Webcomics from Agent-X Comics

Poor treatment

Poor treatment published on 15 Comments on Poor treatment

Can you imagine treating your doctor this way?

Unfortunately, this is how many web developers and software developers are treated regularly by clients.
Due to website development being a pretty new occupation, there are still a lot of people out there that do not understand what goes in to making that cool website, or that awesome online application.

I have personally been on the receiving end of some pretty ridiculous and outright stupid requests by clients.
It is so common, that sites like Clients From Hell are able to exist and be filled with stories which at first seem totally fictional. But they are not.
But go and speak to someone who works in web development and ask them about horror clients. Every one of them will have a story to tell you.

My theory is that because the average person only sees the front end of websites, they have no idea of the coding work and time it takes to create a good web product. They do not get to “look under the hood” and see all the scripts, calls, CSS styles, etc.
If they did, there would be more understanding that this is REAL work, not just a hobby people do on computers in their spare time.
(Also, many “discount” operators such as outsourced development teams & unqualified designers help to perpetuate a myth that this work is cheap & easy to do)

Think about industries where customers have a better understanding of who the end result is produced:
– Customers would not tell a mechanic to throw in free extras just because they are in the engine anyway.
– Clients would not ask an architect to totally redesign a building plan once it is done, by 9am the next day, because their 6yr old son did not like it.
– House painters are not asked to re-paint a house for free, because the colour now looks different when viewed in the morning sun.
– Lawyers are not asked to work on a case for free, just because it may look good in their resume later.

Sadly, elements of all these things exist within the current client-web developer dynamic.
I, for one, hope this changes soon.


Wayback Machine

Wayback Machine published on 7 Comments on Wayback Machine

Don’t you love when grandparents re-invent history?

But it won’t be long until some of us start reminiscing about the good old days and creating stories about how life worked before everything was online.

I know some people that even do it now.
They sit around and tell us about how good things were before everyone was distracted by facebook, twitter and iphones.
Yup, in the good old days all they had to keep them amused were video games, IRC chats, Rubiks cubes, messageboards and web-rings…..

The Ghost Party

The Ghost Party published on 22 Comments on The Ghost Party

Oh Man! This party looks totally dead!

Sorry, I had to put a lame joke in here. This comic kind of calls for it.
Ghosts are a pretty popular topic in comics and many, many bad jokes exist where they are the main focus of the gag.

I like drawing ghosts and decided that I would just make a comic with a whole heap of them.
It is a very safe bet that this is probably not the last time you will see ghosts in a comic from me, either.
This comic has some well-known ghosts in it, and some “pretenders” who still kind fit the theme.
Think you can name them all?

OK then smart-arse, tell me their names. Just put them into the comments below and I send the first five correct people a ghost sketch.
Five more random people will also get one, but only if they get all the names right.

You can also get extra bonus points (equivalent to 700 internetz) if you tell me who is missing from this comic.

That is not email

That is not email published on 2 Comments on That is not email

Sometimes helping your grandparents get online is REALLY awkward…

The generation gap can really kick in hard when trying to explain modern convienience and protocols to the generations that have come before us.
Just when they thought they had it all worked out and had gotten used to doing things a certain way, the whole game changes.

Now, if they want to connect to their grandchildren, they need to be net-savvy enough to use facebook and emails.
It is a mighty task to undertake, but well worthwhile in the end.
After all, the extra learning that is needed to understand what you need to do will help keep the neurons firing in the brain. Research now tells us that using your brain to learn substansial new things, will help hold off possible onsets of alzheimers and dementia.

In fact, in 2009, the Facebook Demographics and Statistics Report showed that in the USA, there was a 513% Growth in 55+ Year Old Users on Facebook.
The fastest growing Internet User demographic in 2009 were between the ages of 70 to 75, and estimates state that over Fifity-five percent of these senior citizens are now online, most with broadband capability.

That is so cool and I applaud any aged person giving the online realm a go.
I also truly hope that our elders have the gumption to speak up online and tell the young and stupid where they are going wrong. Possibly, by way of a long meandering story with no real point to it.

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