Christopher B. Wright
Encyclopedia
Christopher B. Wright is the creator of the webcomic
s Help Desk
and Kernel Panic. Born 1971-07-02 in the Commonwealth of Virginia, he is a Technical writer
by profession. For a brief period of time he served as Editor in chief
of OS/2 eZine.
Wright began publishing Help Desk on 1996-03-31 as a regular feature of OS/2
eZine. In 2000 he moved it to the ubersoft.net domain and began publishing it independently. Shortly after this he joined Keenspot
, and a year later he began publishing Help Desk 5 days a week. In 2001 he created a second strip, Kernel Panic, which ran for a short time on an IBM Unix site, updating twice a month. When the site closed down he moved his comic to Keenspot on 2002-09-02.
Due to problems with trying to run a database-based website under Keenspot, Chris recently (July 2007) moved all of his comics to a private host under his control, leaving Keenspot.
by Wright which debuted on March 31, 1996, making it one of the older webcomics on the Internet
. The comic is a satirical
and cynical view of computer software companies and operating system
s in general, and of the antics of Microsoft
, Apple Computer
, OS/2
, and Linux
in particular. This is done through the employees of Ubersoft, a fiction
al computer software company that markets a number of software products, including a computer operating system called Nifty Doorways. Alex, Help Desks protagonist
, is a technical-support technician working on Ubersoft's telephone support lines. His job has been described as "not necessarily to solve a customer's problems, but to make the customer feel that what they think is a problem isn't really a problem and they're wasting my time and yours." The comic draws heavily from real-life events in the computer software industry and lampoons those events through its cast of characters. It features a daily slogan on the title bar. Examples are "We code what angels fear and dread", "Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt
", "Our lawyers are better", "It's not a bug..... It's just really really bad", "Standing on the necks of giants", "Four out of five dentists reboot", and "We put the pain in painstaking".
Webcomic
Webcomics, online comics, or Internet comics are comics published on a website. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers or often in self-published books....
s Help Desk
Help Desk (webcomic)
Help Desk is a webcomic by Christopher B. Wright which debuted on March 31, 1996, making it one of the older webcomics on the Internet. The comic is a satirical and cynical view of computer software companies and operating systems in general, and of the antics of Microsoft, Apple Computer, OS/2,...
and Kernel Panic. Born 1971-07-02 in the Commonwealth of Virginia, he is a Technical writer
Technical writer
A technical writer is a professional writer who designs, creates, and maintains technical documentation...
by profession. For a brief period of time he served as Editor in chief
Editor in chief
An editor-in-chief is a publication's primary editor, having final responsibility for the operations and policies. Additionally, the editor-in-chief is held accountable for delegating tasks to staff members as well as keeping up with the time it takes them to complete their task...
of OS/2 eZine.
Wright began publishing Help Desk on 1996-03-31 as a regular feature of OS/2
OS/2
OS/2 is a computer operating system, initially created by Microsoft and IBM, then later developed by IBM exclusively. The name stands for "Operating System/2," because it was introduced as part of the same generation change release as IBM's "Personal System/2 " line of second-generation personal...
eZine. In 2000 he moved it to the ubersoft.net domain and began publishing it independently. Shortly after this he joined Keenspot
Keenspot
Keenspot is a webcomics portal founded in March 2000 by cartoonist Chris Crosby , Crosby's mother Teri, cartoonist Darren Bleuel , and Nathan Stone.-History:...
, and a year later he began publishing Help Desk 5 days a week. In 2001 he created a second strip, Kernel Panic, which ran for a short time on an IBM Unix site, updating twice a month. When the site closed down he moved his comic to Keenspot on 2002-09-02.
Due to problems with trying to run a database-based website under Keenspot, Chris recently (July 2007) moved all of his comics to a private host under his control, leaving Keenspot.
Help Desk
Help Desk is a webcomicWebcomic
Webcomics, online comics, or Internet comics are comics published on a website. While many are published exclusively on the web, others are also published in magazines, newspapers or often in self-published books....
by Wright which debuted on March 31, 1996, making it one of the older webcomics on the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
. The comic is a satirical
Satire
Satire is primarily a literary genre or form, although in practice it can also be found in the graphic and performing arts. In satire, vices, follies, abuses, and shortcomings are held up to ridicule, ideally with the intent of shaming individuals, and society itself, into improvement...
and cynical view of computer software companies and operating system
Operating system
An operating system is a set of programs that manage computer hardware resources and provide common services for application software. The operating system is the most important type of system software in a computer system...
s in general, and of the antics of Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
, Apple Computer
Apple Computer
Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation that designs and markets consumer electronics, computer software, and personal computers. The company's best-known hardware products include the Macintosh line of computers, the iPod, the iPhone and the iPad...
, OS/2
OS/2
OS/2 is a computer operating system, initially created by Microsoft and IBM, then later developed by IBM exclusively. The name stands for "Operating System/2," because it was introduced as part of the same generation change release as IBM's "Personal System/2 " line of second-generation personal...
, and Linux
Linux
Linux is a Unix-like computer operating system assembled under the model of free and open source software development and distribution. The defining component of any Linux system is the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released October 5, 1991 by Linus Torvalds...
in particular. This is done through the employees of Ubersoft, a fiction
Fiction
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...
al computer software company that markets a number of software products, including a computer operating system called Nifty Doorways. Alex, Help Desks protagonist
Protagonist
A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
, is a technical-support technician working on Ubersoft's telephone support lines. His job has been described as "not necessarily to solve a customer's problems, but to make the customer feel that what they think is a problem isn't really a problem and they're wasting my time and yours." The comic draws heavily from real-life events in the computer software industry and lampoons those events through its cast of characters. It features a daily slogan on the title bar. Examples are "We code what angels fear and dread", "Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt
Fear, uncertainty and doubt
Fear, uncertainty and doubt, frequently abbreviated as FUD, is a tactic used in sales, marketing, public relations, politics and propaganda....
", "Our lawyers are better", "It's not a bug..... It's just really really bad", "Standing on the necks of giants", "Four out of five dentists reboot", and "We put the pain in painstaking".