Brainiacs (or People who think they know it all...)

[Mongo Skruddgemire]

...are very annoying to those of us who do.

This wasn't very sucky at all but it got me thinking that I was lucky and only got a very, very mild form of "I'm smarter than you" and that I'm sure there are people who have had it much worse. Might be a good tie to dust off the "Prof. Stephen Hawkin" wannabe stories

Mine like I said wasn't sucky, but I got an e-mail requesting a 10 amp, 60 Hertz, 110 volt three-pronged outlet with sufficient ground.

For those not in the know, he just described a standard American 110, three-prong outlet in the most detailed way. He wasn't a jerk about it, but one could tell that this guy was an electrical engineer with his head stuck in nerd mode.

So lets hear about your "legends in their own mind" stories

Mongo

[Legal Eagle]

maybe it's me, but that didn't seem sucky.

there are different kinds of outlets andhe was simply giving the full spec. would you rather he sent an email asking for a "normal outlet"

[LostMyMind]

well, the "sufficient ground" part isn't always standard depending on how old the building is.

But I think he was just covering his ass, might be a oversea traveler and did it out of habit.

[Mongo Skruddgemire]

maybe it's me, but that didn't seem sucky.

there are different kinds of outlets andhe was simply giving the full spec. would you rather he sent an email asking for a "normal outlet"

I know it's not sucky which is why I mentioned it, but it got me thinking that there are people out there in the world who do on a regular basis talk down to people simply because of an image of self-importance that may or may not be warrented. Case in point, people who assume that the average waitstaff is poorly educated because they're working hard and the yuppy eating at the restraunt isn't.

Irregardless of the fact that a goodly number of college aged waitstaffers are doing this to earn money while they are at college and in many cases are on the right track to being as successful as the disdainful person(s) are.

My point was to start a thread of "Gee I'm a aeronautical engineering student and this guy is talking to me like I'm an idiot because I'm waiting his table/washing his car/taking in his dry cleaning/etc." stories. My story was just the best example I could dredge out of my memory (or at least the bit I haven't repressed )

And as for the outlet...all he had to ask of me was "I need a standard three-prong gounded outlet". We're a bunch of classrooms, not a factory so we don't have 220v outlets (save for the kitchen) and we don't have three-phase taps. Asking us about the Hertz is a bit much. While I knew what it was, the people who recieved this mail from was totally confused as to what the guy was asking for. Every 110ac tap in the US and at least a good part of Canada uses 60Hz power...odds are you're not going to find anything else outside of an electrical engineering firm or other speciality workshop.

So, let's hear about everyone's smarter than thou stories

Mongo

[lordlundar]

Oh sheesh! I helped out at Customer Service last week Monday (against my better judgement) and there were two people I helped that drove me mad. One needed service on his computer, the other wanting an exchange on his video card.

In both instances, when I asked what problem they were having (IE: No display, won't read particular media, etc) They both go into long winded explanations of how it's supposed to work(and I mean like you're teaching elementary students how electricity works). Meanwhile, I'm sitting there taking it while wondering when they were going to get to the point and shut up. The guy exchanging the video card literaly was telling me how a video card worked! (hello, I could probably teach the class you got that info from, moron!) Finally, they tell me the problem and shut up, I get them what they're after and move on.

I get the feeling that if I was in my regular department, (entertainment, notably games & software) they probably would have asked me if the stuff they were telling me about was true.

Like I needed a reminder why I left CS. The CSM at the time, when she found out I was there for 3 1/2 years, said she'd probably would have shot herself if she was in my shoes.

[Worker-Intellectual]

Hey, don't bash engineers! We rule, and just because our IQs are larger than our body weight...

anyways, on to my latest plug story, last weekend I had a customer looking at microwave ovens... she looks on the bottom of the box, and reads off some stuff. "110 Volts, 60 Hz, I don't think that will do. My last one was 110Volts and 60 Hz and it took too long to cook stuff, so I think I want something more powerful."

[Dips]

I talked to a real brainiac just yesterday. This particular know-it-all was the whole package of suck: patronizing lecture, refusal to listen, entitlement complex, etc.

Just a warning, the link goes to a loooooong ranty post.

[phillippbo]

You should try working in tech support sometime, we get "more knowledgeable than thou" calls all the time. Yes, there are a lot of Tier 1 representatives that are not technically minded and simply follow a script, but even the least knowledgeable among us know something of their jobs. At any rate, for the topic at hand, I get at least one of the following on a daily basis:

1. The "IT Director" or "System Administrator". They know all, and see all. They know for a fact that our network must be screwed up because of whatever cocka-mamie reason they can find. Usual fixes for these caller's problems are restarting the modem, taking the modem out of standby, or rebooting the computer. Refuse to understand that yes, Virginia, it just might be possible that I know more about how our network operates than they do.

2. The Psychic Techno-mage. They know little, but can see all. You see, the problem must be on our network because their modem told them so, or some other equally silly reason. Usual fixes for these caller's problems are rebooting the computer or actually using Internet Explorer to get online. Usually refuses to allow a technician to come to the house because it can't possibly be at the house, their modem told them so.

3. The Know-it-all Know-nothing. They think they know everything and can't see the obvious right in front of their face. The problem must be on our network, or at least outside the house, because they "know" it is. Refuse to be home for a technician because of their vast knowledge. When asked to check cabling/modem lights/computer, response is usually something along the lines of "nobody's been back there", "nobody's touched anything", or "nothing's been changed". Usual fixes for this caller are tightening loose connections, restarting the computer, or taking the modem out of standby.

[ArenaBoy]

Oh man, I hate those types. I get the Michigan State grads, the University of Michigan grads, and other various midwest university types. I had a guy who drove by screaming "GOOD LUCK PAYING FOR YOUR COLLEGE JACKASS!!!" Then there's my favorite, the guy telling me how to do traffic hand signals, when his methods were wrong.

[AFpheonix]

Had one lady screaming at me while I was entering her insurance info into her file.
"Don't put the last 2 digits on the end! It won't work! Blah blah!"
I just looked at her, put in the person code (last 2 digits so the insurance company would know which patient I'm billing for), stared at her while I submitted the claim and then sauntered back to the printer when a new label printed out with her new copay on it. Good lord, lady, I deal with our billing system a lot more than you do, I KNOW which companies need a person code, a group #, or need to be linked to the cardholder. Sheesh.

Most of mine are people who's doctors supposedly tell them something, so therefore it's as true as the Bible itself. How could I, a lowly tech, know more about something than the great, almighty Doctor?

Multifarious people give me the stink eye when they ask for some sort of prescription only med, and pucker when I tell them they need a doctor's note, and tell me that their doctor TOLD them it was OTC. Am I ABSOLUTELY SURE that it's rx only? Yes, lady, I am. Go back to your stupid doctor.
Same thing with many other people who were sure there were generics available for some medicine or another. Nope. MY DOCTOR SAID THERE WAS ONE!!!
Your doctor is mistaken.

My favorite was a numbnut who needed 2 strengths of Concerta. Well, my system and every other pharmacy's billing system is set up so that he pays 2 copays for the 2 medicines. Well, that wasn't good enough for brainiac, because HIS DOCTOR told him that we could bill it all under 1 copay because the 2 meds were to be taken together to equal one dose. He didn't believe me, so he went to another pharmacy...where he ended up paying 2 copays. We know, because they called us and asked us about him. Ha, and ha.

[KaeZoo]

Working in car audio, we run into plenty of young guys whose self-esteem would suffer horribly if they didn't pretend they knew more then we did. Usually if you talk to one by himself, everything's fine; but if he's there with his buddies, forget about it. It's even worse if he's there with his girlfriend; and worst of all if they're shopping for HER car. Then he's duty-bound to protect her from the clueless salespeople and incompetent installers.

The larger the group, the more likely that one of the customer's friends will assure him that "I can do just as good a job installing that as the store can". Then we're expected to provide free technical support after the customer's friend proves less capable than he thought.

We also get our share of home electricians who assume that their electrical skill extends to the mobile electronics field. I often have to defend the fact that we don't use wire nuts. For some reason, it's hard to make them understand that vehicles are typically subject to more vibration than buildings, and wire nuts tend to fall right off.

[Worker-Intellectual]

I had one a while ago who was telling me how to work a register. He was buying some bulk chain, and he had 2 feet of it. So I look up the last digit of the product number (it's just a check digit, and since only cashiers need to worry about it, none of the other departments do, even when they are writing something out for the cashier). So then I hit 2x61XXXXX and as I'm typing it in:

"What are you doing! It's xx cents a foot!"

I didn't feel like dealing with morons so I just said "I know what I'm doing" in a firm voice and hit enter... then looked at the look on his face. The closes smilie I can find is

[Crosshair]

I often have to defend the fact that we don't use wire nuts. For some reason, it's hard to make them understand that vehicles are typically subject to more vibration than buildings, and wire nuts tend to fall right off.

Redneck solution: Wire nuts and duct tape. Never failed me yet.