While a thorough knowledge of PCs might be near the top of the list for Thomas Reddekopp, it's not number one. Not when his office gets 500-800 calls a month from frustrated, upset, and often angry PC users whose computers have just crashed, whose passwords don't work, or any of the other predicaments that can happen to the 589 nodes on the network. "The severity of their problems goes from minor to major," says Reddekopp, who works from a main office in Riverside, California, that takes care of the computers on a Wide Area Network spread over 187 miles and strung between ten sites of the District Attorney's (DA) offices throughout Riverside County.

"Call the Hardware Guy"
Coming into this job from a radar technician background in the military and a previous job of rebuilding telephones and key service units for a phone remanufacturing company, Reddekopp says he was made the "hardware guy." What that means is that he's the one who upgrades memory, reinstalls operating systems, and customizes and configures PCs to individual users within the DA's office.

And he takes care of problems. Lots and lots of problems. Most of the time he can solve the troubles from his office in Riverside, especially when it's something as simple as "Why does what I type keep overwriting what's already there?" or "Why does my computer type only CAPS?" Those questions he handles by walking the user through a few simple steps using large amounts of patience. More complicated problems require a trip to a remote office.

What's a Desktop?
Being able to understand the frame of mind of the person on the other end of the phone is a huge part of Reddekopp's job description. On a daily basis this can run the gamut from total computer illiteracy-like a user asking, "What's a desktop?"-to coworkers who are losing it because they have a job to do and their computers have gone berserk. "They're not calling me to ask how my day is going," jokes Reddekopp, "so I have to be calm." Fortunately for Reddekopp, 90 percent of the time the problem is simple. But then the callers feel stupid because they didn't realize the cap lock was on or they only have to push the insert button to keep from overwriting. "Patience is one of my big challenges, especially when someone calls with a problem as simple as turning on a computer," Reddekopp notes. He does admit that when the people on the other end of the line are really angry, his voice gets calmer and calmer, which often causes callers to become even angrier.

Oh Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!
Being in a PC support position isn't just taking calls. One of the satisfactions that Reddekopp gets is occasionally running into the problem he can't fix easily. He likes the challenge of having to dig in and figure out what's wrong.

Another reward is when people thank him for solving a problem. "I have to take a step back and realize that what might seem second nature to me is very serious to them," he elaborates.

Pass on Your Secrets
As can be expected in this type of job, Reddekopp and his colleagues share a lot of information, shortcuts, and solutions. "I would say about 50 percent of what I do is based on my education and the other half is trial and error," he points out. His education gave him the basics of building computers and loading programs. But as can be expected when you've built thirty computers and had the same problem with twenty-five of them, the solutions become increasingly simple. "We fill new people in on what they need to know. It doesn't make sense for them to sit there reinventing the wheel," says Reddekopp. "You can't be stingy with knowledge in this kind of work environment."

In order to keep current, his department is constantly upgrading its software and equipment. They've recently implemented a new program to make it easier to remotely control all the computers on the network. Reddekopp also must keep track of the equipment in use and who made what changes or repairs to it in a database.

Which Fire Do You Put out First?
Multitasking is a good description of Reddekopp's daily routine. After checking the list of requests for help that are doled out from calls that come in to a central location, Reddekopp says he usually gets hit with a few dire emergencies. These take precedence over whatever else was planned for that day. "It's a high-paced job," he reports. "I'm juggling getting a computer built, to helping someone e-mail an attachment, to getting a printer to work. What's standard about this job is the fast pace. New requests come in every day."

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