Help desk humor - Definition and Overview

Help desk humor is a new genre that arose toward the end of the 20th century, with the rise of the personal computer. So many people had them, and they were so complicated, that users had to resort to calling a help desk for troubleshooting even the most trivial of problems.

A tension began to grow between the knowledgeable "power users" who staffed help desks and the "unbelievably ignorant" users who would call in. Apparently, the help desk staff did not appreciate the magnitude of the gap in sophistication involved, or maybe they were just impatient.

Anyway, stories began to circulate, often morphing like urban myths. Click here (http://www.progress.demon.co.uk/Fun/Trouble-with.html) for an original story whose carefully distinguished fantasy ending morphed into urban legend

External links

• Archive of help desk humor stories (http://rinkworks.com/stupid/)
• Chronicles of George (http://chroniclesofgeorge.nanc.com) - a website discussing "George", a first line help desk technician. The site features a number of tickets raised by George, with commentary, and has been up since early 2001.
• Welcome to the Internet Helpdesk Comedy Video (http://www.deadtroll.com/index2.html?/video/livehelldesk.html~content) - a live stand-up comedy video of a help desk worker.