Okay, first things first. I was always wondering what makes the average everyday person tick, and what makes them think a certain way especially when we are talking about computers and computer tech in general (like getting errors and such). Luckily, I was sifting through email and found this wonderful article that will explain some things about our "superstitious" behavior towards the PC!.

"For some users, the computer is unfathomable - leading them to make bizarre assumptions about technology and the effect of their own actions. Here are a few irrational beliefs such users develop."

"Superstition: A belief, not based on human reason or scientific knowledge, that future events may be influenced by one’s behavior in some magical or mystical way (Wiktionary)."

"Although computer users are undoubtedly smarter than pigeons, users who really don’t understand how a computer works may also wrongly connect some action of theirs with success (and repeat it), or associate it with failure (and avoid it like the plague). Here are some of the user superstitions I’ve encountered." - In psychology, there is that whole thing about training a dog to hate a particular thing or to like a particular, and this is basically the same kind of thing. Its about associating that something to something else (For the dog, you whistle, and whenever you whistled, you give him food, so every time the dog hears the whistle, it comes running expecting food)."

Anyways, on to the habits. (So when reading this, I hope you keep your mind "open" rather then "closed", this is good information that can be quite useful, since I know that many, many computer users LOVE enacting the below behaviors which is funny and at the same time heart-wrenching!)

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10 Habits of superstitious users!

1: Refusing to reboot

Some users seem to regard a computer that’s up and running and doing what they want as a sort of miracle, achieved against all odds, and unlikely ever to be repeated … certainly not by them. Reboot? Not on your life! If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Why take the risk?
- This is trying to say that people DON'T reboot because they feel that they will never get their computer to function the same exact way again (the good way ). Actually, leaving your computer on for a "long" time is essentially bad. You have to at least shut it down or reboot it once in a span of 24 hours maybe (if not sooner). And most of the time, rebooting will solve most problems that occur when you keep your computer on for a while or do a major change to it.

2: Excessive fear of upgrades

Exercising caution when it comes to upgrades is a good idea. But some users go well beyond that, into the realm of the irrational. It may take only one or two bad experiences. In particular, if an upgrade causes problems that don’t seem to be related to the upgrade itself, this can lead to a superstitious fear of change because it confirms their belief that they have no idea how the computer really works — and therefore no chance of correctly judging whether an upgrade is worth it or just asking for trouble. Better to stay away from any change at all, right?
- This is something I see almost "ALL" the time. This is usually how I see it, when it gets "old" (and I mean old, like 15-20 years old maybe) it is something I'd like to call obsolete. Which means, an upgrade is by all means favorable. I always see people complaining about something not working when in fact their "old" computer couldn't handle the requirements of the game itself (example. Person trys to install Gears of War on his PC, but complains that it is too slow, and starts saying that the game is crap, etc. etc.). And oh yea, just because an upgrade in the past went bad, doesn't mean it will again (I mean you have more experience since that last upgrade to make sure you make a good decision or install it "correctly"). If you doubt yourself making the upgrade, you can always have someone more experienced handle it (a friend) or take it to Best Buy or something.

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3: Kneejerk repetition of commands

These are the people who, when their print command fails to produce output in a timely manner, start pounding the keys. They treat the computer like a recalcitrant child who just isn’t paying attention or doesn’t believe they really mean it. Users may get the impression that this superstition is justified because the computer sometimes does seem to be ignoring them — when it fails to execute a double-click because they twitched the mouse or when they have inadvertently dropped out of input mode. Or it may come from the tendency of knowledgeable helpers to make inconspicuous adjustments and then say, “Try it again.”
- Now this, I would have to admit that this does happen to me sometimes (although I don't think I pound on the keys , I think I click the print command over and over again, until like 15 prints come up and I end up taking the time to delete each one respectively). I can understand that if the computer doesn't respond quickly enough, it can get annoying, but come on, its a computer so you have to give it time to respond, and if it doesn't respond you shouldn't think it was "ignoring" you should you? There is always underlying factors anyway (RAM was being hogged, you didn't "exactly" double-click, your cursor wasn't "exactly over the icon, etc etc). So please, please, please, don't abuse that PC of yours!

4: Insisting on using particular hardware when other equally good hardware is available

Whenever you go to the trouble of providing your users with multiple options — computers, printers, servers, etc. — they will develop favorite choices. Some users will conclude, however, based on their previous experience (or sometimes just based on rumor), that only this particular piece of hardware will do. The beauty of interchangeability is wasted on them.
- Okay, now this, this is an important superstition. It is the thought process that the "best" hardware you can find, is in fact the "best". Well for PC's, something that is considered the best isn't always the best. I mean they only take the "best" spot for like 2 weeks? Then they move down the line of hardware into yesterdays trash bin of yesterdays obsolete parts (sarcasm of course). Also, it helps to be open to using (for example using AMD and Intel, respectively) different brands because they are all in the "want to be the best for the week" race, and you can never really tell if an absolute winner is going to be decided upon. When in doubt, you can always test things out for yourself (with benchmarks) because knowing something for certain needs your eyes as witness.

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5: “I broke it!”

Many users blame the computer for any problems (or they blame the IT department). But some users assume when something goes wrong, they did it.

They don’t think about all the tiny voltages and magnetic charges, timed to the nanosecond, all of which have to occur in the proper sequence in order for success. In fact, there are plenty of chances for things to go wrong without them, and things often do. But then, all those possible sources of error are hidden from the user — invisible by their nature and tucked away inside the box. The only place complexity isn’t hidden is in the interface, and the most obviously fallible part of that is … them. It may take only a few cases of it actually being the user’s fault to get this superstition rolling.
- I laugh every time I read this one.... When its broke, blame something else. But sometimes you get the people that think 'they' did it (for example, someone touches your idle PC to try and surf for a bit, but it suddenly reboots for no reason). Like in my example, really the reason was that the computer was overheating (for whatever reason) and reboots displaying a "serious error" message when it comes up again. Well, anyone who happens to touch the PC will think that the "serious error" was there fault (and probably think that the error will "always" be their fault). All I can say is, think about everything else (the underlying factors, because there are "many" of those) and don't look straight ahead, blaming only whats in front of you.

6: Magical thinking

These are the users who have memorized the formula for getting the computer to do what they want but have no clue how it works. As in magic, as long as you get the incantation exactly right, the result “just happens.” The unforgiving nature of computer commands tends to feed this belief. The user whose long-running struggle to connect to the Web is resolved by, “Oh, here’s your problem, you left out the colon…” is a prime candidate to develop this superstition.

Once on the path to magical thinking, some users give up trying to understand the computer as a tool to work with and instead treat it like some powerful but incomprehensible entity that must be negotiated with. For them, the computer works in mysterious ways, and superstitions begin to have more to do with what the computer is than how they use it.
- Yea, does it ever come to their attention that they just type "really" sloppy? Sure the computer is unforgiving when you butcher something you try typing, but treating it as magical? I laugh at this one also, because if you start treating your computer as a "magical" being, I will just face-palm until you come back to your senses and realize that sometimes that incantation can throw you an oddball and not work correctly (in an example of your internet not connecting because your modem was off, but instead automatically assuming that you typed your "magical words" wrong).

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7: Attributing personality to the machine

This is the user who claims in all honesty, “The computer hates me,” and will give you a long list of experiences supporting their conclusion, or the one who refuses to use a computer or printer that had a problem earlier but which you have now fixed. No, no, it failed before and the user is not going to forget it.
- lol. I mean seriously, if you think ANY inanimate object hates you, you've got another thing coming. A computer is essentially a machine, and last I checked it doesn't have feelings or even remorse for anyone who doesn't use it properly. It wasn't working because it was "broken" (or something along those lines), not because it hates you (you can probably associate this with #3 where the computer is "ignoring you"!!). So yea, if you start falling "in love" with your computer, I will have to check you into a mental institution for thinking the computer itself loved you .

8: Believing the computer sees all and knows all

Things this user says betray the belief that behind all the hardware and software there is a single Giant Brain that sees all and knows all — or should. They’re surprised when things they’ve done don’t seem to “stick,” as in “I changed my email address; why does it keep using my old one?” or “Did you change it everywhere?” “… Huh?” or “My new car always knows where I am, how come I have to tell Google Maps where I live?” or the ever-popular “You mean when you open up my document you see something different?”
- Okay this is one is really funny, because my own friends do this one to me a lot (like the google maps ones ) Well lets see, every computer is separate from one another, and everything that is on their hard drive, won't be the same as the next one. I mean see the "Did you change it everywhere?" one a lot on here too. "Hey, it won't work, I signed up for account but I can't get in-game ?? PLZ HELP". The forums is separate from the site itself, so automatically assuming that "everything" in general is connected like this is very, very wrong. "This computer should have all my programs on it also, where are they?", hello! your at your friends house on "his" computer? So please, please do "me" a favor and don't assume computers are like this, because they are not (I mean the words "private" and "exclusive" and "separate" do exist right?)

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9: Assuming the computer is always right

This user fails to recognize that the modern computer is more like television than the Delphic oracle. Even the most credulous people recognize that not everything they see on television is true, but some users think the computer is different. “There’s something wrong with the company server.” “What makes you think that?” “Because when I try to log in, it says server not found.” … “Why did you click on that pop-up?” “It said I had a virus and that I had to.”
- Wow, now this one (looks down while shaking head) I see plenty of. Oblivious to the fact that the computer IS NOT always right. Just because a pop-up comes up doesn't mean you are "obligated" to click it (I mean do you "have" to give a dollar to everyone in the world if someone told you to do it jokingly?). Keep an open mind people, come on!

10: “It’s POSSESSED!!”

Users who are ordinarily rational can still succumb to superstition when the computer or its peripherals seem to stop paying any attention to them and start acting crazy — like when the screen suddenly fills with a code dump, or a keyboard problem overrides their input, or a newly revived printer spews out pages of gibberish. It serves to validate the secretly held suspicion that computers have a mind of their own — and that mind isn’t particularly stable.
Magic?
- Yea, certainly not everything can be explained, or even explained fully. But for the most part, a computers behavior "can" be explained. So next time that BSOD (Blue screen of Death) comes up, think about the possibilities of why this could have happened (bad memory, trojan [yes trojans can trick you into thinking there is a real error by throwing blatant BSOD's everywhere], hard drive failure, etc etc) instead of thinking that the PC again has "feelings" or in this case "a mind of its own".
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We’re used to seeing superstitions among gamblers and athletes, who frequently engage in high-stakes performances with largely unpredictable outcomes. That superstitions also show up when people use computers — algorithmic devices designed to be completely predictable — is either evidence of human irrationality or an interesting borderline case of Clarke’s Third Law: “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”

What kinds of superstitious behavior have you seen among your users? Have you been able to ease them past the abyss of their irrational convictions?
Please share your thoughts on this, I'm welcome to anything you guys want to share concerning our superstitious behavior!

Part of the Illustrious "Team Phantom" squad!!! Be a fan today!

Message edited by hayato725 - Friday, 2009-09-04, 7:56 PM