When Desktop Icons Live in Monitors and NumLock is Witchcraft: Hilarious Tech Support Tales
If you’ve ever worked in IT support, you know that sometimes, the only thing keeping you from rolling on the floor laughing is professional courtesy (and maybe the fear of being fired). From the legendary “cup holder” CD tray saga to asking if “the internet will fit on this USB drive,” tech support pros have seen it all. But every so often, a gem comes along that deserves a place in the Hall of Fame.
Today’s tales come courtesy of Reddit user u/dandy_g, who shared a pair of classic stories from their time as the all-in-one tech wizard at a small printing company. Prepare to giggle, groan, and maybe give your own monitor a reassuring pat.
The Great Icon Migration: When Monitors Become Magic Boxes
Let’s set the scene. Our hero, u/dandy_g, is hunched under a desk, wrangling cables and wires to install a shiny new monitor for the front desk team. Suddenly, a voice pipes up:
“Will you also move over my desktop background and desktop icons to the new display?”
At this point, every IT professional knows two things: 1) this is going to be a good story, and 2) it’s time to put on your best poker face.
You see, to some users, it’s perfectly logical that those little icons—Recycle Bin, My Documents, the photo of a golden retriever in sunglasses—are stored inside the monitor itself. After all, when you get a new screen, shouldn’t everything just magically move with it? It’s as if the monitor is a high-tech picture frame, storing all your icons and backgrounds in its digital heart.
Of course, the truth is a bit less magical (but a lot more practical). Desktop icons and backgrounds are part of your computer’s operating system—stored on the hard drive, not in the display. The monitor is just the window to the digital world, not the warehouse. But in the moment, it’s hard not to smile at the idea of “migrating” desktop icons from one screen to another like digital butterflies.
Ever the professional, dandy_g assures the user that yes, the icons will “move over,” but it might take some time. (I imagine them taking a deep breath and maybe silently awarding themselves a gold star for not bursting out laughing.)
NumLock: The Button of Mystery and Mayhem
If you thought the icon migration was peak confusion, buckle up for round two. The same user urgently calls dandy_g over—her keyboard is broken, and order entries have ground to a halt. In a busy office, this is a code red.
Dandy_g rushes over to find her repeatedly mashing the number pad in growing frustration. The culprit? That sneaky little NumLock key. One tap, a quick explanation, and—voilà!—numbers are flowing again.
But here’s where it gets truly delightful: the user is both amazed and mystified by this “stupid feature.” Why, she wonders, would anyone want a key that turns off half the keyboard? And don’t even try explaining ScrollLock—that’s a bridge too far.
In the end, gratitude wins the day. Our tech hero is rewarded with a big chocolate bar and the knowledge that, at least for now, the mysteries of NumLock have been (mostly) revealed.
Why These Tales Matter: Laughter, Learning, and a Little Empathy
These stories aren’t just good for a laugh (though they definitely deliver on that front). They’re also a gentle reminder that for many people, computers are magical black boxes. What seems obvious to one person can be a total enigma to another.
For IT folks, patience and empathy are as important as technical know-how. Explaining NumLock for the hundredth time or reassuring someone that their icons aren’t trapped in their old monitor is all part of the job. And who knows? Maybe you’ll get a chocolate bar out of it.
Plus, every time you help someone through a tech mystery, you make the digital world a little less intimidating—and a lot more friendly.
Your Turn: Share Your Best Tech Support Tales!
Do you have a story that rivals the Great Icon Migration or the NumLock Conundrum? Ever had to explain ScrollLock to a wide-eyed user? Drop your funniest, weirdest, or most heartwarming tech support moments in the comments below. Let’s celebrate the joy (and occasional chaos) of helping others navigate the digital age—one chocolate bar at a time!
Got a favorite tech support tale? Share it below or tag a friend who’s been there—because sometimes, laughter really is the best troubleshooting tool.
Original Reddit Post: The desktop icons are not stored in the display