Poll: Do old people overestimate your tech skills

[t3h br0th3r]

I've started to notice that my grandparents and teachers seem to be chronically over-estimating my level of tech skills and i'm wondering if anyone else here is having the same issues.

It may be because i am a gamer in the key 16-25 demo but for some reason people, especially those 40 and older, seem to think i am some kind of uber technomancer capable of making Vista as quick as Ubuntu with a few keystrokes.

In reality I can make my computer work and even look up how to fix minor software problems but I'm not the guy who builds his his gaming pc from bits of wire and strings.

While my family's conventional wisdom says to ask one of the younger people (in this case me) all the tech issues i find myself stretching for answers and starting advice with 'i'm not sure but' contently. My profs also assume i use all kinds of wikis and RSS's on the constant bases.

I'm wondering if anyone else is in a similar situation... or really is that uber technomancer with teh l33t hackn skillz.

 

[Custard_Angel]

"I've forgotten my email password. Can you hack into the toaster and retrieve it?"

"...Sure thing... I got this"

 

[DanielBrown]

I don't often get into such situations, but my mom often seems to think I'm better at technical stuff than I really am. I'm close to retarded when it comes to tech-stuff.

 

[blue heartless]

I can build a computer from scratch but I'll still n00b up the OS.

Hell, if there wasn't a button that said "internet" on my desktop I would be hard pressed to find it anywhere else.

 

[Chamale]

I know some interesting tricks with computers that most older people aren't aware of. They're smart enough not to expect amazing h4xx0r skills, but I often impress them with interesting little tricks in whatever program they're using.

 

[Saelune]

Yes. It used to go to my ego though, but after trying to learn coding, I realized I am probably incapable...

Most of their problems they ask me though are ones they just refuse to learn. Like how to hook up a N64...just plug it in! (it regularly gets moved around, particularly for use by my cousins since I hoard the basement for the 360)

Also getting to the proper way to play the games. Its not hard.

 

[Cowabungaa]

Constantly, especially at work. Their train of thought is "He plays videogames, wears glasses and uses long words, therefor he must be able to fix all my computer problems!" After 5 years they still haven't figured out my IT knowledge is very limited.

"I've forgotten my email password. Can you hack into the toaster and retrieve it?"

"...Sure thing... I got this"

 

[Longshot1073]

To fix 98.6% software issues, follow the prompts. *facepalm*
Hardware, just check all plugs. Turn off everything, wait, reboot.

 

[Hairetos]

Sometimes they expect me to know how to do obscure things that would probably be simple if I tinkered with it, but impossible since I don't even know how the damn thing works (like setting up two smartboards to work like dual monitors).

Other times it's dumb crap like opening a PDF...

 

[ultrachicken]

I have relatives who are fairly young who also overestimate my tech skills, mostly because they aren't exposed to technology much. I haven't been around many "old" people and a computer at the same time.

 

[ilspooner]

Uh, yep. I suck at computers really. I know how to turn the computer on though!

 

[Tanis]

Yeah...but that's the way old folks are who don't understand PC are like.

 

[darth.pixie]

Well...most of the time I can do whatever it is they ask, but they do mention very outlandish methods. It's mostly because people always say they have problems with something, I press some keys, pick some options -> works. I should stop doing that.

Also they have come to think of as the internet as the ultimate source for everything. Which it is but not for things like menu of the restaurant down the corner.

 

[Jordi]

Apparently it is really hard for some people to distinguish between "uses computers a lot" and "knows a lot about all things remotely related to computers". So they tend to overestimate my abilities. But then again, a little common sense, coupled with this diagram will often get me pretty far:


It is basically all I do, but the fact of the matter is that this is already more than a lot of people can do.

 

[Rayne870]

Nope, I can fix most problems that they can throw at me, but do I want to? Fuck no. So I feign ignorance and tell them to call tech support.

Apparently it is really hard for some people to distinguish between "uses computers a lot" and "knows a lot about all things remotely related to computers". So they tend to overestimate my abilities. But then again, a little common sense, coupled with this diagram will often get me pretty far:


It is basically all I do, but the fact of the matter is that this is already more than a lot of people can do.

My boss needs to do this...instead myself and every other coworker have become her tech support and even her personal spell checkers for the simplest words. But she can't be helped because her spellchecker is apparently wrong.

 

[dyre]

Yeah, old people seem to think I'm a computer guru because I can run anti-virus scans for them. Thankfully, their overestimation of my abilities never leads to anything more complicated than being asked to retrieve their download history or burn a CD...

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

Alot of my neighbors are old, they get me to do simple things like hookup their dvd players to their tvs. When I get it right the first time (yeah, they are amazed at that) they act as if I have single handedly flown to the moon and back.

 

[dyre]

Alot of my neighbors are old, they get me to do simple things like hookup their dvd players to their tvs. When I get it right the first time (yeah, they are amazed at that) they act as if I have single handedly flown to the moon and back.

I bet there are some people who flew to the moon and back (back in the day) who don't know how to hook their DvD players to their TVs

 

[Voidrunner]

That happens a lot to me unfortunately, my teachers have difficulties turning a DVD player on and often spew out claims that every single student in the school is a computer genius because they are born in modern times. Not to mention family members are always turning up demanding I "Fix" the computer because apparently my date of birth means I am trained in that field.

 

[TheAmazingHobo]

Yes, yes they do.
And it does NOT help that I actually have a degree in cs. If you think people assume gamers know everything about PCs, you should see what they expect from somebody who actually studied that shit.

"So, I tried setting up thunderbird and accidently drenched my computer in gasoline and set it on fire, so I called up a herd of rampaging elephants and had them trample the fire out.
Could you please fix it up again, possibly by rubbing your dick against it ?"