(no subject)

[tgies]

<tgies> i call alltel
<tgies> (yes their customer support is open at 0538 central)
<tgies> "yo can you guys do a market to market transfer for me"
<tgies> "who told you you needed that"
<tgies> "uh well my signal is bad where i moved out and I looked at my SID and I'm on one of the VZW shared towers about like 14 miles out from here and it's a wonder this even works"
<tgies> "sir let me just tell you that we know all about social engineering and if you try to manipulate a customer support associate for free service then you will have your account canceled and it will be permanent"
<tgies> "LMAO UH no I just need a market to market transfer i moved out of my primary service area. market to market transfer. i need my PRL changed and my main SID changed"
<tgies> "oh THAT okay well call back in about an hour when the technical office opens."
<tgies> "okay"
<tgies> "just one thing sir would you characterize this call as having been helpful"
<tgies> "I would characterize it as having been really weird"
<tgies> "ha ha okay well thanks for calling alltel my name is rose have a good day."
<tgies> "thanks you too"

also one time the Cox guy accused me of "social engineering" because I just said "Hey can you change the MAC you have on record for me" instead of "MODEM DOESN'T WORK FIX IT AUHRRR I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT'S WRONG"

Comments

[darnn.livejournal.com]

I had to look it up to realize it was *that* kind of social engineering. You'd think they'd come up with a different term for it. Also I have no idea about any of the things you mention other than MAC, which I barely have an idea about. And I worked in tech support here. Fortunately most people didn't know anything as well.

Also answer my email!

[tgies.livejournal.com]

what email :O

[jhskulk.livejournal.com]

Guide to tier 1 tech support:

Is the question very simple?

Yes -> Open that stupid binder and read off the boilerplate response
No -> Social engineering

[darnn.livejournal.com]

I sent it to the address in your profile days ago: So, what would you say is the cheapest microphone that doesn't suck? I don't know any fancy terms, but I was told something about, like, it having its own power source, that being a criterion? Basically I only want to record voice (talking and/or singing), but whenver I do it these days it's incredibly quiet and I have to increase the volume by a thousand percent (possibly more) and then there's obivously all sorts of noise.

Is there a simple answer to this question?

[tgies.livejournal.com]

oh lmao i accidentally archived it somehow! I am dumb! sorry about that!

the "its own power source" thing probably was someone trying to explain to you that you should preamplify your mic rather than amplifying it in the damn computer or whatever

The standard microphone everyone uses is the Shure SM57, and then you can get a preamp like the ART Tube MP Studio for like thirty bucks. But then you're spending like $120 total and maybe you don't want to spend that. What you can do in that case is get a cheapish stage mic (http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/OnStage-Stands-MS7510-Mic-Pro-Pak?sku=270619) and then spend $30 on the preamp and still have pretty okay sound. A friend bought that mic and it's apparently not terrible.

Also, a lot of people I know like the BlueMic Snowball, which is a dynamic microphone and USB audio interface all in one package. I've heard it, and it actually sounds pretty good. It's something like a hundred bucks, though.

[catamorphism.livejournal.com]

Since when is it a bad thing to practice social engineering?

[999kcelfe.livejournal.com]

"OMG... he knows stuff I don't know... he must be a Mitnick wannabe!"

...just another example of "dump people" being afraid of "smart people".

...or to simplify things... FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN.

It's kinda sad. Fewer and fewer people out there who can think
for themselves. And if you CAN think for yourself, then they
label you with some disease OR SOMETHING.

(ignore me... I'm going off on a tangent again)

[999kcelfe.livejournal.com]

pretty much

[999kcelfe.livejournal.com]

According to "the media"

Social engineering = done by hackers
hackers = criminals
social engineering = done by criminals


seriously though... it's much easier to
just get a Tracfone. that's what most
REAL CRIMINALS do when they want cell
phone service. Super cheap, no contracts,
and you can buy them with cash, and add
airtime with cash. Completely private,
and Tracfone has no record of who bought
the phone and who's using it. You can
get them anywhere in the USA, they are
really cheap, and you can get them at
Wally World.

...and yes, I have a Tracfone. It does
work everywhere... except Illinois
it seems. I'm not a criminal, and although
I could be classified as a hacker to some
degree (compared to most people) I wouldn't
consider myself a criminal. (although I do
do things that are way outside the norm of
civilized life.

[999kcelfe.livejournal.com]

oh... hi!

Today is "go off on a tangent day" for me.

Ignore it. :P

[r-transpose-p.livejournal.com]

I went off on a tangent once.

I came back three days later, drunk, and with a tattoo in a strange place.

[999kcelfe.livejournal.com]

Yeah, and I just said DUMP people, instead of dumb people.

I hope DUMP people don't get mad at me for insulting them.

Of course, I could have called them unintelligent vs
intelligent. Yes and unyes. Double plus good indeed. :P

[korgmeister.livejournal.com]

This explains so much about my experiences with tech support.

[darnn.livejournal.com]

I sent it to the address in your profile days ago: So, what would you say is the cheapest microphone that doesn't suck? I don't know any fancy terms, but I was told something about, like, it having its own power source, that being a criterion? Basically I only want to record voice (talking and/or singing), but whenver I do it these days it's incredibly quiet and I have to increase the volume by a thousand percent (possibly more) and then there's obivously all sorts of noise.

Is there a simple answer to this question?

[darnn.livejournal.com]

While we're on the subject, what's the best way to convert audio cassettes? The same guy who talked to me about the microphone said I could use an iMic, but would I need anything else other than a standard tape deck with audio out?