TechStuffCanada

jargon-free tech news for non-technical people

The history of TechStuff - part 2

October 29, 2006 › Sandy McMurray | comment

In the fall of 2004, my Mac focus paid off. I was hired by Rogers Media to help the Publishing division with its transition to Mac OS X.

The upgrades were done in a three day cycle. On training day, a small group of employees left their desks to attend computer training. All employees learned the basics of OS X, and designers were given an extra session that focused on font management and the new version of PhotoShop.

While they were training, we scooped up their old computers, backed up their files, then prepared new Macs loaded with their software, email and personal data. When the employees returned from their training, they found shiny new Macs, ready to go.

For the next two days, we would be on call, answering employees' New Mac questions, and reviewing forgotten lessons from the previous day's training. In the IT office, we compared notes, and figured out what changes, if any, were needed to make the process better for the next group of employees.

And the next day, the cycle started again.

It took a few weeks to get everything down to a science, and there were some surprises and hiccups along the way. But I'm proud to say that our team completed the Mac OS X project ahead of schedule, with a minimum of disruption. More than 300 Rogers employees went through the training and upgrade process.

Too soon, it was over. The Rogers contract lasted just nine months, but it was a great experience. I rediscovered the joy and satisfaction of helping people solve big and small technical problems. I was able to assist with some of the OS X training. (I love computer training. It's fun to explain things, and to help people understand difficult concepts.)

I also rediscovered the joy of working with a team. (I had been working from home as a freelancer for eight years before this job.) I had a great boss at Rogers, and I got to work with a great team. The IT department -- particularly the Mac specialists -- taught me a lot, and humbled me. I thought I was an expert. They reminded me that I still have a lot to learn.

Suddenly... advertising! Back to the TechStuff saga. Soon after I was hired by Rogers, I was approached by the ad agency that represents HP Canada. They wanted to buy some ad space on TechStuff.

This was great news, but terrible timing. I had allowed TechStuff to grow stale, and it was much in need of a redesign. My day job was taking all my energy, and I had no desire to write.

I was also a little concerned about conflict of interest. I felt it was inappropriate to write about Rogers, its partners and its competitors while I was an employee. That wiped out a whole bunch of consumer tech topics that I would have tackled when I was writing for the Sun.

Problem was, the Rogers gig was just a nine month contract. I had no reason to expect a job offer when the contract ended -- the full-time employees planned to stay, and the other contract employee was more qualified than I was.

I had to make a decision: mothball TechStuff or make a commitment to HP and burn the midnight oil to keep the site up to date.

I decided to proceed. I signed the HP advertising contract and revamped the TechStuff site. When it became obvious that I would not be able to post something new to TechStuff each day, I got a partner who helped me ensure that TechStuff was up to date (the lovely and talented Wayne Macphail).

For a while, TechStuff was firing on all cylinders. New content was posted regularly, readership numbers were climbing, and (gasp!) the site had a budget. (Google text ads were covering the hosting bills, and the HP ads paid for Wayne's assistance.)

We could have used a sales manager during this period. Although things were going well editorially, we had no further ad buys, and neither Wayne nor I was experienced at selling ads. When the HP contract ended, the budget was gone, and I was back to square one. I had a nice little site with lots of potential but no budget and no business plan.

Wayne stayed on for a while as an unpaid writer, but eventually left to focus on paying work. I enjoyed working with Wayne, and appreciated his contributions to TechStuff.

Life after Rogers When my contract at Rogers ended, I reluctantly left the Mac Support Team. Armed with a glowing letter of recommendation from my former boss (thanks, Hans!), I began to look for full-time work in the IT field.

Then things took another unexpected turn.

Next: New beginnings, and the future of TechStuff Canada.

October 29, 2006 › Sandy McMurray | comment on this item