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In high school I was taking a programming class (VB  ) and the teacher assigned a little project (choose one out of two) due a week later. I could program then, but nobody else could, so everybody started asking me to "help" them (help=do it all for me.)
So I decided I would charge about $10 US for the easier and $15 for the more difficult. I said I would have no mercy even with those who were very close friends of mine. One project, I remember, was filling a combo box with a list of colors, and changing the form background as the list selection changed. Each project took me around 15 minutes at most.
I made over $200 that week! A very close friend of mine refused to pay me and said he would find someone else to help him. Half an hour before turning in the project, he came to me, 10 dollars on his hand, and ask me to do it for him. 
-- LuisR
___________
Luis Alonso Ramos
Chihuahua, Mexico
www.luisalonsoramos.com
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Don't you find that....ummm...slightly unethical? 
"if you vote me down, I shall become more powerful than you can possibly imagine" - Michael P. Butler.
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Just slightly 
Seriously, what part are you talking about? the doing homework for others part or the charging my friends part?
About doing homework for others, well... I didn't know it was homework, I was just being an outside consultant 
And about charging my friends, well, I still did around 20, imagine if it had been free? 
And if I had just said no, probably two or three people (myself included) would have turned in the assignment.
-- LuisR
___________
Luis Alonso Ramos
Chihuahua, Mexico
www.luisalonsoramos.com
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I am more than willing to fix any problem with people's computers - often it's bit of a pain but it seems like a nice thing to do for my friends. But there are a few scenarious that I really hate:
1. Monitors set to 60Hz - It amazes me that there are people who leave there computers flickering like this. Luckily within 30sec I can have the it up to a more healthhy 100Hz, and all is well!
2. Chicken and egg situations - Computers that are broken in a way that is really tough to fix. Like when windows has a broken file, but you can only replace it using the web - which of course you can't get to without the file. You can either 1. Drive home, and hope you can get the correct replacment onto CD or 2. Reinstall which takes _ages_
3. Computers that need tidying - This is not so much an annoyance as a time killer. I really am a perfectionist when it comes to computers! I find myself spending hours removing all the spyware, and spending ages downloading the latest patches, usually over a dialup.
4. Large downloads over dialups - And with my luck the ISP will always hang up halfway through or somthing!
But most of all
5. The Rabbit Hole effect - You find a computer, and somone who's not good at maintaining a system long term. You will fix the computer to be the tidyest, most efficient, and best set up computer in the whole town, but you just know that 3-6 months later they'll phone you again because things have fallen into ruins!
Joel Holdsworth
Wanna give me a job over the summer?
View my online CV and Job Application[^]
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Joel Holdsworth wrote:
Chicken and egg situations - Computers that are broken in a way that is really tough to fix. Like when windows has a broken file, but you can only replace it using the web - which of course you can't get to without the file. You can either 1. Drive home, and hope you can get the correct replacment onto CD or 2. Reinstall which takes _ages_
Never had that happen to me, but a friend of my was trying to fix a PC for his grandma (and she is a technophobic). Anyway, my friend went to download the updated driver from MS, and she didn't want him to download it because she thought that Microsoft would use the driver to take over her PC!!!
Joel Holdsworth wrote:
Computers that need tidying - This is not so much an annoyance as a time killer. I really am a perfectionist when it comes to computers! I find myself spending hours removing all the spyware, and spending ages downloading the latest patches, usually over a dialup.
I was once trying to free up some disk space on a friends PC. Just after she had gotten it, her sons installed some games onto it (MOHAA, AOK, etc.), and they put a lot of their pictures on it (they had over 5Gb of pictures) and suddenly poof! Their HDD was semi-full. Well, I looked at the system restore, and they had set it to backup 12Gb. She wouldn't let me change it.
Joel Holdsworth wrote:
Large downloads over dialups - And with my luck the ISP will always hang up halfway through or somthing!
You must have good luck.
Joel Holdsworth wrote:
The Rabbit Hole effect - You find a computer, and somone who's not good at maintaining a system long term. You will fix the computer to be the tidyest, most efficient, and best set up computer in the whole town, but you just know that 3-6 months later they'll phone you again because things have fallen into ruins!
Aaron Eldreth
TheCollective4.com
My Articles
While much is too strange to be believed,
Nothing is too strange to have happened.
- T. Hardy
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Joel Holdsworth wrote:
Monitors set to 60Hz
IIRC EU H&S regulations state a minimum of 72Hz. Obviously if this is in someone's home then they can do what they like, but if it is in an office then the standard must be complied with.
Joel Holdsworth wrote:
The Rabbit Hole effect
I know what you mean. I try to convince my dad to take more care with the stuff he installs. He is getting better but over time it still builds up.
"You can have everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want." --Zig Ziglar
The Second EuroCPian Event will be in Brussels on the 4th of September
Can't manage to P/Invoke that Win32 API in .NET? Why not do interop the wiki way!
My Blog
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People constantly ask me to fix their computer. Even for the most dumb things as: insert the cd, wait for the autorun and follow the instructions...
What they don't realize is that I (even in school) work almost 8 hours a day with that stupid computer. Therefore I don't want other peoples pc problems after work.
So when I don't know the people very well, a strong RTFM is the answer, otherwise a polite NO should do the trick...
Yes, I know, this is not very polite, but heck, I need my spare time for sleep and fun stuff...;P
A student knows little about a lot.
A professor knows a lot about little.
I know everything about nothing.
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sometimes it's really annoying because even as a developer you have other things to do than fixing other people PCs...
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Yes, sure hairstylists and car mechanics and plumbers get asked for freebies, but a plumber is not asked to fix the wiring and a hairstylist isn't asked for a manicure.
That is my problem with people asking me for freeby IT work. They see I work with computers and assume that means I work with everything to do with computers.
Sorry chaps but I can't fix your linux box, should have bought Windows. Sorry mum, no idea about your Outlook Express problem, I do Outlook and Exchange. Sorry sis, Matlab I have no idea about, I use calc.exe. Pal, you want me to solder on that extra fan? Sure, if you don't mind me melting your motherboard in the process.
IT is too young for non-IT people to distinguish one dialect from another. I might know you do PHP and not ASP, but our parents sure as heck don't.
Give it awhile, wait for IT to really get into everyday life and the requests will become saner. Till then, smile and know the numbers of good hardware support guys
regards,
Paul Watson
Bluegrass
South Africa
Ian Darling wrote:
"and our loonies usually end up doing things like Monty Python."
Crikey! ain't life grand?
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Paul Watson wrote:
That is my problem with people asking me for freeby IT work. They see I work with computers and assume that means I work with everything to do with computers.
You just described my mom. She once asked me some out-of-the-blue question about some legal docketing software she uses at work. Never mind that I have no idea what docketing is, but she thought I would instantly know how to use this software, over the phone. 
--Mike--
Personal stuff:: Ericahist | Homepage
Shareware stuff:: 1ClickPicGrabber | RightClick-Encrypt
CP stuff:: CP SearchBar v2.0.2 | C++ Forum FAQ
----
If my rhyme was a drug, I'd sell it by the gram.
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I remember once my mom asked me to set the speed dial buttons on a new phone. It turned out to be easy, but I hate using the phone I don't spend time on the phone or using a phone and she assumed i already knew how to do it.
Then again my mom always assumes I know how do use/fix anything electricity related 
Matt Newman
All rise for the honorable Judge Stone Cold Steve Austin - From Dilbert Episode 30
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Sure they ask me, and I try to help. I.e. the car mechanic who happens to be a friend of mine fixes my motorcycle, so I fix his computer. They are friends or family, so they understand when I got to tell them if I had no time this time.
Besides, I like to work on something I can touch from time to time....
dirk
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I reckon some people just have it in their nature to ask for freebies, but yes, it does seem like IT is a particular area of annoyance. After some time I've realised that it's a combination of things which leads to this. Lack of understanding, and the way we get used to all things IT related being instant. People dialup and download web pages, with no understanding of what's going on behind the scenes. They also have no wish to understand. They just want it to WORK! *
I've found a similar thing with photography however. Recently I was roped into being the only photog at a family wedding. I guess I just need lessons in saying "no". Or perhaps I've just been unlucky in my career choices
* Apparently today is my day for gross generalizations
Look at the world about you and trust to your own convictions. - Ansel Adams
Meg's World - Blog
Photography
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Megan Forbes wrote:
I was roped into being the only photog at a family wedding
That sounds like a recipe for lots of self-inflicted pain. A bunch of people related to each other, on an emotional high, looking to you to completely record their experience for posterity without getting in the way.
You are a braver soul than I.
Software Zen: delete this;
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Gary Wheeler wrote:
A bunch of people related to each other, on an emotional high, looking to you to completely record their experience for posterity without getting in the way.
Indeed, it sucked. Without a DSLR I wouldn't have even attempted it - fortunately reviewing immediately does boost the confidence somewhat. Still, as I've said, it sucked. I'm not cut out for that type of thing, I have no desire to organise people. In the end I just got hold of a bossy aunt, and got her to shout out instructions to everyone attending. It was a wise move
Look at the world about you and trust to your own convictions. - Ansel Adams
Meg's World - Blog
Photography
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Megan Forbes wrote:
In the end I just got hold of a bossy aunt
Isn't it funny how there's always at least one of those?
Software Zen: delete this;
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Gary Wheeler wrote:
Isn't it funny how there's always at least one of those?
Indeed - and it only took me 28 years to find a use for one! 
Look at the world about you and trust to your own convictions. - Ansel Adams
Meg's World - Blog
Photography
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Megan Forbes wrote:
with no understanding of what's going on behind the scenes. They also have no wish to understand. They just want it to WORK!
Sounds like some managers [NOT AT MY CURRENT COMPANY] that I've had to work for. 
--Mike--
Personal stuff:: Ericahist | Homepage
Shareware stuff:: 1ClickPicGrabber | RightClick-Encrypt
CP stuff:: CP SearchBar v2.0.2 | C++ Forum FAQ
----
Pinky, are you pondering what I'm pondering?
I think so Brain, but how will we fit the hamster inside the accordion?
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One of my wife's relatives is a hairstylist. At a family outing last year, we compared notes. She gets requests for free haircuts from friends and family, just like I get requests for free IT services. She finally had to set a policy: no freebies while she was at work (they actually tried this), and no freebies after hours unless you asked nicely and in advance. A gratuity for her time and trouble (babysitting, for example) is A Good Thing.
My policy is similar. I answer e-mails pretty quickly, but everything else is at my convenience. My mother-in-law routinely has a batch of cookies or something similar waiting whenever she needs me to do something. Now, if I just figure out some more things she needs me to do...
Software Zen: delete this;
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MacTruck wrote:
VB programmers
An oxymoron, if there ever was one. Emphasis on the moron.
MacTruck wrote:
do their homework...
"See Spot run.
Run Spot run!
See Spot run."
Software Zen: delete this;
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When I was still in University I was asked more frequently. Since then I've made it clear where my area of expertise is. It takes some people a while to understand that. And I absolutely will not touch hardware (except a keyboard and mouse) at all. (I have a tendency to fry components because I seem to build up a lot of static electricity that discharges at the most inappropriate moments)
"You can have everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want." --Zig Ziglar
The Second EuroCPian Event will be in Brussels on the 4th of September
Can't manage to P/Invoke that Win32 API in .NET? Why not do interop the wiki way!
My Blog
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Colin Angus Mackay wrote:
I absolutely will not touch hardware (except a keyboard and mouse) at all
That's interesting. I love to play around with hardware, and even build my PC about a year ago. I just assumed that all computer geeks like to do that.
Colin Angus Mackay wrote:
I have a tendency to fry components because I seem to build up a lot of static electricity that discharges at the most inappropriate moments
WOW!  That's an amazing talent! Can you show me how to do that?
Aaron Eldreth
TheCollective4.com
My Articles
While much is too strange to be believed,
Nothing is too strange to have happened.
- T. Hardy
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Aaron Eldreth wrote:
I just assumed that all computer geeks like to do that.
Well, I would, except it becomes rather expensive when I start frying components with static discharges.
Aaron Eldreth wrote:
That's an amazing talent! Can you show me how to do that?
Sure,  let me shake your hand! 
"You can have everything in life you want if you will just help enough other people get what they want." --Zig Ziglar
The Second EuroCPian Event will be in Brussels on the 4th of September
Can't manage to P/Invoke that Win32 API in .NET? Why not do interop the wiki way!
My Blog
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Colin Angus Mackay wrote:
let me shake your hand!
Ouch!  Now I see why.
Aaron Eldreth
TheCollective4.com
My Articles
While much is too strange to be believed,
Nothing is too strange to have happened.
- T. Hardy
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Just promise them you'll doit, then don't.
When they ask again, promise again and still don't doit.
In the end they'll ask someone else 
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