Do people know their tools?

[Martin_US]

Not sure what your experiences have been over the years, but I noticed quite often a complete lack of understanding the fundamentals when it comes to Laptop use or the basics of MS applications.

The most common problem is that people can't configure a printer. As soon as Windows can't auto detect that "thing" they are at a loss. I would assume that in this day and age everyone can configure TCP/IP printing.

Second, amazingly, the services or host file in Windows is a big unknown.

Third, very basic ABAP knowledge or say programming knowledge is vacant. Among all the companies I have worked with, very few create their own table driven configuration and rather hard code the hell out of the system.

Fourth, simple data extracts using ODBC or God help us, some simple Visual Basic script and business objects seems to go well beyond the capabilities.

So I wonder, if these guys have ever studied information technology in any shape or form.

I know Rich and me are old as dirt and Vic is just seconds behind us, but what is going on?

I had an IT manager trying for 3 weeks to get IDES installed and wouldn't accept any help, holding up everyone else. If he would have listened, all that was needed, was a little OS patch.

Has the quality of people gone shit or what is your perception? Or are they simply too lazy to keep up with stuff? I mean at least with the basics to keep going.

[thx4allthefish]

Second, amazingly, the services or host file in Windows is a big unknown.

Amazing.

You actually still work with these?

No Citrix, no ... whatever?

[Martin_US]

I think Citrix is only serving the administrator and budget.

I found it utterly cumbersome if you have to do anything as a functional consultant or developer.
It hinders work more than it supports. I would add that any layer you put in between will not add any benefit for the user. Regardless of the product.

My two cents.

[Snowy]

Most people working in SAP are NOT from an IT education.

many of them come from "fucitonal" areas and they learn IT stuff the hard way... .except old chaps like me!

[Martin_US]

I find that indeed very scary.

Especially when it comes to writing specifications.
Sometimes that's nothing more than garbage.

I was working with a Vehicle Management Solution. If the interface between legacy and SAP failed the only way to restart it was to change a status matrix. For that you needed to use SAP_EDIT.
The was no automatic recovery process. No dependency check - nada.

That's just irresponsible.

[Count]

did you mean &sap_edit? wasnt that disabled in ecc6 at some ehp level ? now the only way to do it is in debug mode fiddling with the global variables... cant remember the name of those for the life of me
ahh responsibility and me are parallel lines matey so cant comment on that aspect
cheers

[Martin_US]

Yeah, but you can get it do work.

One the less, it explains how shot up that process was.

You design an interface and you have status dependencies, you better not assume everything "works as designed". Usually you never catch that in a low volume UAT, so the consultants need to be aware of it and for that you need IT background.

[Rich]

except old chaps like me!

Watch it sonny.......

[Martin_US]

Now look who strolled in

[Rich]

Morning Martin.

[blueteeth]

I read topic as "Do people know their fools?"

Darn, I must be getting old!

BT

[Martin_US]

If we weren't old farts, we wouldn't be here anyway

[Rich]

I read topic as "Do people know their fools?"

Darn, I must be getting old!

BT

Tools BT. TOOLS!!!

If a man doesn't know his tool he's in a lot of trouble!

[Martin_US]

We need more girls in here.

Maybe one can dress up all cute as French Maid and dust good ol Rich off?

[swright]

Most people working in SAP are NOT from an IT education.

many of them come from "fucitonal" areas and they learn IT stuff the hard way... .except old chaps like me!

The old way for me too me (except I spell it functional ) ... basic sys admin stuff and general desktop support then absorbed into an SAP implementation. I have no regrets on that front.