They did whaaaat!?!

[klytus.livejournal.com]

A few months ago, many of the users we support were sent 256MB flash drives as part of a 3rd party promotion. We got a mess of calls on these, but because it wasn't something sponsored by our Client, we didn't support them - but we at least told people what they were.

Well, in a totally unrelated call today, somebody was telling me that he was using his flash drive in a meeting where people were having fits trying to transmit files from one laptop to another. They were amazed at how useful these flash drives were.

What happened to the ones they got?

Well, it turns out over 50% of them had no idea what these things were...

...so they threw them away.

**headdesk**
**headdesk**
**headdesk**
**headdesk**
**headdesk**

I am cringing at the thought of 1500+ 256MB flashdrives rotting in landfills all over the U.S.

Comments

[noiresque.livejournal.com]

....wow. Hopefully some enterprising janitor or kids in the alley got a hold of some of them.

[kalidor.livejournal.com]

dude .. thats so sad .. I think I am going to have to go home early today. I can't perform do to overwhelming shock.

[abstrak-tokatl.livejournal.com]

son of a bitch.....

[docskurlock.livejournal.com]

I would "KILL" for one of those. I have one right now, and I need another one! I can't believe the idiots threw them away! What's wrong with corporate america? Aren't these "people" supposed to be higher educated? I mean, COME ON!

[blackrat.livejournal.com]

*crying noises*

[prozacnation.livejournal.com]

::whimpers....want a flash drive...whimpers::

[akage.livejournal.com]

That there is what we call "a hangin' offense".

Somebody get 1500 ropes.

[katyism.livejournal.com]

I bet someone thought they were mini-hilighters or something.

[shirenomad]

O. M. G.

That's worse than all the confused people receving AOL CDs and calling in to ask if they need a computer to run it.

[linguafranca.livejournal.com]

Oh... oh no. No. Just... no.

[jkesus.livejournal.com]

After hearing this i feel like committing suicide... *pulls out knife*

[basildestiny]

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooo. So totally cringing too.

[110billion.livejournal.com]

"You WHAT now?"

[firewallender.livejournal.com]

LOL. I'm not shocked at all.

On another note, my boss decided we all needed flash drives. So I came in one day to find a 3 GB flash drive on my desk. Sweet!

[klytus.livejournal.com]

This is a field sales force that is, quite literally, spread all over the country. This one meeting in question didn't have the entire sales force present, mind you, but if we go by the statistics, assume this was a typical random sample, and if over half of the people at this meeting were stupid enough to throw them away, it is no great leap to assume that over half of the 3000+ sales force did likewise.

[ihateemo.livejournal.com]

Ugh, I hate you!

[the-s-guy.livejournal.com]

"OK, everyone who did this, report to the disintegration chambers."

I guess that on the plus side, at least they weren't anything that would still be considered high-capacity in five years. And they're only worth around twenty bucks. But still... gah.

[kallell.livejournal.com]

too bad you cant bill them for it

[gholam.livejournal.com]

Nice... I paid outta my own pocket for a 2GB Sandisk Cruzer Mini, which I use almost exclusively for work-related stuff. Another tech managed to convince the boss that he needs a flash drive, so he got issued one... 128MB.

[linxie1.livejournal.com]

Come on now hun... I really don't see how this could surprise you. We are speaking about the same people who think that September 31st exists and has cases open for a month swearing that the calendar is wrong. I must say, that was a lot of fun for me. Turning a screaming client (because we can't fix her problem that occurred on September 31st) into a very quiet and embarrassed one when I pointed it out. She corrected her story (should have been August 31st) and I corrected the work log in her case!

[redqueenmeg.livejournal.com]

That kind of thing happens so much. My dad gets things like that at work. He doesn't throw them away but he doesn't bother to learn about them. I found a letter telling him that he was going to be part of a pilot program that would let him listen to work speeches in his car. I found it with an mp3 player with a cassette attachment for his car. He had never used it.

Now it's all mine.

[lions-tambua.livejournal.com]

*cries* why do someone give gifts to people who dont know what to do with it ?
ok.. i know how you feel. i just found out that our IT-Department threw away a whole bunch of 146GB SCA Harddrives because they got too much of them. they cant return them, not allowed to sell them, so they have to be destroyed. company policy *CRIES*

[sketchydave.livejournal.com]

At *least* it wasn't a high capacity flash drive. Just keep telling yourself that. I have a 256 that I use mostly for documents and it wasn't very expensive.

But can you imagine if they were 1 gig models going in the rubbish? There would have to be some blood spilled.

[klytus.livejournal.com]

Oh my... Holy... that is just... just...

Gah!

[starblazr.livejournal.com]

so what's the device limit on USB? that could of made a really fast USB linux 6gig lvm assuming 25 devices.

[the-s-guy.livejournal.com]

Did they think about loaning them out on 'long-term contracts' (10 yrs) at 'reasonable rates' ($5) ?

[lions-tambua.livejournal.com]

oh they would LOVE to do that. even if they can give them away for FREE
but the Financial-Law here is against that. The company's IT-Department is not an SALES department, so it doesnt need to pay extra taxes for what they buy, but therefor they must not sell company-equipment to ANYONE. they HAVE to destroy it when not in use any more and they have to bring written contracts, with the company who destroyed these things, to proove they did

[trazan.livejournal.com]

Now that really sucks!
Wombat

[trazan.livejournal.com]

Like the world hasn't enough garbage piling up to begin with. Throwing away things that still works is a waste in more ways than one.
Wombat

[lions-tambua.livejournal.com]

100% agreed!!
please write an mail to German Legislative (Politicans!) if they wouldnt bring up such BRAINFUCKING LAWS!!!!!! there would be FAR less pain in the world *growls*