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Technical Writing · Exposition & Argumentation · Non-fiction Creative Essays · Grammar and Usage of Standard English · The Structure of English · Analysis of Shakespeare
Analysis of Literary Language · Advanced Professional Papers · The History of the English Language · First Internship: Tutoring in a Writing Workshop · Second Internship: Advanced Instruction: Tutoring Writing
Visual Literacy Seminar (A First Course in Methodology) · Theories of Communication & Technology (A Second Course in Methodology) · Language in Society (A Third Course in Methodology) · The Writer's Guild
UMBC'S Conservative Newspaper: "The Retriever's Right Eye" · UMBC'S University Newspaper: "The Retriever Weekly" · Introduction to Journalism · Feature Writing · Science Writing Papers
National Article 1 · National Article 2
Is this a new problem? No, this is an ongoing problem. Since I have been attending this university since the summer of 2000, this has been an ongoing problem across the campus. Computers that refuse to log on, dysfunctional mice, keyboards that must be hammered at instead of tying on them to enter data, floppy drives that won't read disks, zip drives that have the Iomega infamous "click of death," shall I go on? These are all problems beyond the user's control. When I encounter a problem I shut the computer down give it a minute to clear and reboot, but in most cases the problem still exists.
Tech support wants us to report these problems and I have done so. I have given them lists indicating the Building, Room Number, and Computer Number ID at the front of the computer to no avail. When submitting such documents I have asked when this problem will will be addressed. The first tier of tech support has said, "When we get to it." or has dismissed the problems as being "user error." User error is not the problem; I hold a BS degree in Information Systems and have worked in a huge computer retail store for five years in tech support, service, and repair. The problems that exist are beyond user error and can only be addressed by tech support.
When I questioned the next tier of management, the supervisor at tech support and asked the same question, the answer was, "WE WILL TAKE CARE OF IT!" Not what I call consumer oriented. If you responded this way in retail, the consumer would tear your head off and with due cause. The cause being that without the consumer you have no customer base. With no customer base you won't be in business very long.
I also wrote a piece to the editor of "The Weekly Retriever" which was ignored. Not publishing the commentary is the same as ignoring the problem. So neither "OIT" nor "The Retriever Weekly" chooses to address the problem which is the same as ignoring the customer. Think about this, if you are paying tuition, you are a consumer of the university. If the university wishes to continue to be a viable entity in the market of selling educations, then it should be doing everything it can to satisfy the current consumer base versus recruiting new consumers.
I said this problem has been ongoing since summer 2000'. This is significant because the first grab will be for the quick comeback that the problem is due to budget cuts. No that's incorrect, because the problem has existed before the budget cuts.
If you have ever tried to get on a computer at what I will call prime time, between the hours of 10am and 4 pm, it is extremely difficult to find a terminal not being used in any of the various computer labs across the campus. We all know this is a problem. The question is how does the university intend to address it?
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