What's App-ening??

Just when you think you know something, it changes

Photo by “Cookie the Pom” on Unsplash

For someone who is a self-professed non-techie, I sure have picked up a lot of technology know-how. It’s kind of amazing, really. Regardless of what I thought I’d spend my time learning, I’ve come to work with more computer programs and other technology than I ever could have imagined back in drama school.

It’s endless.

Running a boutique business requires me to get cozy with systems – really cozy. Project management, media editing, invoicing…and don’t get me started on how many ways there are to ping or pay someone. We use a lot of platforms and they are invaluable—and so are my team members who understand them far better than I.

Of course, once I get comfortable with a platform or device, a few years later I often find that I need to change because our mutual updates have made us incompatible.

In the perpetual evolution, there is a lot of shopping around, comparing, and learning the ropes. Knowing the right questions to ask can be the difference between sweet success and a sticky mess.

Well, I made a mess just a few weeks ago.

I was investigating a function discrepancy between using the computer and mobile versions of our encrypted cloud platform (I know—who talks like this??). I could manage the full scope of privacy and access permissions for protected file sharing on my computer, but there were far fewer on the app through my portable device.

When I reached out to the company, the tech support rep and I went in circles. I messaged them I was experiencing limitations when using their app, yet all worked just fine when I accessed it through the computer. They messaged back about the tests they ran, and all seemed fine. The advice I was getting didn’t make a lot of sense, given my question.

And then it hit me: what if we weren’t actually having the same conversation?

I contacted the technical support rep and, breaking down the situation differently, we realized the disconnect: they use the word “app” for the platform now, regardless of where you are using it. Maybe everyone does now…?

When I said “the app didn’t have the same functions as on the computer,” he didn’t know which two things I was actually comparing.

The program/platform on mobile devices? That’s an app. I knew to call it that because I had to install and open the app on my mobile device. But what I didn’t know was that when I went to the online version on my computer, they considered that using the app too. I thought “app” was a term referring only to the platform on phones, tablets, and other devices where you have to install… well, the app.

Apparently not.

Suddenly the clouds of confusion parted, and we could focus on addressing my question. After days of dancing to different tunes, we were on the same page of music and sorted it in minutes.

It was a good reminder to me, particularly now, of how important it is to change the conversation when it seems like it isn’t going anywhere. Sometimes what feels like going in circles with each other is actually being on two separate tracks. Misunderstandings and false assumptions are easy to come by—and can be simple to resolve. Often it just takes the presence to pause and check in with each other. Pause, probe, and proceed—patiently!

By the way, if you’re asking, “So, what happened—why didn’t all the functions work on the mobile device?” It turns out the mobile app (yes, folks “mobile” is the magic word to use—rather than “app”) doesn’t have those functions yet.

Yep—it’s that simple.

I guess the mobile app is still evolving too. That makes two of us.