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Arguments against IT staff in open plan office

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They’d just pinch a neighbour’s in their open-plan office and then a game of rodent-based musical chairs would break out

Due to this in my open plan office, mouses, keyboards and HDMI cables are cable tied to each desk to stop them going walkies and its actually worked.


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 10:54 am
 poly
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Due to this in my open plan office, mouses, keyboards and HDMI cables are cable tied to each desk to stop them going walkies and its actually worked.

No wonder people bring knives to the office!  Cutting up apples is just an excuse - liberating the cables is the real reason!


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 11:20 am
funkmasterp, Cougar, theotherjonv and 5 people reacted
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My general approach is to send the new device back to them (which would also arrive with the same problem)

Most of that is down to deskilling of the staff and hence new laptop/reimaging is basically the first and last option.
I did have some great fun with our helpdesk around webex crashing my computer whenever a meeting was started. Asking for a screenshare to "see the problem" and then getting confused when it ended abruptly and asking why I had dropped off line.
They fell back to the reimage and I then had to dodge their requests for several weeks until they gave up since getting everything set back up on my laptop would cost me several days.
Ended up using phone/browser instead until a random update fixed it.


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 11:39 am
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I got a Logitech "POP" keyboard and mouse from the OH for Christmas.

You can hear me sending an angry e-mail from the other end of the open plan office 😂

Ironically one of the marketing points of the mouse is "silent click", really?? When Paired with a mechanical keyboard??

In truth, I can’t remember when I last came across a report of a faulty mouse, probably back when they still had a ball

I got through one of the generic Dell ones every ~8 months, the scroll wheels give up. Working on engineering drawings so lots of zooming in/out.


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 11:54 am
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Crikey. I'm glad I worked in Distrubution and Sales. We had a "Robbie-the-robot" who used to fix stuff for us. Bless 'I'm.


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 12:11 pm
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Not usually.

‘Oi my mouse isn’t working’

vs tapping away for at least 30 seconds whilst that stuff is entered into the ticketing software.

Are you saying do not log the ticket? Otherwise I do not see how this argument counters mine?


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 12:24 pm
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I’m now the proud owner of a new Logitech anywhere 2.

That's what I have.

I had a Logitech Nano since 2008, it's been nothing short of perfect. When I started WFH I needed a second mouse, went back to Logitech, found the Anywhere 2 which looked to be the spiritual successor to the Nano and bought it.

It arrived, I unboxed it, was astonished at how identical they were. I went to show my partner who was in the kitchen, "hey, check this out..." at which point the old mouse squirted out of my hand and hit the deck. Late 19th Century Earthenware tiles fired in the kilns of Mordor which were instadeath to anything dropped from a height of more than about three inches.* I had two mice for a grand total of about six minutes. Fortunately the new one works with three devices.

(* I'm not really exaggerating. I had a glass bottle fall from the bottom shelf of a bottom cupboard, so the height of the kickboard, and shatter. I got adept at instinctively arresting falls with my foot. Great when you knock your favourite mug off the worktop; less great when it's a chef's knife and you're wearing sandals.)


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 1:09 pm
Murray and Murray reacted
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I did have some great fun with our helpdesk around webex crashing my computer whenever a meeting was started. Asking for a screenshare to “see the problem” and then getting confused when it ended abruptly and asking why I had dropped off line.

I have a hundred of these tales, I could (and am tempted to) write a book.

One time, I was monitoring / assisting with a call for a junior Tech. A chap rings in with a complaint that when his modem dials out (different times), the phone line gets cut off. Dave says, "OK, can you just try that now for me please, and we'll see if we can work out what's going on?" The customer wails, "but that will cut me off!" Dave hits Mute, turns to me with fear in his eyes, "shit, they're getting smarter!"


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 1:12 pm
Murray, spooky_b329, spooky_b329 and 1 people reacted
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I'm more of an MX Master type, the form looks very similar to my G700s including the mighty clutchless scroll wheel. I now hate clicky scroll for anything more than a few lines.


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 2:33 pm
Murray, Sandwich, Murray and 1 people reacted
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MX Master because it is unlikely to walk in our office. All my colleague are people of a certain age who struggle with ultra-fast scrolling!


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 2:45 pm
 Pyro
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I have a Logitech Lift (because I have a wonky right wrist) and an MX Mini keyboard. Even if I leave the laptop at work, the mouse and keyboard come home with me at night...


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 3:24 pm
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rogermooreFull Member
I think anyone, no matter their role/department, going from working separately to open plan will bring up some apprehensions – I don’t think it will be as bad as what you think and you and your colleagues will work it out.
RM.

I'm amazed that this advice from Mr Moore has been ignored. The man is an expert in working in open plan environments, literally anything from a casino to a volcano via, weirdly, a circus.  I mean he even invaded an African country once. Have any of you ever seen him ring IT support? That's the sort of self sufficiency we need. The timer is in the red, you need to make a decision about which wire to cut (with your possible illegal but ever-so-useful) knife and you are having trouble raising a ticket with IT... No, What Would Moore Do?


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 4:15 pm
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Raises eyebrow


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 5:29 pm
hardtailonly, funkmasterp, Cougar and 7 people reacted
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I now hate clicky scroll for anything more than a few lines.

It's toggleable on the mouse with a click of the wheel. The traditional middle-click is a button just below.

I’m amazed that this advice from Mr Moore has been ignored.

I've shared an open-plan office with Mr Moore, albeit the STW poster rather than the more well known one.


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 8:55 pm
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Build a maze out of the office divider panels and stick this at the entrance. They either use the wheel or try to navigate the maze.

[url= https://i.postimg.cc/ZnLhqdLk/Modern-Helpdesk.pn g" target="_blank">https://i.postimg.cc/ZnLhqdLk/Modern-Helpdesk.pn g"/> [/img][/url]

[url= https://i.postimg.cc/gchVTKgt/Office-Dividers.pn g" target="_blank">https://i.postimg.cc/gchVTKgt/Office-Dividers.pn g"/> [/img][/url]


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 11:20 pm
oldtennisshoes, Murray, oldtennisshoes and 1 people reacted
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I feel like most people posting on this thread either work in IT support or get their knowledge from watching old episodes of the IT crowd.

This is an interesting venn diagram judging from my user experience


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 11:52 pm
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Ah @cougar I really miss your blue neon fish bowl.
RM.


 
Posted : 21/02/2024 11:56 pm
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It’s toggleable on the mouse with a click of the wheel. The traditional middle-click is a button just below.

Mine is the other way round, I prefer it like that. Just wish the other bazillion buttons worked natively.


 
Posted : 22/02/2024 12:08 am
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Ah @cougar I really miss your blue neon fish bowl.

I have photos of its evacuation, and of the building in general. It's quite sad. I think it was me and Andy (IT) who were the last men standing strip-mining it before the doors closed.

Apologies to everyone else, RM and I worked together and this will mean nothing to anyone else.


 
Posted : 22/02/2024 12:45 am
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15+ years ago when I was last in an IT support role we moved office, inc. moving from having our own room to being in the open plan. I wasn't happy about it either, worrying about constant user interruptions etc. (trying to bypass the helpdesk system) but in reality, apart from a few annoying users who had to be told a few times to raise a ticket it wasn't much of an issue. Was sometimes a problem back when we'd build a physical server in the office being taking it to a DC (complaints about noise) but these days most stuff is either virtual or built in the DC anyway. We also still had a separate room with a keycode locked door for storage of IT stuff - I'd at least make sure you have something similar


 
Posted : 22/02/2024 8:41 am
Murray and Murray reacted
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I’d at least make sure you have something similar

I'd make sure I had a desk in there. 😁


 
Posted : 22/02/2024 3:09 pm
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You misspelled 'workbench'.


 
Posted : 22/02/2024 6:13 pm
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Update

bought nice headphones

sat in current office, tried noise cancelling off and on... Brilliant.. more than happy

got into the idea of being social, friendly.. maybe even buying some tidy kit to wear at work...

plan update

Boss now has an office on 1st floor

I'm now moved into what was his office and the main rack room/ build room/ storeroom etc... Now i feel a little lost about the whole thing.. but.. as i see it i will be in a glass box with an open door which suits me , boss being on the first floor is ridiculous, when he is in the office is when we go over stuff together... ah well


 
Posted : 08/03/2024 3:52 pm
kelvin and kelvin reacted
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boss being on the first floor is ridiculous

Sounds ideal to me. 😁


 
Posted : 08/03/2024 4:08 pm
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Posted : 08/03/2024 4:12 pm
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