On the subreddit r/techsupportgore (tech support gore) tech workers of all walks of life post photos of the “tech gore” or nightmare technology situations they encounter while on the job. If you’ve ever tried to help your boomer parent or grandparent figure out how to use a phone or a computer—or god forbid how to reset the WiFi—you might understand something about these peoples’ pain.
The subreddit was created on February 29, 2012, and has since grown into a community of over 431K members who make sure to upvote only the goriest hardware fails and disasters posted to the sub. The rules are as follows: “Rule 1: No Cracked Screens. Rule 2: No Dust. Rule 3: No Software Carnage. Rule 4: Must be gore!”
Scroll down to see some of the more egregious examples of “Tech Support Gore” on the sub:
1. “One of my co-workers was eager to unpack her new mouse.”
2. “I need somewhere to set this candle….oh here’s a good spot!”
3. “Work for local high school, the disc drive wasn’t working. Probably been there since 2012”
4. “Customer came in with his iPhone, his glass cracked, he thought he could peel off the glass so he wouldn’t notice the crack anymore.”
5. “The printer isn’t working”
6. “My PC shut off suddenly and won’t turn back on.”
7. “User ‘Dropped it walking to the car.’ It came in the day after the Super Bowl.”
8. “Hospital server room”
9. “Ticket said “Camera flickers to fuzzy brown image often”
10. “First day on job; set up those 4 wireless speakers for you.”
