Computer Illiterate Parents Suck

[Joe]

Yup.

So, I went to bed early today (like, noon), and I woke up about a half hour ago, and of course, my computer is sitting here turned off. I turn it on and try to dial, and the line is busy. So for some idiotic, less than intelligent reason, someone deemed it needed to disconnect my computer, who is sharing an internet connection, and connect directly. My dad was bitching about my computer "slowing the network down", which is kind of funny, because I host three bots. Of course its going to be slower during the day, if I'm playing games or something, but God damn, I WAS SLEEPING. -.-

So anyhow, he shut my computer down, so guess what? Well, I was supposed to write an essay. Lets just say I did (I didn't). I forgot to save it, but had it open in UltraEdit32. Well, he came along and ignorantly shut down my computer, and boom, it was gone. Good job, loser! =)

Also, I modified Energy Settinigs to do nothing when he presses my power button. GG dad.

[Screenor]

Sounds like my 'friends' that say DSL is faster then cable just because their parents work in accounting. Woo for the interweb.

[MyndFyre]

@Joe: It's called the "Save" button.  If you didn't save, I'd tell you: tough shit.

@Scr33n0r: Cable is often rated at a higher speed, but it's not unusual for DSL to go faster, since it's dedicated, where cable is shared.

[Screenor]

@Joe: It's called the "Safe" button.  If you didn't save, I'd tell you: tough shit.

@Scr33n0r: Cable is often rated at a higher speed, but it's not unusual for DSL to go faster, since it's dedicated, where cable is shared.

Yes, but which would you rather be on a gaming network with, cable or DSL?

[rabbit]

Well, if the office is next door, DSL.

[Screenor]

Well, if the office is next door, DSL.

Office..?

Being on a network with DSL period is not good, you'll get 100+ms anywhere, ask Mythix if you need any proof.

[deadly7]

Playing with Mythix on SC does suck, his DSL annoys me.

[rabbit]

Well, if the office is next door, DSL.

Office..?

Being on a network with DSL period is not good, you'll get 100+ms anywhere, ask Mythix if you need any proof.

Then his DSL sucks.  I get 31/32 on Battle.Net and about 50-90 on most CS servers, depending on where they are.

DSL works over the phone line, so the closer you are to the DSL "office" (whatever it's technically called, where you get service from), the shorter the distance between the broadband provider and the user the data has to travel, and thus faster response times.

[deadly7]

Well, if the office is next door, DSL.

Office..?

Being on a network with DSL period is not good, you'll get 100+ms anywhere, ask Mythix if you need any proof.

Then his DSL sucks.  I get 31/32 on Battle.Net and about 50-90 on most CS servers, depending on where they are.

DSL works over the phone line, so the closer you are to the DSL "office" (whatever it's technically called, where you get service from), the shorter the distance between the broadband provider and the user the data has to travel, and thus faster response times.

When you're on USEast, you're not very far from the actual B.Net server in location to Mythix.  Mythix and I are smack-dab in the middle of the U.S.

[iago]

@Joe: It's called the "Save" button.  If you didn't save, I'd tell you: tough shit.

Newby's friend turned off his computer once, and he lost a bunch of unsaved work.  That's exactly what I told him.

[Sidoh]

Playing with Mythix on SC does suck, his DSL annoys me.

He has cable now, I'm pretty sure.

[iago]

I personally like DSL.  It's decently fast, and quite reliable. 

How many times in the past year has x86labs.org been down because of network failure? Once, I think.  Thank DSL!

[Furious]

Well, if the office is next door, DSL.

Office..?

Being on a network with DSL period is not good, you'll get 100+ms anywhere, ask Mythix if you need any proof.

Then his DSL sucks.  I get 31/32 on Battle.Net and about 50-90 on most CS servers, depending on where they are.

DSL works over the phone line, so the closer you are to the DSL "office" (whatever it's technically called, where you get service from), the shorter the distance between the broadband provider and the user the data has to travel, and thus faster response times.

I get 15/16 on Battle.Net, for example, right now I've got 4 bots loaded on the USEast server, 3@16ms / 1@15ms, and that's me on my cable network with 6 computers total, 4 of which are running currently, and 3 which were being used at the time of login.

[Sidoh]

I get 15/16 on Battle.Net, for example, right now I've got 4 bots loaded on the USEast server, 3@16ms / 1@15ms, and that's me on my cable network with 6 computers total, 4 of which are running currently, and 3 which were being used at the time of login.

The bandwidth used by bots is nearly negligible.  If I were to load 4 bots on DSL, I'm pretty sure they'd have around the same pings too...

I've never used cable because it's unavailable here, but I probably would switch just because DSL here is expensive.

[Towelie]

Yup.

So, I went to bed early today (like, noon), and I woke up about a half hour ago, and of course, my computer is sitting here turned off. I turn it on and try to dial, and the line is busy. So for some idiotic, less than intelligent reason, someone deemed it needed to disconnect my computer, who is sharing an internet connection, and connect directly. My dad was bitching about my computer "slowing the network down", which is kind of funny, because I host three bots. Of course its going to be slower during the day, if I'm playing games or something, but God damn, I WAS SLEEPING. -.-

So anyhow, he shut my computer down, so guess what? Well, I was supposed to write an essay. Lets just say I did (I didn't). I forgot to save it, but had it open in UltraEdit32. Well, he came along and ignorantly shut down my computer, and boom, it was gone. Good job, loser! =)

Also, I modified Energy Settinigs to do nothing when he presses my power button. GG dad.

Would you rather have computer illiterate parents, or parents who knowjust about everyhing about computers? I'd say you are lucky, but my parents are in the middle so I am all set.

[deadly7]

My parents just know how to play Solitaire on the computer, oh and use IE (I switched the other comp to Firefox asap. GG~)

[Towelie]

My parents know how to go on the internet, microsoft word, email... and thats about it.

[Ergot]

I get 15/16 on Battle.Net, for example, right now I've got 4 bots loaded on the USEast server, 3@16ms / 1@15ms, and that's me on my cable network with 6 computers total, 4 of which are running currently, and 3 which were being used at the time of login.

I get the same on West. Location matters and there's a difference between loading 4 and loading 4 at the same time...

My dad knows a good deal about computers, my mom is hopeless however.

[MyndFyre]

Yes, but which would you rather be on a gaming network with, cable or DSL?

DSL.  It's what I use to game now.  It's awesome.

We pay for 1 megabit service (that's ~125kilobytes/sec), and I regularly get 150kbps sustained downloads and low pings on Bnet and CS:Source.

[iago]

Would you rather have computer illiterate parents, or parents who knowjust about everyhing about computers? I'd say you are lucky, but my parents are in the middle so I am all set.

That's a good point.  I'm happier doing what I want on the computers.  I'd hate to have a parent like Newby's dad or Quik's dad who both seem to know just enough about networks to be annoying. 

[rabbit]

Well, my dad said that as soon as FiOS (Verizon's Fiber Optic network) is available in our area we can switch that.  For us it'll be the same price as our DSL right now, because we have cell phones (at least my dad does, I'm on Cingular) with Verizon.

[Ergot]

Would you rather have computer illiterate parents, or parents who knowjust about everyhing about computers? I'd say you are lucky, but my parents are in the middle so I am all set.

That's a good point.  I'm happier doing what I want on the computers.  I'd hate to have a parent like Newby's dad or Quik's dad who both seem to know just enough about networks to be annoying. 

Same here!

Well, my dad said that as soon as FiOS (Verizon's Fiber Optic network) is available in our area we can switch that.  For us it'll be the same price as our DSL right now, because we have cell phones (at least my dad does, I'm on Cingular) with Verizon.

I hear great things about FIOS... I want it too

[Joe]

My parents aren't "illiterate", really. I guess they could be worse. They're comparable to towelies parents.

Anyhow, I finished it (again, pfft, right), and I need to feel like I've acomplished something, and just handing it in won't do that, so here:

@MyndFyre's save button comment: Boo, my system is stable enough, without parential interference, that I can leave unsaved files open for days, and I often do (such as notes I quickly type when I'm programming something, feel like saving, and do a week later).

Intermediate Essay
William LaFrance
Composition 9
Hour 6

Three Things I Would Change About BHS

   Although I believe Baraboo High School is a wonderful place, there are a few things that I would change about it, such as lifting the rules against snowball fights, having longer lunch periods, and allowing detentions to be served during lunch.

   First, I believe we should have snowball fights allowed on school grounds. They're a great way to burn off excess energy, and just plain fun. Of course, they would have to be supervised to stop any real fighting from happening, but this could create a great way for students to get rid of stress!

   Second, I believe that we should be given longer lunch periods. This gives the students more time to visit with friends, and they would be less tempted to visit during class. That way, the small amount of class time cut to make lunch longer will be made up with the extra work students will accomplish during class by not talking.

   Third and finally, detentions should be served during lunch instead of after school. This would cause less problems with attendance, as students will usually skip after school detentions to hang out with friends. Also, having detentions at lunch wouldn't interfere with family plans which could require rescheduling of either what the family was planning, or the detention, and would cause a lot less trouble for the parents and school administrators.

   In conclusion, although Baraboo High School could use a few small changes here and there, its an enjoyable environment for learning, studying, and socializing.

[Sidoh]

Haha, lifting the rules on snowball fights is a massive liability issue; they'd never comply to that.

I wish essays in any of the classes I've taken could've been that short.

[Ergot]

Joe, that's a terrible essay for multiple reasons. I don't see why'd you'd be so upset over such a short essay; however, you should save your essays if they are that important even if your computer is stable. There are things you can't control, such as your parents, weather, natural, and the power company.

[iago]

@MyndFyre's save button comment: Boo, my system is stable enough, without parential interference, that I can leave unsaved files open for days, and I often do (such as notes I quickly type when I'm programming something, feel like saving, and do a week later).

No computer in the world is stable enough.  There could be a blackout, a hardware failuree, a windows failure, etc.  Everything that you're doing in an editor that doesn't auto-saved should be saved every couple minutes or more. 

of course, while I was typing that, Ergot said it.  Bastard. 

Haha, lifting the rules on snowball fights is a massive liability issue; they'd never comply to that.

yeah, it's just like skateboards: what happens if the school allows it and somebody gets injured?  The school gets sued++. Because people in the US are so sue-happy (I'm told), they can't possibly lift that regulation. 

[Sidoh]

Joe, that's a terrible essay for multiple reasons. I don't see why'd you'd be so upset over such a short essay; however, you should save your essays if they are that important even if your computer is stable. There are things you can't control, such as your parents, weather, natural, and the power company.

Hehe, yep.  I have a 1500 word essay due tomorrow that I've just barely started on!

yeah, it's just like skateboards: what happens if the school allows it and somebody gets injured?  The school gets sued++. Because people in the US are so sue-happy (I'm told), they can't possibly lift that regulation. 

They are.  It's really rediculous.  I'm so moving to Canada.

[Quik]

Yup.

So, I went to bed early today (like, noon), and I woke up about a half hour ago, and of course, my computer is sitting here turned off. I turn it on and try to dial, and the line is busy. So for some idiotic, less than intelligent reason, someone deemed it needed to disconnect my computer, who is sharing an internet connection, and connect directly. My dad was bitching about my computer "slowing the network down", which is kind of funny, because I host three bots. Of course its going to be slower during the day, if I'm playing games or something, but God damn, I WAS SLEEPING. -.-

So anyhow, he shut my computer down, so guess what? Well, I was supposed to write an essay. Lets just say I did (I didn't). I forgot to save it, but had it open in UltraEdit32. Well, he came along and ignorantly shut down my computer, and boom, it was gone. Good job, loser! =)

Also, I modified Energy Settinigs to do nothing when he presses my power button. GG dad.

Would you rather have computer illiterate parents, or parents who knowjust about everyhing about computers? I'd say you are lucky, but my parents are in the middle so I am all set.

I prefer parents who know something. Because then you get all of your questions answered, free parts, and help with anything you need, plus they understand your wants and needs. I can speak from experiance that computer-knowledgable parents are better than illiterate ones, being as I have some of both.

[Nate]

I think my Dad knows a little something about computers, he has every MS, Sun, Cisco certification i can name.  While chances are if you have used free public WiFi somewhere my brother is somehow connected to its operation.

[Sidoh]

I think my Dad knows a little something about computers, he has every MS, Sun, Cisco certification i can name.  While chances are if you have used free public WiFi somewhere my brother is somehow connected to its operation.

CCNE?

[deadly7]

Yup.

So, I went to bed early today (like, noon), and I woke up about a half hour ago, and of course, my computer is sitting here turned off. I turn it on and try to dial, and the line is busy. So for some idiotic, less than intelligent reason, someone deemed it needed to disconnect my computer, who is sharing an internet connection, and connect directly. My dad was bitching about my computer "slowing the network down", which is kind of funny, because I host three bots. Of course its going to be slower during the day, if I'm playing games or something, but God damn, I WAS SLEEPING. -.-

So anyhow, he shut my computer down, so guess what? Well, I was supposed to write an essay. Lets just say I did (I didn't). I forgot to save it, but had it open in UltraEdit32. Well, he came along and ignorantly shut down my computer, and boom, it was gone. Good job, loser! =)

Also, I modified Energy Settinigs to do nothing when he presses my power button. GG dad.

Would you rather have computer illiterate parents, or parents who knowjust about everyhing about computers? I'd say you are lucky, but my parents are in the middle so I am all set.

I prefer parents who know something. Because then you get all of your questions answered, free parts, and help with anything you need, plus they understand your wants and needs. I can speak from experiance that computer-knowledgable parents are better than illiterate ones, being as I have some of both.

<Quik[x86]> my stepdad complains about his new computer because the wallpaper is ugly

[Newby]

@Joe: It's called the "Save" button.  If you didn't save, I'd tell you: tough shit.

Newby's friend turned off his computer once, and he lost a bunch of unsaved work.  That's exactly what I told him.

Yep, but joe didn't kick a hole in his wall, now did he?

[zorm]

Haha, lifting the rules on snowball fights is a massive liability issue; they'd never comply to that.

yeah, it's just like skateboards: what happens if the school allows it and somebody gets injured?  The school gets sued++. Because people in the US are so sue-happy (I'm told), they can't possibly lift that regulation. 

Oddly enough my school allows both and AFIAK they have never had any problems with it. Although I think they disallowed skateboards this year, likely not because of people getting hurt but because the people involved in that group were uhh sketchy at best.

As far as parents go, I wouldn't know as both of mine are rather computer literate. Since Nate seems to want to brag, my dad has written code thats run on some of the fastest super computers in the world. Beat that?

[Newby]

I think my Dad knows a little something about computers, he has every MS, Sun, Cisco certification i can name.  While chances are if you have used free public WiFi somewhere my brother is somehow connected to its operation.

My dad has done work for/is friends with/holds clearances in multiple government organizations which I don't feel I'm at liberty to discuss. I think that beats public wi-fi, which is stupid as it is.

Oh yeah, and he's written C coding as long as he's had experience with UNIX, and he's mentioned on Microsoft's webpage (he also works for them?)

Beat that.

[Sidoh]

Oddly enough my school allows both and AFIAK they have never had any problems with it. Although I think they disallowed skateboards this year, likely not because of people getting hurt but because the people involved in that group were uhh sketchy at best.

As far as parents go, I wouldn't know as both of mine are rather computer literate. Since Nate seems to want to brag, my dad has written code thats run on some of the fastest super computers in the world. Beat that?

Haha, I think mine does too.  That's because it's a small district, though.  I don't know of a public lawsuit that's been filed for something as minimal as that around here.  It was strange moving here because my old school (and almost all of the rest of the schools in the nation) didn't allow knives of any sort.  Here, you can have a pocket knife, as long as the blade is 3" or under.  My freshman year, my friend pulled out his pocket knife and my eyes got as big as they could.  I was like "Man, you'd better put that away before the teacher sees it!"  He just kind of laughed and explained they're legal under regulation here.

As far as Nate's claims go, certifications are completey overrated.  I took a practice CCNA test without even having read the second book (there were two study books -- both about 700 pages each) and got a 75% or something like that.  Certifications mean shit.  I mean look at that 9 year old who's MCSE.

[rabbit]

I think my Dad knows a little something about computers, he has every MS, Sun, Cisco certification i can name.  While chances are if you have used free public WiFi somewhere my brother is somehow connected to its operation.

My dad has done work for/is friends with/holds clearances in multiple government organizations which I don't feel I'm at liberty to discuss. I think that beats public wi-fi, which is stupid as it is.

Oh yeah, and he's written C coding as long as he's had experience with UNIX, and he's mentioned on Microsoft's webpage (he also works for them?)

Beat that.

My cousin has a whole paragraph about himself in the Microsoft Bible 2005, and probably the ones after.  I know, he's not my dad, but he's family

[Newby]

M$ Bible? :p

[iago]

I prefer parents who know something. Because then you get all of your questions answered, free parts, and help with anything you need, plus they understand your wants and needs. I can speak from experiance that computer-knowledgable parents are better than illiterate ones, being as I have some of both.

I prefer figuring things out myself. 

If my parents knew a lot, they'd want to look over my shoulder, and to know what's going on, and to "help" me set up the stuff, and all that.  And if they didn't know enough, they'd be worried about security and other things like that.  I'm sure I would find it much more annoying than beneficial having parents who know about computers. 

Oh, and I've personally written forensic software that is used across Canada, and have also done a number of conference calls with the heads of the provincial/national governments' security departments.  I know it's just Canada, but the fact that it was me and not my parents/cousin/whatever trumps all that

[Sidoh]

I prefer figuring things out myself. 

If my parents knew a lot, they'd want to look over my shoulder, and to know what's going on, and to "help" me set up the stuff, and all that.  And if they didn't know enough, they'd be worried about security and other things like that.  I'm sure I would find it much more annoying than beneficial having parents who know about computers. 

Oh, and I've personally written forensic software that is used across Canada, and have also done a number of conference calls with the heads of the provincial/national governments' security departments.  I know it's just Canada, but the fact that it was me and not my parents/cousin/whatever trumps all that

Just Canada?  Haha, I'd argue that's a more impressive accomplishment than any of the others listed above.  I don't like these sorts of battles, though. :p

[CrAz3D]

My dad is decently computer literate, he just works on computers like 85yr old men drive, WAY too slow.
My mom doesn't know jack, its funny, I get a kick out of it.

@Joe:
Better essay would be about shools allowing paddling back in so that they can discipline little brats.

[Quik]

If we're posting random crap about our parents that makes our e-penis larger, then:

My father worked with Brian W. Kernighan and Dennis Ritchie at Bell Labs when UNIX was being invented.

Oh, Sidoh, it may not be CCNE, but I'm working towards a goal of getting my CCNA before I graduate, following in the footsteps of tmp because he owns.

[Newby]

Oh, Sidoh, it may not be CCNE, but I'm working towards a goal of getting my CCNA before I graduate, following in the footsteps of tmp because he owns.

Good luck with that.

[Sidoh]

Good luck with that.

CCNA isn't hard to get.  All you have to do is take a test.  Sure, you have to do a lot of reading, but it's really not that difficult of material.

[iago]

Haha, that's basically what I said to Newby:

(18:48:16) iago2: All you have to do is study the exam and memorize the answers
(18:48:18) iago2: Any idiot can do that
(18:48:22) iago2: That's why most certs are useless
(18:48:47) iago2: at least with certain ones, like CISSP, you have to work in the field for 3 years and renew it every year.  That's much more useful

[Sidoh]

Haha, that's basically what I said to Newby:

(18:48:16) iago2: All you have to do is study the exam and memorize the answers
(18:48:18) iago2: Any idiot can do that
(18:48:22) iago2: That's why most certs are useless
(18:48:47) iago2: at least with certain ones, like CISSP, you have to work in the field for 3 years and renew it every year.  That's much more useful

Haha.  I think that there are some certifications that do say a lot about the person's knowledge, like CCNE.  I'm pretty sure that's one of the "highest ranking" Cisco certifications there is.  There are only 4,000 of them in the US, or something like that (IIRC).

[Screenor]

Playing with Mythix on SC does suck, his DSL annoys me.

He has cable now, I'm pretty sure.

Yeah, and do you know how many fucking times he's jacked off to it's sexiness?!

[deadly7]

To everyone bragging about the certs, computer literate people (I mean people that hang around computers for more than 3+ hours a day and don't just play games or talk on aim, cause that isn't literacy. ) know that they don't really mean jack shit, but to the computer illiterate you seem like a god.  It helps a lot [so I've heard, I can't work to fix other people's computers yet, damn mom -.-'] when running your own pc repair business out of your house.

[Sidoh]

To everyone bragging about the certs, computer literate people (I mean people that hang around computers for more than 3+ hours a day and don't just play games or talk on aim, cause that isn't literacy. ) know that they don't really mean jack shit, but to the computer illiterate you seem like a god.  It helps a lot [so I've heard, I can't work to fix other people's computers yet, damn mom -.-'] when running your own pc repair business out of your house.

They hold some value -- proving at one time, you knew enough about computers to pass some test.  Of course it's going to mean more to someone who doesn't understand what it stands for; that's common sense.

Running your own PC repair business takes too much time.  I haven't advertized a single bit and I already have more work in that area than I'm comfortable with.

[Blaze]

I can top all of your stories.  I am Iron Man, na na na na na na, vote for me! 

[Newby]

CCIE = highest (Cisco Certified Internetworking Expert or something to that extent)

That's my life goal, to achieve one of those. There's a 2 hour written exam and an 8 hour lab. :X

[Sidoh]

CCIE = highest (Cisco Certified Internetworking Expert or something to that extent)

That's my life goal, to achieve one of those. There's a 2 hour written exam and an 8 hour lab. :X

I'm pretty sure that's the one I was thinking of, I just got the words/acronym messed up.  We had one out our school about a year ago.  He was a weird guy...

I seriously don't think I'd spend the time/money to do that, though.  The jobs you get with those sorts of things require you to travel all around the country on a constant basis.  That would suck.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CCIE

[deadly7]

To everyone bragging about the certs, computer literate people (I mean people that hang around computers for more than 3+ hours a day and don't just play games or talk on aim, cause that isn't literacy. ) know that they don't really mean jack shit, but to the computer illiterate you seem like a god.  It helps a lot [so I've heard, I can't work to fix other people's computers yet, damn mom -.-'] when running your own pc repair business out of your house.

They hold some value -- proving at one time, you knew enough about computers to pass some test.  Of course it's going to mean more to someone who doesn't understand what it stands for; that's common sense.

Running your own PC repair business takes too much time.  I haven't advertized a single bit and I already have more work in that area than I'm comfortable with.

You live in the Middle Of Nowhere, USA, though.  In my city there is like.. everything.  Best Buy, CompUSA, Circuit City, etc.  Plus, not many people will call a fourteen year old to work for them.

[Joe]

Joe, that's a terrible essay for multiple reasons. I don't see why'd you'd be so upset over such a short essay; however, you should save your essays if they are that important even if your computer is stable. There are things you can't control, such as your parents, weather, natural, and the power company.

I'm not upset that I lost it. In fact, if you read the first post, I didn't even write it. =p

I'm just looking for a reason to tell my dad to stop screwing with my system.

[Newby]

I am just too lazy to fix other people's stuff. I fixed one of my friend's computers.

His computer had so much spyware the thing sometimes failed to boot. Key word: sometimes.

Same with viruses.

By the end of the day, I had it down to one virus I could not remove for love nor money.

So, I ran the thing in Linux. Found out what it did.

Bam. No more viruses.

EDIT -- And to think, I did all of this over VNC, from the comfort of my living room. Having him install it was a bitch, but eh? Could have just reinstalled the fucking OS faster/easier/more efficiently.

[Sidoh]

You live in the Middle Of Nowhere, USA, though.  In my city there is like.. everything.  Best Buy, CompUSA, Circuit City, etc.  Plus, not many people will call a fourteen year old to work for them.

So what?  I don't understand your point.

[Newby]

You live in the Middle Of Nowhere, USA, though.  In my city there is like.. everything.  Best Buy, CompUSA, Circuit City, etc.  Plus, not many people will call a fourteen year old to work for them.

So what?  I don't understand your point.

He means to say you have business and he doesn't because he's foreign, and he's covering up that excuse with other lame excuses.

[deadly7]

You live in the Middle Of Nowhere, USA, though.  In my city there is like.. everything.  Best Buy, CompUSA, Circuit City, etc.  Plus, not many people will call a fourteen year old to work for them.

So what?  I don't understand your point.

He means to say you have business and he doesn't because he's foreign, and he's covering up that excuse with other lame excuses.

No, I'm saying that I don't have business because there are big retail stores (ie: Best Buy, CompUSA, Circuit City, etc) that people here will go to first before asking a kid.  That may or may not be the case for you, Sidoh.  You also happen to live in what sounds like a small town, so you will know more people there as opposed to me where my city has some thousands (like.. 60+ I think).

[iago]

I live in a decent sized city (650,000 people with lots of Best Buys, etc) and I still get a lot of people who want my help.  I do it for really cheap (usually $20 for anything), which helps.  But it's generally for friends/family..

[deadly7]

Well, my family is comprised of Indians (yeah yeah you stereotypical asshole deadly), so there isn't much business there.. and I don't charge family.  Or friends, really.. though I do ask they recommend me. *shrug* I doubt it'll be a big source of revenue until I can like, market.

[Sidoh]

No, I'm saying that I don't have business because there are big retail stores (ie: Best Buy, CompUSA, Circuit City, etc) that people here will go to first before asking a kid.  That may or may not be the case for you, Sidoh.  You also happen to live in what sounds like a small town, so you will know more people there as opposed to me where my city has some thousands (like.. 60+ I think).

I would argue it's easier to spread your name (maybe not in relative terms -- but there are more people that would be interested in your services) in a bigger town.

People generally call manufacturer customer support before they ask a kid for help anyway.  The "clients" I have are ones who are fed up with waiting/want to get immediate help.