Yesterday at work a fine career of avoidance came to an end. After 9.5 years of managing not to have to do anything with the main taxpayer database computer system, I am now an official IDRS user. Which on some level scares me, proving that the UNAX folks have been effective in putting the Fear into me.
Notwithstanding the multitude of reassurances, I finally managed to figure out why while talking on the phone with my mother this morning. Basically it has to do with how I have always learned about computer systems in the past - which is essentially poking around the system, breaking or not-breaking things, occasionally crossing places I'm not necessarially supposed to be, etc. Classroom instruction only goes so far.
This is not a system I can do that on...
Now that I know why I was freaked out, though, I am much less so. Besides, what are they going to do, fire me? Well, yes - that is the problematic part. This is the computer system they fire people for snooping around in, actually. On the other hand, this is a system used by thousands of telephone assistors, not all of whom are the cleverest monkey in the troop. I imagine they have the instructions down to the lowest common denominator by now. It will just be a matter of sticking to the instructions and not getting cocky about what I think I know, I imagine.
However, if my gaming performance today is any indicator of how good I am at remembering to refrain from being overconfident, I should just pack up my desk and put my papers in order. Heh.
