Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP
Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site wateng.UUCP
Path: utzoo!watmath!watdaisy!wateng!padpowell
From: padpowell@wateng.UUCP (PAD Powell[Admin])
Newsgroups: net.news.config
Subject: Re: DEC repairman jokes
Message-ID: <352@wateng.UUCP>
Date: Sat, 24-Sep-83 22:23:30 EDT
Article-I.D.: wateng.352
Posted: Sat Sep 24 22:23:30 1983
Date-Received: Sun, 25-Sep-83 04:41:47 EDT
References: <138@uniq.UUCP>
Organization: U of Waterloo, Ontario
Lines: 27

Well, folks,  I think that these repair people are not real turkeys.
For example, our VAX was delivered in YOYO mode, (went up and down when
it damn well wanted),  and we finally decided the local field service
guys had had their chance.  We fired lightning bolts,  letters,  and
personal invective at various people in DEC.  No response.  Well, one
day after sitting here and going through three crashes in an hour,
I put a flame on over the net.   AMAZING!!!  Suddenly there were people
from the district Field service,  head office, etc.  We had line monitors,
Remote dianostics checked out, and various things.  The local field service
guru,  who is actually quite clever,  sat on a phone waiting for the crashes.

We decided after an entire afternoon of staring at bits, flags, and
other things,  that there was absolutely nothing wrong with the parts of
the system... Gotta be the cables.  We switched cables.  No NO NO faults.
The field service guy wanted to switch them back.  We stuffed a pair of
allen wrenches in his ears,  and told him that NOONE was going to touh
our machine until the next time it crashed.  By the great hair arm, that
was 3 months ago.

Moral of the story:
1.  Murphy was right.
2.  Somebody WAYYY up there in the DEC organization reads the network
	news.
3.  Never trust a cable.

Patrick Powell, Ex-Wateng Administrator,  Ph.d Candidate...