Some people just don't get email

[fanf]

So we got a message from reception about some unusual forwarded email. It turns out that these mediaevalists had been confused by some misaddressed email and blamed a virus. This caused a phone call to CS reception, which our staff followed up with an email asking for the problem messages to be forwarded to us for analysis. The messages were forwarded ON PAPER with a scribbled note.

Comments

[benc.livejournal.com]

You'd be amazed (or maybe not) how many of our (academic library) staff turn up with printed bits of paper when they have questions about an email. Usually without any of the useful headers.

[mouse262.livejournal.com]

full headers included?

[fanf]

Not a chance!

[mouse262.livejournal.com]

At least they saved some paper then.

[lnr]

*giggle*

[oldbloke.livejournal.com]

Are you seeing anything addressed to mumble-support@ or similar, claiming to be from F-Secure, with a clearly dodgy .scr attached?

We are...

I'm disappointed by how many people here got hit by Stinx, too.

[pjc50.livejournal.com]

There's an advantage to this insanity: you can't catch a virus from a printout :)

[benc.livejournal.com]

Well, not a computer virus...

[covertmusic.livejournal.com]

Mediaevalists; at least it wasn't vellum.

[(Anonymous)]

Did they forward it by first class mail or UMS? :-)
I get emails "forwarded" to me this way by certain people, usually because "forwarding email by electronic means is complicated"

[maxleon.livejournal.com]

Oops, that was me.

[hsenag.livejournal.com]

Back in the dark ages (1997), the Home Bursar at Magdalen used to reply to my emails by printing them out, scribbling on them, and pidging them to me. I think he may have got the hang of email at some point after this, though.