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On 15 Nov 2009, at 08:26, Alan McKinnon wrote: |
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>> ... |
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>> My typical experience is that the customer will take it completely on |
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>> the chin and pay me to fix the problems. That doesn't make foul-ups |
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>> due to such unnecessary meddling any less frustrating, though. |
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> |
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> My experience has been completely the opposite, same with just about |
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> everyone |
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> else I work with. But, this is a third-world country pretending to |
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> be a first- |
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> world country, and the cowboy attitude is very prevalent here. |
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I certainly have had some customers like that, but generally they're a |
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minority here. Definitely preferable is to spot them early and _follow |
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your instinct_ to ditch them. The longer you entertain this rubbish |
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the more of a headache it becomes. |
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>> One has to hope, really, that the client only wants the root password |
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>> as insurance in case you get run over by a bus, and won't use it to |
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>> arbitrarily mess about on the system. |
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> |
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> I find the root password in a sealed envelope in the safe is the ideal |
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> insurance for that. |
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Totally agree. |
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My biggest customer, unfortunately, has taken on a large investment of |
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capital recently, resulting in a new director who's really pretty |
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clueless. Basically, his dad bought him a job. He has insisted on |
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Domain Administrator rights because he "just wants to do the simple |
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stuff" himself; the first program he wanted to upgrade he needed my |
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help with because the installer is a piece of junk. I know that he's |
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going to mess things up and cost himself more money (create more |
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hassles for me) in the long term, but he won't hear it and I can't |
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just walk away; this is not only because I have a great relationship |
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with the other owner and also because they're currently a significant |
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proportion of my annual income. |
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He's totally a nice bloke otherwise, he just feels that I shouldn't be |
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"locking him out" of his own computers, and I can kinda see his point |
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- as an admin it's easy for me to feel "territorial" because I'm |
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pretty good at the job, so the chances are that anyone else isn't |
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going to meet my standard. Obviously it's important for me to put that |
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to one side. |
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|
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>>> So when he fucks things up good royal and proper, will he gladly |
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>>> accept his shafting and pay you more to undo it? Or will he do the |
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>>> usualcustomer stuntand blame you? |
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This is actually much easier for those of us who are mere |
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"consultants" and who charge by the hour - we can simply reply "it was |
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working when i left, guv". If it's been working fine for months then |
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there is obviously nothing wrong with our previous work. Clearly there |
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is room for contention if they muck about with things right after |
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you've left. |
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|
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Stroller. |
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