Reply to post: Can't find the keyboard

Can't find the keyboard

I used to support HP-UX back in the late 80s. A lot of our customers used their systems to run CAD packages, typically HP's own one. Most of these people had their workstations configured to boot straight into the CAD package and so never used the keyboard.

It was typical to get a call where you'd ask the customer to type something and there'd be this awkward silence.

Me: Do you know where the keyboard is

Customer: Errr I think it's around the back somewhere

Me: OK can you go and have a look for it.

Pause: followed by a few banging sounds, some muttering, the occasional swear word then the sound of the phone being picked up.

Customer: OK got it, now what was it you wanted me to type?

...

Eventually you'd get them to having a terminal window

...

Me: Lets start by find out where you are on the system, please type p w d

Awkward silence

Me: OK you'll find the "p" key on the top row of letters at the right hand end

Customer: Errr

KER CHUNK!

Me: Now you'll find the "w" key towards the left hand side, but still on the top row of letters

KER CHUNK!

and so on

Talking them through a "vi" session was so much fun.

Of course keyboards were do much tougher back then, the modern ones would probably have cracked in two halfway though the first command.

Can't really blame most of the customers, they'd bought a fancy new drawing board as far as they were concerned. Things like keyboards were just a distraction.