Ah yes, the cliché of a technician’s favorite term, REBOOT! It’s not just the latest Dilbert comic strip, it actually works! I believe the term reboot is the new tech savvy way of the classic saying, “turn it off and try it again dear.”
I’ll admit, I’m employed as a computer technician, and I find myself shouting of this term daily. The surprising thing is it’s not just to end users; I have to tell fellow technicians, network engineers etc., as if it’s some unknown secret. I’ve been rebooting since I was a young boy playing Nintendo NES, and I’m still doing it today when my iPod occasionally decides to ‘freeze’ or when Microsoft gives me their weekly vulnerability exploit patch.
My recent tasks have changed at work to where I’m now the dubbed the blackberry guy. As I’ve grown more knowledgeable on these addicting devices, I’ve discovered most of the issues (like just anything with a circuit board) are solved by simply rebooting the thing. The blackberry likes it rough though, meaning taking the battery out and replacing it back into the unit is the official blackberry reboot.
What are people going to do with all of this automation provided by technology when it consumes us? We’re the ones who are pushing for it, and we cannot control our own home PC. My point is that we’re at the point now with automatic doors, robotic assembly lines, self checkout lines, video conferencing, cars that drive themselves etc, and yet the I see people who become hysterical when they aren’t receiving email on their blackberry, or their PC is frozen when a simple reboot will work its magic. I question as to why people haven’t grasped this simple, yet very effective method. Please folks, try this at home, and reboot.
I’ll end today with this frustration, I’ll sleep tonight, and reboot for tomorrow with a clear mind. See, it really does work for everything….
Word Count: 344
Tags: desktop, performance, software, Windows XP
