But only time will show the wiser

[austin_dern]

Work carries on, odd as usual. While getting enthusiastic about my project one day the owner dropped in my office and noticed the relatively tiny size of my monitor. He wanted to know how I was putting up with this tiny thing --- it's about the size of my laptop monitor, although for a desktop that can be a bit cramped --- and, well, that's just what they had. I mentioned how the tech guys had found a larger monitor, but inside the box turned out to be a switching thing instead.

The owner called downstairs and demanded to know why I didn't have a larger monitor because he didn't need any more blind programmers. This ... merry ... comment reflected that one of his semi-retired programmers who is suffering loss of eyesight happened to be up for the week for some programming and consulting. I know he meant it funny, and the programmer probably would have taken it in the same vein, but it felt awkward to me.

While there wasn't a bigger monitor in stock they did have a bigger monitor in the retired office manager's room, and before I knew it, this was being put on my desk. It would be the next day that I got time to turn the resolution up so I actually had more screen real estate rather than just wide, fat pixels. I also have a web camera now, hidden behind a post-it note tab, which the owner on a subsequent visit took to be a sign of charming low-grade paranoia. Fine for him to say.

A few days later he noticed that my mouse was an aged model lacking a scroll wheel. I've never really needed a scroll wheel, but he looked at me, as though shocked I was still hewing code out of marks carved on granite, and said that sort of thing was the kind of equipment upgrade I could ask for. Later that day I had a new and more dark plastic keyboard and mouse in a box whose copy comes in English and a French translation which seems vaguely sarcastic. THe mouse has its scroll wheel and side buttons and a glowing red LED out front so it looks like the official Microsoft mouse of the Daleks.

I wonder if I could get away with asking for an office iMac, though.

Trivia: In the 1950s five strong dust storms hit Beijing. In the 1990s there were twenty-three. In the year 2000 alone, there were thirteen. Source: Coal: A Human History, Barbara Freese.

Currently Reading: A History Of Appalachia, Richard B Drake.

Comments

[mondhasen.livejournal.com]

Your owner reminds me of our director. It doesn't matter that the machine works; it has to look right. We've had problems with led monitors failing, and my large supply of crt's seemed just the thing for interim fixes. She was horrified to see those "ugly white boxes" instead of the slim, black flat screen models and was on the phone ordering new ones straight away.

Personally, those glowing mice with side buttons annoy me. I keep hitting those buttons inadvertently and find myself navigating all over everywhere instead of where I want to be.

[austin-dern.livejournal.com]

Well, he doesn't let worry about appearance overwhelm worry about functionality, and I would agree the wider screen is much better --- more real estate on-screen makes every side of programming easier --- so I'm glad for that. The mouse with scroll wheel seems like a marginal improvement, but I suppose as long as they had it in stock they might as well have it actually being used. The keyboard is a more marginal improvement, but it is nice having something with less grit stuck inside.

[mondhasen.livejournal.com]

*snicker* There have been small ants running around the Reference Desk at work. I noticed the other day that they had a regular trail going along the cable to the keyboard... I turned the keyboard over and thumped it (gently, of course) and... well, grit is a polite term for what shook out.

[austin-dern.livejournal.com]

There is probably an exactly correct word for what accumulates in keyboards, somewhere in the literature of dirt and soil studies, but it probably sounds horrible too. Detritus almost has an adequate ring to it, but it doesn't quite sound disapproving enough of the cumulative effect of it.

[chefmongoose.livejournal.com]

I greatly enjoy increased monitor space, myself.. I'm getting rather used to my new dual-monitor setup at home, even with the difference in sizes (a 22" and a 16". The 16" cost me $1.)

I'm a fussy man myself for keyboards and mice... somewhat. My home computer has an IBM Model M perfect clone, and a logitech trackman Wheel, thumb moving the trackball. Now, I can get by fine on lappet, which is a 9" netbook that I rarely bother to hook a mouse up to, that's one more thing to carry with it.. but if i were to use a computer regularly at work, I'd likely either be a pain to purchasing to get what I prefer, or order it myself connect it, and carry forward.

As for the office Mac, the way to test those waters is simple. "Thanks for getting me the new monitor, mouse, and keyboard. The monitor especially is turning out quite better." "" "Now, the only thing that would make it even better would be having a Mac.." and gauge responses.
"Hah! You don't ask for much, do you?" or similar gets "Oh, it was just an idle thought."
"Really now?" gets "Oh, it was more an idle wish, but I do prefer Macs if possible."
"Hmmm. We actually might have one available." gets "Well, that would be great to look into."
"We could do that, sure." gets a smile and a "Really? Wow, cool." from you.
"We might be able to do that in 2012 when we do our next system upgrades.." gets a "Oh, well, I'll bring it up again then that's nearing."

[austin-dern.livejournal.com]

Alas, no ... I know the owner can be a surprising person, often several times in one sentence, but I'm very certain he wouldn't want a Mac in the office. The computer infrastructure is a weird mix of paranoiac security and universal access and equipment design that's accumulated over for years. It barely holds together with everybody on some version of Windows; adding a different operating system would render the problem of getting everything that has to talk together talking together insolvable. I know many places can handle a multiple-platform office, but, boy, this is not a place that can sustain it.

[chefmongoose.livejournal.com]

Mmm, I see. *nod*

[austin-dern.livejournal.com]

It frustrates my thoughts about arranging to telecommute one or more days. Superficially my job seems perfectly suited to that --- programming, with few projects, needing little feedback from anyone --- but getting a suitable development environment .... well, I know it's right out until I get my successor Mac, which would at least have the option of running Windows, but even then it might be impractical if the tech guys can't figure how to do that virtual private network thing to some standard that communicates with their machines.