, an object something like fred :  [{jim}, {sheila}, ...] you get  d : { fred : [...]}  What the blazes!?   Returning JSON from a controller action in MVC the client gets what you sent.  Baffled and ticked off.
Τα πιο όμορφα ταξίδια γίνονται με τις δικές μας δυνάμεις - Φίλοι του Ποδήλατου

Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1533 on: 11 November, 2017, 07:37:37 am »
Microsoft, p'raps I've said enough already?  No?  OK. 

For reasons that _totally_ escape me it decided in its infinite wisdom that when returning JSON from a WebMethod on an ASPX page (don't ask; you _really_ don't want to know) that instead of its built in converter handing out POJ  it wraps it so instead of the client getting what you think you've sent, say, an object something like fred :  [{jim}, {sheila}, ...] you get  d : { fred : [...]}  What the blazes!?   Returning JSON from a controller action in MVC the client gets what you sent.  Baffled and ticked off.

It's to prevent a particular cross-site scripting attack: https://haacked.com/archive/2008/11/20/anatomy-of-a-subtle-json-vulnerability.aspx/
Quote from: tiermat
that's not science, it's semantics.

Mr Larrington

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Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1534 on: 16 November, 2017, 12:33:01 am »
Dear Piriform,

I see you.  I see you trying to sneak the fucking Avast virus onto my PC when updating CCleaner.

Just stop it, you mangy fuckweasels.  I fucking see you >:(
External Transparent Wall Inspection Operative & Mayor of Mortagne-au-Perche
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Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1535 on: 16 November, 2017, 10:58:48 am »
Dear colleague, if you didn't name all your files \MyProject\MyProjectPart1\Part1SectionA\PartOneSectionADocuments\<stupidlongcompanyIDthing>Document_About_Part_One_Section_A_Reviewed_By_Fred_And_Jim.doc then you might not get complaints about the length of your file name.
(Yes, it is probably the rubbish system too, but I swear he really does name his files like that...)

Chris S

Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1536 on: 16 November, 2017, 11:06:45 am »
Dear colleague, if you didn't name all your files \MyProject\MyProjectPart1\Part1SectionA\PartOneSectionADocuments\<stupidlongcompanyIDthing>Document_About_Part_One_Section_A_Reviewed_By_Fred_And_Jim.doc then you might not get complaints about the length of your file name.
(Yes, it is probably the rubbish system too, but I swear he really does name his files like that...)

When did naming things become an essay-writing exercise? I once had to undertake major surgery on a Database/API because apparently 255 characters wasn't enough to name things - users wanted 2000 characters  :facepalm:.

Mr Larrington

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Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1537 on: 16 November, 2017, 02:15:23 pm »
If you can't name it in 8.3 it probably wasn't worth creating in the first place :demon:
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Satisfying the Bloodlust of the Masses in Peacetime

Mr Larrington

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Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1538 on: 21 November, 2017, 11:43:35 am »
Thank you, WD, for updating the firmware in that NAS.  And if you could make the admin login work under Chrome again, why, that'd be just peachy!
External Transparent Wall Inspection Operative & Mayor of Mortagne-au-Perche
Satisfying the Bloodlust of the Masses in Peacetime

Mr Larrington

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Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1539 on: 03 December, 2017, 10:13:24 pm »
Macrium, I am starting to lose patience.  No backups run on $BOX since 23/11.  "XML Validation error" in the backup definition file.  OK, delete backup - including the XML file and the entry from the Task Scheduler - and re-create from scratch.  Full backup run successfully.

Today, differential backup fails with "XML Validation error" >:(  Look, Product, you wrote the fucking XML file in the first place, so what's gone wrong with it in the last 24 hours?  Not me, that's for sure, because I was mucking about on another machine all night.

Just stop it.
External Transparent Wall Inspection Operative & Mayor of Mortagne-au-Perche
Satisfying the Bloodlust of the Masses in Peacetime

menthel

  • Jim is my real, actual name
Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1540 on: 07 December, 2017, 12:27:36 pm »
Thanks IT dept for breaking e-signing on the internal training website in IE and not telling anyone. Even better, thanks for not telling us all about the super secret way of getting to the same site in Chrome that then makes the e-signing possible. FFS.

Mr Larrington

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Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1541 on: 07 December, 2017, 07:48:58 pm »
Macrium issue solved, by accident.  Change a settting - any setting - and save change.  Backup then works :facepalm:
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David Martin

  • Thats Dr Oi You thankyouverymuch
Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1542 on: 07 December, 2017, 08:12:16 pm »
Our online exams system isn't. That means no marking for the exams that are in the system, and frantically generating paper copies for tomorrow morning whilst the pixies in IT attempt to generate new magic smoke and get it back where it belongs.
"By creating we think. By living we learn" - Patrick Geddes

Feanor

  • It's mostly downhill from here.
Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1543 on: 07 December, 2017, 09:29:36 pm »
Our online exams system isn't. That means no marking for the exams that are in the system, and frantically generating paper copies for tomorrow morning whilst the pixies in IT attempt to generate new magic smoke and get it back where it belongs.

Ah, fond memories of my former work where we used QuestionMark :-)

barakta

  • Bastard lovechild of Yomiko Readman and Johnny 5
Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1544 on: 07 December, 2017, 10:25:50 pm »
Is there any online exam system which doesn't suck?

ePEN as used by Edexcel is still so bad a friend who has to use it curses every marking year and her sysadmin husband makes her run it in a quarantined VM cos otherwise he won't allow it on his network... Shite educational software...

David Martin

  • Thats Dr Oi You thankyouverymuch
Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1545 on: 07 December, 2017, 10:48:01 pm »
This one doesn't suck too badly and we have a good relationship with the developers. First time we have had problems.

Questionmark on the other hand .. We were invited to a session to introduce us to Questionmark on Demand. We cancelled the second session on behalf of our colleagues (to save them the grief) and said basically 'Why are we beta testing this $#!%. Call us when it is ready for production' and told the Learning Technologists that they would be doing all the question editing for us if they implemented it like that because we sure as *** weren't going to use it.

And then one of the techs decided to send a merry email about the pending upgrade to this being rolled out by next semester at which point we went ballistic and the boss had a full and frank face to face conversation with the senior management over it. Tech now has a sore wrist...

So many process fails - like a graduate student has been let loose with a webkit and hasn't actually done any thinking about usability or workflow and sure as anything hasn't tested it for real.
"By creating we think. By living we learn" - Patrick Geddes

David Martin

  • Thats Dr Oi You thankyouverymuch
Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1546 on: 08 December, 2017, 12:10:22 pm »
IT support - during exams please make sure the team that know how to fix the exam software are on call, not rocking up to a barrage of trouble at 9am when we have been trying to find you since just gone 5pm yesterday.
"By creating we think. By living we learn" - Patrick Geddes

barakta

  • Bastard lovechild of Yomiko Readman and Johnny 5
Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1547 on: 08 December, 2017, 06:11:46 pm »
Not surprised re shite attempts to upgrade, I'm glad your SMT backed you.

Booo to the wrong kind of IT support at 9am, plonkers!

My exwork are waiting out the 5 years of ShitSoftwareTM so they can legitimately get Something Anything Else cos it's terrible and everyone hates it. The arrogant twat who headed procurement has actually climbed off his high horse enough to apologise... Only took 1 legal action (mine) and 100+ people complaining with evidence over 2.5 years to get that then.. TWAT.


Mr Larrington

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Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1548 on: 14 December, 2017, 07:18:20 pm »
Now attend, Mega-Global Fruit Corporation of Cupertino, USAnia!  If you decide it's time to update iThings then they least you could do is actually allow me to download the bloody thing instead of tanking with a cryptic message about an invalid signature.  Sort it out u muppets!

Just works?  My arse.
External Transparent Wall Inspection Operative & Mayor of Mortagne-au-Perche
Satisfying the Bloodlust of the Masses in Peacetime

barakta

  • Bastard lovechild of Yomiko Readman and Johnny 5
Re: The computing stuff rant thread
« Reply #1549 on: 18 December, 2017, 08:12:13 pm »
Dear hearing aids,

Audiologist turned OFF all the clever shite... So why are you AGCing on my music and flattening sound every time there is something you think is background noise?  Sounds fucking appalling... I keep thinking the battery is flat!  And the streamer is giving me neck ache with its shitty neck wire, so I need DAI in the aid!

Dear person at Oticon,

Answer my fucking email! You didn't understand relay which is why you gave me your email address but that seems to have gone into a black fucking hole.


I have now prodded Oticon on Twitter to see if that gets me anything and if nothing else I'll harangue them by relay tomorrow.

If no dice from Oticon, then these are going back and Audiology can bloody well find a bone conduction hearing aid which isn't full of meddling shite. I'm not taking no for an answer. Really not! I'm sick of thinking my battery is flat.