Entries by tag: work
I know I've been posting like crazy today, but one more quick note.
What was Microsoft thinking when they redesigned their Office suite for 2007? Fortunately, I still have the previous version on my work computer, but co-workers are starting to get Office 2007 as they have their computers replaced or upgraded. Because I'm usually pretty good with computers, people often come to me for quick help questions... and it's absurd how many times I've been asked where something in Word moved to in the 2007 version.
I think this excerpt from an article by Jonathan Blum at CNNMoney.com sums it up:
-- Microsoft's four-letter #&!? Word by Jonathan Blum
Also, the 2007 versions of Office apps use default file formats that earlier versions can't open. As a result, I have had professors who beg students, "whatever that DOCX file thing is, don't use it -- I can't open it," and work with researchers who have been sharing files by e-mail for years but suddenly can't open each other's work.
Oh, and another thing. We create MS Access databases here that staff at other centers use to collect research data. Access 2007 can open them, but the user has to go through a convoluted process of adding our databases to their "trust center" before any of the code we've included can be run. I suppose that makes it harder to sneak malicious code past the user, but it also makes it VERY difficult for people who aren't good with this stuff to make our code work.
BLARGH!
What was Microsoft thinking when they redesigned their Office suite for 2007? Fortunately, I still have the previous version on my work computer, but co-workers are starting to get Office 2007 as they have their computers replaced or upgraded. Because I'm usually pretty good with computers, people often come to me for quick help questions... and it's absurd how many times I've been asked where something in Word moved to in the 2007 version.
I think this excerpt from an article by Jonathan Blum at CNNMoney.com sums it up:
Microsoft's hard work paid off in many ways: Word 2007 is lovely to look at and use. But Word's 450 million global users can expect major, unwelcome surprises from the new code. Everything you've learned about Word over the years is now wrong. The familiar menu names - File, Edit, View, Insert, Format and the rest - are gone, replaced by cryptic new headers: Home, Insert, Page Layout, and Reference.
And clicking on a header no longer triggers a flurry of pull-down menus. Sure, Microsoft's bloated menus were a design catastrophe, but at least you knew where things were. No more. Now you get a long horizontal bar called "The Ribbon" that holds - no, hides - most Word commands. Although Mac OS X users will find the ribbon familiar, they will have no leg up in battle to learn the new Word: most commands are slightly, but devilishly, different.
-- Microsoft's four-letter #&!? Word by Jonathan Blum
Also, the 2007 versions of Office apps use default file formats that earlier versions can't open. As a result, I have had professors who beg students, "whatever that DOCX file thing is, don't use it -- I can't open it," and work with researchers who have been sharing files by e-mail for years but suddenly can't open each other's work.
Oh, and another thing. We create MS Access databases here that staff at other centers use to collect research data. Access 2007 can open them, but the user has to go through a convoluted process of adding our databases to their "trust center" before any of the code we've included can be run. I suppose that makes it harder to sneak malicious code past the user, but it also makes it VERY difficult for people who aren't good with this stuff to make our code work.
BLARGH!
- Current Mood:
still annoyed
Okay, I realize that lots of people do this all the time... but it was the first regular weekday that I rode my bike to get to work in the morning, and it's kind of a big deal for me!
I had very nice ride, too... I had signed up for Bike Friday, figuring that even though they go to a different part of town than I work in, it's early enough that I can just continue to work afterward. I was up late last night, and didn't sleep terribly well, so this morning I decided to skip out on the organized ride... again (my apologies the Mayor and to Dan Hoagland who worked very hard to coordinate the event).
The route I took seemed to be a pretty reasonable compromise between direct and low-traffic:
I know my way around, but brought the GPS so I could keep track of my speed and distance:
I definitely need to find an alternative to my backpack. I could have gotten away with stepping right off the bike and into meetings if not for the fact that the straps made my shoulders sweat through my shirt. The rest of me was pretty much ready to start my day, though. I just washed up in the restroom and changed shirts... but on hotter or rainy days, I'll need additional freshening up. Fortunately, we have a shower at the office, and my gym is just across the street, so there's plenty of opportunity to do so.
Overall, it was a successful commute, and took about as much time as driving would, given that I cut out a lot of driving around the block to get to my parking spot. I can't wait to do it more often!
I had very nice ride, too... I had signed up for Bike Friday, figuring that even though they go to a different part of town than I work in, it's early enough that I can just continue to work afterward. I was up late last night, and didn't sleep terribly well, so this morning I decided to skip out on the organized ride... again (my apologies the Mayor and to Dan Hoagland who worked very hard to coordinate the event).
The route I took seemed to be a pretty reasonable compromise between direct and low-traffic:
I know my way around, but brought the GPS so I could keep track of my speed and distance:
I definitely need to find an alternative to my backpack. I could have gotten away with stepping right off the bike and into meetings if not for the fact that the straps made my shoulders sweat through my shirt. The rest of me was pretty much ready to start my day, though. I just washed up in the restroom and changed shirts... but on hotter or rainy days, I'll need additional freshening up. Fortunately, we have a shower at the office, and my gym is just across the street, so there's plenty of opportunity to do so.
Overall, it was a successful commute, and took about as much time as driving would, given that I cut out a lot of driving around the block to get to my parking spot. I can't wait to do it more often!
- Current Location:Longwood Medical Area, Boston, MA (Work)
After nearly 18 months of (a) trying to get it approved by the IRB, (b) trying to get the subcontract worked out with the sponsor, and (c) trying to find a date that worked for me, my boss, the participant, and the various other departments in the hospital that needed to be involved....
We finally had our first study visit for a (not-so) new research study!
The science behind this study is really interesting, but the protocol is chock-full of steps that we don't normally do. The whole study is poorly documented -- one document will contradict another, passages in the manual of operations are ambiguous, the contacts at the sponsoring university are hard to track down, etc.
Also, there is SO much paperwork. I have never seen so much paperwork for one study. Things that could easily be recorded on one form are split among 5 or 6 different forms. Instead of a "History and Physical Exam" form, there are two separate forms, each with lots of empty space. Instead of a comprehensive CT Scan form, there is a separate document for EACH pass through the scanner.
There also seems to be some sort of hex on this study. Supplies that were sent to me went missing... twice. The pharmacy wouldn't take the charge code that finance had set up for us, so had to beg them to accept an interdepartmental ledger entry to get them the funds for our supplies. There's a lab test that we need to run that multiple people at the lab told me they can't do (but they've done before).
The whole darn thing has really been a huge pain in my butt. However, today's visit went mostly smoothly, and now we can finally say that we've enrolled someone in this study (we're the last center to do so).
Also, like I mentioned before, the idea behind the study is really an interesting one, so I'm glad to be a part of it... I think that's what's keeping me from going completely batty.
We finally had our first study visit for a (not-so) new research study!
The science behind this study is really interesting, but the protocol is chock-full of steps that we don't normally do. The whole study is poorly documented -- one document will contradict another, passages in the manual of operations are ambiguous, the contacts at the sponsoring university are hard to track down, etc.
Also, there is SO much paperwork. I have never seen so much paperwork for one study. Things that could easily be recorded on one form are split among 5 or 6 different forms. Instead of a "History and Physical Exam" form, there are two separate forms, each with lots of empty space. Instead of a comprehensive CT Scan form, there is a separate document for EACH pass through the scanner.
There also seems to be some sort of hex on this study. Supplies that were sent to me went missing... twice. The pharmacy wouldn't take the charge code that finance had set up for us, so had to beg them to accept an interdepartmental ledger entry to get them the funds for our supplies. There's a lab test that we need to run that multiple people at the lab told me they can't do (but they've done before).
The whole darn thing has really been a huge pain in my butt. However, today's visit went mostly smoothly, and now we can finally say that we've enrolled someone in this study (we're the last center to do so).
Also, like I mentioned before, the idea behind the study is really an interesting one, so I'm glad to be a part of it... I think that's what's keeping me from going completely batty.
A few weeks back, I posted an entry about the attitude I got straightening out a problem T pass at work. Each month, work deducts from my payroll and loads a LinkPass onto my Charlie Card. In July, I randomly received a new card, and got a completely heinous attitude when I went to find out why. Eventually, I found out that when I went on leave, they deactivated the old card (or at least tried to), and when they reinstated me, they put the monthly passes on a new card instead of reactivating the old one. I was told that the old card should no longer work, and that I should use the new one.
I did as instructed... until this week, when the new card quit working. This morning I went back to the commuter services office and found out that on July 15th (the day I was last there), someone deactivated both of the cards. The payroll deduction stayed active, but the automatic reloading of the monthly pass was turned off.
Fortunately, the person I dealt with today was wonderfully friendly and helpful, gave me a new card on the spot, made sure it was valid for this month, made sure it was linked to my payroll account and set to auto-renew, and told me to call her right away if I have any trouble.
I did as instructed... until this week, when the new card quit working. This morning I went back to the commuter services office and found out that on July 15th (the day I was last there), someone deactivated both of the cards. The payroll deduction stayed active, but the automatic reloading of the monthly pass was turned off.
Fortunately, the person I dealt with today was wonderfully friendly and helpful, gave me a new card on the spot, made sure it was valid for this month, made sure it was linked to my payroll account and set to auto-renew, and told me to call her right away if I have any trouble.
Why do some people have to be SO difficult?
I have a monthly T pass that I get through work. Rather than send me a new pass each month, our Commuter Services arranges with the MBTA to have the pass credited to my CharlieCard each month.
I got a phone call today from the department receptionist letting me know that a new CharlieCard had arrived with my name on it. My current card has been working just fine, so I was a bit surprised. When I picked the card up, I asked the receptionist who I could call about it. He told me where to find Commuter Services, but said that since they're so difficult to deal with, I'd probably be better off just carrying both cards until one quit working.
I (a) was worried that I'd be charged for the duplicate pass, and (b) didn't like the idea of carrying an additional card in my wallet, so I figured I'd brave the attitude. I walked up to the customer service window, and here's how the conversation went:
At this point, she took the card, loooked it up, and found out that it was linked to my payroll account. They stopped paying the monthly fee on my old one months ago when I went on leave, but apparently, the MBTA takes a long while to actually stop loading the monthly passes onto the card.
Apparently, they do generate a new card after someone comes back from leave. Also, I found out that someone from our building goes and picks up the handful of new passes for new employees each month. Since I didn't know that, and assumed inter-office mail, the woman at CS knew I was lying to her.
I don't know what to be more upset about. The completely inappropriate attitude at Commuter Services, or the fact that a transport system that's millions in debt and supposedly committed to better fare collection takes more than 4 months to deactivate a monthly pass that is no longer being paid for.
I have a monthly T pass that I get through work. Rather than send me a new pass each month, our Commuter Services arranges with the MBTA to have the pass credited to my CharlieCard each month.
I got a phone call today from the department receptionist letting me know that a new CharlieCard had arrived with my name on it. My current card has been working just fine, so I was a bit surprised. When I picked the card up, I asked the receptionist who I could call about it. He told me where to find Commuter Services, but said that since they're so difficult to deal with, I'd probably be better off just carrying both cards until one quit working.
I (a) was worried that I'd be charged for the duplicate pass, and (b) didn't like the idea of carrying an additional card in my wallet, so I figured I'd brave the attitude. I walked up to the customer service window, and here's how the conversation went:
Me: I get a T pass through work, and a duplicate card came to my office for me. I'm not sure why.
CS: What do you mean it came for you? We don't send out new cards each month, you keep the one you have.
Me: I understand that. I came back from a leave of absence recently, so I wonder if the new card has something to do with that.
CS: No, when you go on leave, we deactivate the card. When you come back, we reactivate it. There's no new card!
Me: So, what do I do with this new card I received?
CS: How should I know? It didn't come from us. Did you buy it at a T station? That was pretty stupid if you already have one from us.
Me: No, our receptionist gave it to me. I think it might have come to our building via inter-office mail.
CS: Well, now I KNOW that you're lying to me. WE DON'T SEND T PASSES VIA INTER-OFFICE MAIL, and I don't like people lying to me, so you'd better get out of my window.
Me: Well, maybe it came by some other means, I really don't know, and I am not lying to you.
CS: Oh, just give me the card, I'll look it up and tell you who it belongs to.
At this point, she took the card, loooked it up, and found out that it was linked to my payroll account. They stopped paying the monthly fee on my old one months ago when I went on leave, but apparently, the MBTA takes a long while to actually stop loading the monthly passes onto the card.
Apparently, they do generate a new card after someone comes back from leave. Also, I found out that someone from our building goes and picks up the handful of new passes for new employees each month. Since I didn't know that, and assumed inter-office mail, the woman at CS knew I was lying to her.
I don't know what to be more upset about. The completely inappropriate attitude at Commuter Services, or the fact that a transport system that's millions in debt and supposedly committed to better fare collection takes more than 4 months to deactivate a monthly pass that is no longer being paid for.
It's 2pm, and I'm dragging along here at work today... so I decided to hit up the vending machine in the basement and induce a sugar rush with some Skittles. I put in my coins and selected my Skittles (E3). The display read "WINNER," and the machine dispensed my candy without touching my available credit. Since I didn't want anything else, I hit the coin return button and got all of my change back!
How random is that? I didn't realize the vending machine was a contest, but apparently, I won!
How random is that? I didn't realize the vending machine was a contest, but apparently, I won!
- Current Mood:
surprised
I know, I've already whined about work once today... but this is absurd. I've been e-mailing with a nurse at another medical center about one of our studies.
For this study, an appointment with the participant includes a breathing test. Because the test equipment is very sensitive, it's commonly understood that it needs to be calibrated (or at least have its calibration checked) daily. We included this in the manual of procedures for the study, but really, it shouldn't even need to be there. This is one of the fundamentals of breathing tests.
Anyway, I got a message from the above mentioned nurse today about some other things, and at the end, she added:
For this study, an appointment with the participant includes a breathing test. Because the test equipment is very sensitive, it's commonly understood that it needs to be calibrated (or at least have its calibration checked) daily. We included this in the manual of procedures for the study, but really, it shouldn't even need to be there. This is one of the fundamentals of breathing tests.
Anyway, I got a message from the above mentioned nurse today about some other things, and at the end, she added:
Since we have to travel to other sites more often than not, we can't calibrate the spirometer each day. We'll try to do it when we're in [at our site] but that might not be more than once a week. OK with you?I promptly replied with this:
Verifying the calibration needs to be done at least once per day that you do a study visit - this is one of the ATS [American Thoracic Society] basic recommendations for pulmonary function testing that we really can't stray from. If you don't do the calibration check, we can't use the data.You'd think that would have settled it, but I got this reply:
-Eric
It will be extremely cumbersome to carry a [calibration] syringe along with all other equipment. We'll have to think about it.I just drafted this reply:
I understand that it's cumbersome to carry the syringe. [My co-worker] and I often do study visits in other buildings here at [our medical center], as well as travel to participants' homes for study visits. Wherever we go (be it via foot, car, or plane) we always have to bring the syringe with us and do a calibration check. It's not convenient, but it's crucial that the calibration be done every day, otherwise we won't be able to use the data you collect.I really hope this is settled. The fact that it's in the manual of procedures should have been explanation enough. It's our study, we wrote the protocol, we determine what gets done when to achieve the results we'd like to get. That's how it works!
Here are the references from the ATS guidelines:(ATS/ERS Task Force: Standardisation of lung function testing. In: Brusasco V, Crapo R, Viegi G. , editors. Eur Respir J. Vol. 26. 2005. pp. 319–338.)
- "Calibration checks must be undertaken daily, or more frequently, if specified by the manufacturer."
- "If equipment is changed or relocated (e.g. industrial surveys), calibration checks and quality-control procedures must be repeated before further testing begins."
- "At a minimum, the requirements are as follows: 1) a log of calibration results is maintained..."
-Eric
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- Current Location:Longwood Ave, Boston, MA (Work)
- Current Mood: annoyed
My boss and several of his colleagues hosted an education day for lung disease patients today. I went to talk to the attendees about some of the research studies that we have going on that they might want to participate in. It was a pretty easy day, and I got to sit in on some interesting talks. It's great to work for a physician that so many patients, research participants, and members of the advocacy community really love. He's a great doctor, and a great boss.
It's Brian's birthday today, so a whole bunch of us are headed to Comics Come Home tonight... should be a great show.
It's Brian's birthday today, so a whole bunch of us are headed to Comics Come Home tonight... should be a great show.
- Current Location:Allston, MA (Home)
So, Fall 2006 was hardly a good semester for me, but I'll say one nice thing about it... it's OVER!
My final exam tonight (Proteomics) turned out to be long, tedious, and difficult... but that made it just like the midterm, and what we were all expecting. Also, unlike the exam last week, several topics covered on the practice exam actually appeared on the actual exam... in fact, several questions were the same. Of course, he didn't give us an answer key for the practice exam for that very reason... and even with our notes, textbooks, etc. many of us didn't have complete answers for the practice questions... but either way, he knows that his exams are long and difficult, and grades (and curves) accordingly. I'm not terribly worried.
Now, if there's any way I passed the exam last week, I might really be okay with this semester.
So, tonight I stay up all night, for several reasons:
The one nice thing about traveling to Ireland and back is that if I adjust to Ireland time, when I get back home, I'll be 5 hours early for everything. Seeing as how I already like to fall asleep at about 4am and wake up at about 11am, that should put me on some quasi-normal schedule, right? Eh? Maybe? Pipe dream much?
Also, whoever last used this computer (I'm at the computer lab at school) visited
b0st0n. It was still up on the screen. I swear, this spring I'm finally going to pull off my "everyone wears their LJ username today" event... I'm sure I pass other LJers on the street every day!
My final exam tonight (Proteomics) turned out to be long, tedious, and difficult... but that made it just like the midterm, and what we were all expecting. Also, unlike the exam last week, several topics covered on the practice exam actually appeared on the actual exam... in fact, several questions were the same. Of course, he didn't give us an answer key for the practice exam for that very reason... and even with our notes, textbooks, etc. many of us didn't have complete answers for the practice questions... but either way, he knows that his exams are long and difficult, and grades (and curves) accordingly. I'm not terribly worried.
Now, if there's any way I passed the exam last week, I might really be okay with this semester.
So, tonight I stay up all night, for several reasons:
- I have a meeting a 7:30 tomorrow morning. I don't make it to 7:30 am meetings unless I've been up all night. Yes, for those of you keeping track, I'm back to that total lack of ability to wake up in the morning... but that might change soon (keep reading!)
- I am leaving for a weeklong business trip tomorrow (to Ireland! HOW COOL, RITE?!!!111oneone) and haven't started packing.
- In addition to not having started packing, I need to do laundry (w00t 24 hour laundromats!) for the trip.
- I have a 6 hour overnight trans-atlantic flight at 7:10pm tomorrow night. There's NO way I will be able to sleep at that early hour unless I stay up all night tonight. If I'm exhausted from being awake for so long, I'll sleep most the entire trip. Hooray for earplugs, inflatable neck pillows, and being short enough to fit reasonably comfortably in a coach seat. Let's hope I don't drool on my boss.
The one nice thing about traveling to Ireland and back is that if I adjust to Ireland time, when I get back home, I'll be 5 hours early for everything. Seeing as how I already like to fall asleep at about 4am and wake up at about 11am, that should put me on some quasi-normal schedule, right? Eh? Maybe? Pipe dream much?
Also, whoever last used this computer (I'm at the computer lab at school) visited
b0st0n. It was still up on the screen. I swear, this spring I'm finally going to pull off my "everyone wears their LJ username today" event... I'm sure I pass other LJers on the street every day!- Current Location:51 Church St, Cambridge, MA
I've had my troubles with shipping in the past... I probably even blogged about my most frustrating experience with UPS a few years back*. Lately, however, FedEx has been pretty good to me. Using their online shipping tool is easy, packages get where they're supposed to go, and on time. Very recently, however, I've had two headaches that are shaking my confidence.
First, a package that I sent 2 weeks ago to a major hospital in Denver. Since the hospital is the only thing at this address (and in fact, the only building on the whole block), you can imagine my surprise when I got an e-mail telling me that the package couldn't be delivered because the recipient could not be located. I called FedEx, and they read the delivery address to me. It turns out, the address was correct, but I had abbreviated the name of the hospital (National Jewish Medical and Research Center became "NJMRC"). The rep I spoke with on the phone obnoxiously told me that their driver can not be expected to figure out "obscure abbreviations" but now that they had the full name of the hospital, they could re-attempt the next day.
Second, two packages that I sent yesterday for overnight delivery (today) to a hospital in Florida. I created the shipping labels together on the FedEx web site - the only difference between the two was the box weight/dimensions. This morning, I got 2 e-mails, about 5 minutes apart. The first reported that Box #1 was delivered, and signed for by [Name] at "Receptionist/Front Desk." The second message reported a delivery exception on Box #2 - "Customer not available or business closed." I called FedEx, who confirmed for me that the two boxes were put on the same truck this morning... and that the shipping addresses were identical. Their only explanation was that maybe the driver got confused.
*That incident was when I was working for Nokia. I was expecting 3 packages that I needed for an out of town meeting... they were sent to me via priority overnight so I could pick them up before leaving. At about 10 am the online tracking system said "Delivered" but there was no sign of the packages. I ended up leaving town without the packages, and spending 2 days arguing with UPS on the phone. Over and over I would hear: "Good news sir, I just checked the computer and it says that your packages were delivered yesterday morning!" At one point, a rep told me that I should check with the neighbors to see if maybe the package was delivered to them. When I screamed back that I was out of town, and that maybe THEY should go do that, he hung up on me! Eventually, the manager of the Cingular store down the street brought my packages over. He said that when the driver delivered them, he tried to refuse delivery since the address and name didn't match his store, but the driver insisted that because the boxes were marked "NOKIA" they must be for the Cingular store. After spending 2 days on the phone with UPS trying to get the packages picked up, he finally just brought them over himself!
First, a package that I sent 2 weeks ago to a major hospital in Denver. Since the hospital is the only thing at this address (and in fact, the only building on the whole block), you can imagine my surprise when I got an e-mail telling me that the package couldn't be delivered because the recipient could not be located. I called FedEx, and they read the delivery address to me. It turns out, the address was correct, but I had abbreviated the name of the hospital (National Jewish Medical and Research Center became "NJMRC"). The rep I spoke with on the phone obnoxiously told me that their driver can not be expected to figure out "obscure abbreviations" but now that they had the full name of the hospital, they could re-attempt the next day.
Second, two packages that I sent yesterday for overnight delivery (today) to a hospital in Florida. I created the shipping labels together on the FedEx web site - the only difference between the two was the box weight/dimensions. This morning, I got 2 e-mails, about 5 minutes apart. The first reported that Box #1 was delivered, and signed for by [Name] at "Receptionist/Front Desk." The second message reported a delivery exception on Box #2 - "Customer not available or business closed." I called FedEx, who confirmed for me that the two boxes were put on the same truck this morning... and that the shipping addresses were identical. Their only explanation was that maybe the driver got confused.
*That incident was when I was working for Nokia. I was expecting 3 packages that I needed for an out of town meeting... they were sent to me via priority overnight so I could pick them up before leaving. At about 10 am the online tracking system said "Delivered" but there was no sign of the packages. I ended up leaving town without the packages, and spending 2 days arguing with UPS on the phone. Over and over I would hear: "Good news sir, I just checked the computer and it says that your packages were delivered yesterday morning!" At one point, a rep told me that I should check with the neighbors to see if maybe the package was delivered to them. When I screamed back that I was out of town, and that maybe THEY should go do that, he hung up on me! Eventually, the manager of the Cingular store down the street brought my packages over. He said that when the driver delivered them, he tried to refuse delivery since the address and name didn't match his store, but the driver insisted that because the boxes were marked "NOKIA" they must be for the Cingular store. After spending 2 days on the phone with UPS trying to get the packages picked up, he finally just brought them over himself!
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