We’ve all done it. We see a person and make an assumption about them based on clothes they’re wearing, the car they drive, or the house they live in. I’m famous for drawing assumptions without asking questions or even knowing the person. Rarely am I correct in my conjecture; most of the time I’m off in left field.
Repairing peoples’ equipment and setting up networks requires a ton of questions to try and decipher issues. All of the questions I ask focus on the who, what, why, where, and how equipment is used. Answers to my questions can reveal a ton of information about the type of person using the equipment as well as lead me to a possible solution.
Take for example a desktop computer which is used by a broad range of people. Asking how a person uses their tower reveals some interesting stuff about the user. I would say 80% of tower owners are families and most of them connect peripheral devices like iPods. Because desktop computers pack the most bang for the buck, tower owners tend to be somewhat prudent.
Laptop owners tend to be mobile, and those who aren’t want to be. Although not as powerful as desktop counterparts, laptops are the closest to desktops in portable power. Owners of flashy laptops want people to notice them working. On the contrary, people who purchase black or drab machines are simply purchasing them to be productive.
While I was on the subway a few weeks ago I noticed single men with no wedding rings fidgeting with tablets. My daughter was the first to point out that in our car there were at least five men with tablets. Women simply don’t use them (or at least don’t travel with them). Outside of some salespeople who use tablets in their business, tablets have no real use except to kill time. Therefore, tablet owners have expendable income with no real responsibility.
Rarest of all is the person who uses only an iPhone or Android based smartphone to surf cyberspace. They are so rare, in fact, that I can literally name each I’ve met. Complex and sophisticated with an undercurrent of power because of large responsibilities pretty much sums these rare birds. When you meet one watch out because they don’t have time to waste on a computer so talk better not be small either.
I’ve found the choice of internet providers reveals a lot about people unless it’s dictated by location or other limitations. Dialup customers tend to lead simple lives and are the most frugal of all. DSL users tend to not worry about the masses and are ultra secure. There’s a snob appeal to having the fastest and best, so cable subscribers tend to be a tad bit more arrogant than the others.
Finally, the one person who embraces all technologies and has cable internet is the geek. He ties his laptops, desktop, smartphone and tablet into a redundant array of data servers all running harmoniously. In his off-kilter world, the only thing running smoothly is his technology. I’ve found the geek to be a genuinely nice guy with a few personal issues.
If there was a career linking technology and psychology I’d certainly want to hone my resume and go back to school. I’ve seen some really neat connections between the two over the years and although I’m no psychologist I’ve had a lot of fun discovering their correlation. It would be great if I could meet a geek-shrink similar to me who also overanalyzes situations so I can get in a session or two.
(Jeromy Patriquin is the President of Laptop & Computer Repair, Inc. located at 509 Main St. in Gardner. You can call him directly at (978) 919-8059) or visit www.LocalComputerWiz.com.