SGI's X (Re: X on the Personal Iris)

[Seth Teller]

In article <JIM.90Feb12192739 at bauhaus.Stanford.EDU>
	jim at bauhaus.Stanford.EDU (James Helman) writes:

>
> ... non-specific X complaints deleted ...
>

then continues with this:

> BTW, don't bother trying to get anyplace with the hotline on this.
> I've been going around with them for over a year about X.  The best
> they can do is put you on the "hot list" for the next release.  The
> support "engineer" who answered my latest X call, after making a
> couple pointless digressions, focussed on THE REAL PROBLEM, asking
> whether the final "b" in "exit status: 0x8b" was capitalized or not.
>
> Jim Helman
> Department of Applied Physics			P.O. Box 10494
> Stanford University				Stanford, CA 94309
> (jim at thrush.stanford.edu) 			(415) 723-4940	

i'm sure there are those working at sgi who would like
to respond to your posting in kind; however, good sense and 
discretion prevent them.  since i am unfortunate enough to 
have the benefit of neither, you'll kindly allow me a few words.

this sort of public castigation of hotline people is unwarranted,
unfair, and in my (not entirely disinterested) opinion, borders 
on abusive.  at best, the responses you'll get will be like mine
(of protest), or frustrated silence (from those at sgi who are
offended but unable to respond, unless they do so with enormous
tact-- something which many may not be able to justify the time 
or patience for after reading your post).

what effect did you expect it to have?  frantic, subservient hotline
people jamming your phone lines with offers of more help?  netgroup
readers stuffing your mailbox with detailed descriptions of work-
arounds?  you didn't detail any problems!

look, at any company, there are going to be times when hotline people
are left casting about in deep water by circumstances, whether they
be development/release schedules, communication failures with
engineers, or just the general finiteness of their resources,
time, and energy.

rather than direct criticism _at_ them, why not direct it _to_
those who allocate training, resources, and support to the hotline
itself?  and in a real letter, on paper (these seem still to be
so much more effective than any ephemeral posting).

i'm sure i've said more than my share.

sincerely yours,


seth teller

<seth at miro.berkeley.edu>