Category — Office Culture

Since most of the posts this week somehow wound up being about ways to look like a complete idiot, I figured I’d finish the week off strong and share with you one of the weirder things I have come across on the web recently. Designed by Erik De Nijs, the “Beauty & the Geek” concept jeans are “modern shaped trousers which are often worn by youngsters…” and feature a built-in keyboard, speakers, and a mouse strapped to the backpocket. Despite the strong temptation to comment on the obvious implications derived from the keyboards placement, I think i will leave that to you.

If you have been trying to think of ways to boost your image at work, then look no further. You can finally ditch the polkadot tie youve been wearing for the last two years, and replace it with the Guitar Hero Key Neck Tie, which aside from showing everyone at the office that you have a sense of humor, will also signal your guitar shredding prowess to fellow employees, and perhaps initiate a challenge or two.

I enjoyed a good laugh this morning at the expense of a co-workers’ stupidity. Upon arriving to work (late) he discovered that his computer would not turn on. After attempting to solve the issue by pounding on the keyboard and blurting out the usual bag of insults, he angrily picked up the phone and demanded immediate assistance from our company tech support. The tech guy arrived promptly, and after a just a few moments of contemplation, he bent down and gave the power cable a small nudge into the socket. Apparently it had not been pushed in all the way. Unable to withstand the laughter that inevitable emerged from the surrounding cubicles, my co-worker apologized to the tech guy, and disappeared to the kitchen.

The incident reminded me of a great article I read recently that offered some tips on how to get the most out of tech support. Most people will agree that there are few activities more grueling than spending an hour on the phone following directions from a person that’s probably stationed somewhere in India. So save yourself the potential humiliation and check out the article titled 11 Tips for Better Tech Support.

If the Phantom Keystroker didn’t strike your fancy for a good April Fools’ day prank, there’s certainly a wealth of good ideas floating around the web right now. The fellas over at Popular Mechanics just dropped the top 5 pranks that can be pulled at your job. I can’t say i was particularly smitten with most of them, as they seemed either too time consuming, or too confusing to execute. Nonetheless I am still going to give the Refrigerator Handle Switch a try. Apparently you can place the handle on most office fridges on the opposite side of the fridge, thereby rendering any attempt at opening the thing useless. If you’re looking for something a bit less involved, there are several delightful Firefox Prank add-ons that will cause erratic browser behavior and consequently massive headaches. For even more great computer related pranks head over to Lifehacker’s Top 10 Harmless Pranks. Feel free to post any of your successful pranks in the comments.

Do you have an annoying cubicle neighbor who taps their feet on the divider all day. I do. To express my gratitude I have decided to get one of these Phantom Keystroker prank devices. After plugging it into the back of his PC, it will periodically begin to move around the cursor while typing in random text, and hopefully send the person into panic. As a bonus I’m thinking of planting a spy cam in his cubicle to capture the magic on tape.

Think Geek via OhGizmo!

Is your above average geek factor stopping you from getting any respect at the office?  Do people automatically assume that you still live in your moms basement even though she stopped driving you to work months ago?  Well perhaps its time to roll up your sleeves and show off your true colors.  Slap on one of these non-toxic Geek Tattoos that reveal your inner rebel without alienating you from your dungeons & dragons gang.