ADVERTISEMENT

“Whoever said that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results has obviously never had to reboot a computer.”

William Petersen may have been quoted saying that, but according to anyone who has ever worked in IT, he’s right. Restarting a computer really does solve most issues, but we are not always brilliant enough to come up with that solution on our own. Sometimes we need to reach out to the experts: the people working in IT.

IT jobs can be incredibly stressful, so anyone working in the information technology field deserves to have a place where they can blow off some steam, laugh at some memes and enjoy a few minutes before needing to restart their computer again (or having to tell someone else to restart theirs). That’s where the IT Humor and Memes Facebook group comes in.

Full of hilarious posts (for anyone who can actually understand them) that all of you IT pandas out there might find painfully relatable, we’ve gathered our favorite pics from the group down below, as well as an interview with the group's creator, Trevor Paquette. Be sure to upvote all of the posts you find most amusing, and then if you work in IT, let us know in the comments: are you doing okay?

Enjoy this list, and then if you’re interested in checking out another humorous Bored Panda article featuring jokes about programming and computer science, check out this list next.

We reached out to the creator of IT Humor and Memes, Trevor Paquette, to hear a bit more about how the group got started in the first place. "I created the group when I realized there was a lack of general IT meme groups," Trevor told Bored Panda. "The keyword there is 'general'. There were developer/programmer groups, the odd networking group, a few hacker groups, but no general IT ones I could find. The posts I submitted to an IT support group, tended to get lost in all of the great support questions being asked. So I thought, why not start a general IT humor group?"

"In May of 2019, it was created has been growing ever since," Trevor shared. "I never expected to hit 10,000 members, let alone the 1/2 million we are about to hit. The group has become a place to share things that many find funny using shared experience. (In the words of Sybok, 'Share your pain and gain strength from the sharing'). The group banner of the 'ESC' key leaving the keyboard is on purpose. Many have commented it gives them a needed break, an escape, from the constant stress and pressure they feel at work."

We also asked Trevor if it's necessary to have some sort of IT background to understand the jokes. "For some of the posts, it definitely helps to have a background in some aspect of IT, whether it be programming, networking, cybersecurity, administration, or tech support. The play on words and concepts can be somewhat confusing if you don't understand them," he explained. "That being said, a majority of posts are general enough that anyone should be able to get the humor. What I like to see are posts where 'It's funny because it's true' could be a caption. When humor mirrors real life with experiences the reader has had, it's a connection and makes it all the funnier for them."

ADVERTISEMENT

We also wanted to know what the best parts about working in IT are for Trevor. "For me, the best thing ... is it's always changing. There's something more or something new to learn. Never a dull moment as the underlying technologies advance and change. There's always a way to look at a problem differently, and for the most part, if you need help, someone else has usually encountered the issue you are having and might be able to help."

Trevor went on to share some words of wisdom, "4 words: Let people enjoy things. This is the #1 reason posts get closed down. There are generally 'two camps' in tech; 'Us' and 'Them'," he noted. "For example, Android and iOS, Linux and Windows, Apple and Microsoft. Techs have their favorite OS, device, tool, app, or method of doing something; we all do. The Dunning-Kruger effect is alive and well within IT as quite a few techs have the 'my way or the highway' mindset. This results in a religious OS war between rivalries with some discussions of 'Us and Them' becomes 'Us vs Them', devolving to 'Me vs You' very quickly with comments becoming insults."

"Both the 'Us' camp and the 'Them' camp may want to remember they are both part of a larger 'We' camp; the 'IT' camp," Trevor explained. "IT is just a means towards an end-goal that we are all trying to achieve. It's fantastic learning opportunity to see how someone might use a different tool to solve the same problem. Aka: Let people enjoy things."

ADVERTISEMENT

IT Humor and Meme’s ‘About’ page states that it’s for, “Humor and memes related to IT, or associated technology. Just a small corner in the big Facebook world to let loose a little steam and escape.” And clearly, members love it, as they are very active. In the last week, the group has gained nearly 6,000 new members, and as I’m writing this, the page has received over 60 posts today.

But it makes perfect sense for IT people to have a place of solace on Facebook after working a grueling day in the office. Working in IT can come along with immense stress, which we all know can take a toll on the body. According to a study published in the National Library of Medicine, “IT and IT related professionals are under constant pressure to deliver services efficiently and have to be cost effective.” Due to this, they are prone to developing a variety of health problems due to continuous physical and mental stress, including acid peptic disease, alcoholism, asthma, diabetes, fatigue, tension headaches, insomnia, IBS, and more. 

ADVERTISEMENT

According to one survey, 78% of IT workers considered their jobs to be stressful. This could be for a variety of reasons, but one that seems to be a common theme is just having too much work in the day. “Everybody gets a work-life balance except for the poor IT guy," Sergio Galindo, general manager at GFI Software, told Computer World. And even though IT workers are often overworked, they might not even be receiving proper compensation. When over 200 IT professionals were surveyed, almost half of them admitted that they typically work up to eight unpaid hours a week. 

Being overworked spills over into all aspects of these professionals' lives though. Almost half of the IT workers surveyed said they had missed out on social functions “due to overrunning issues and tight deadlines”, and about 40% said they were missing time with their children and losing sleep. Nearly one third also reported suffering from a stress-related illness. 

#7

It-Humor-And-Memes

Johnny Prine Report

Add photo comments
POST
smnock avatar
OhnoI’vebeencensored
Community Member
1 year ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And like most IT professionals would, has done a cut and paste job rather than match the font

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT

Clearly, working in IT is not for the faint of heart. But why do so many people get into the field in the first place? Is it simply out of necessity? To learn more about what it’s really like to work in IT, we consulted this piece, featuring insight from Austin Turecek, Senior Cybersecurity Analyst at Flashpoint. Austin breaks down a few misconceptions often associated with IT and explains what the job actually entails in reality. First, he explains that you don’t have to be a computer genius to work in IT. “It helps if you have a good knack for computers and you understand them,” Austin says. “But there's such a broad and open door to IT.”

ADVERTISEMENT
#11

It-Humor-And-Memes

Seane Bosch Report

Add photo comments
POST
staphgirl79 avatar
Mistiekim
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

The tv dating market has gotten rough. Hopefully there a many HDMI ports available or this tv might be single for a while.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu

Austin explains that even people working in IT have to use Google to help them figure out what their previous knowledge does not account for. Nobody can possibly know everything, so it is a valuable skill to be able to research and figure out what to do from there. You are never going to be expected to know everything from the get-go; critical thinking skills or being able to “think like a computer” can get you a long way. “One of the biggest things is the ability to pay attention to process, to problem-solve, and to identify issues quickly enough that they don't become larger issues,” Austin says.

#14

It-Humor-And-Memes

Chris Waldrip Report

Add photo comments
POST
rainrunner avatar
Roe Rainrunner
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Well, everyone could do it, if they want. And Tech Support is not paid for googeling it, but knowing WHAT to search for ;-)

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
ADVERTISEMENT

Another misconception about working in IT that Austin calls out is the idea that it’s mainly just fixing broken hardware. While that may be part of your day or fall under your job description as an IT professional, Austin says that each day is different. He works in deep and dark web intelligence and analysis, which apparently entails coding for 10 hours straight some days and reading through reports and documents for hours other days. He also notes that there is a lot of writing required to work in IT. “For example, you might need to summarize complicated material for people in C-level or upper management who may only skim a document; and then you also may have to provide in-depth technical explanations for colleagues to follow.”

#17

It-Humor-And-Memes

CatMcGeeCode Report

Add photo comments
POST
harlequin avatar
Xottel
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

To be fair. 10 years ago I excelled at googling things. I knew how to formulate a question etc. to get exactly the results I needed. Since then the algorithm changed a lot and I didn't adapt. Now I suck at googling.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#18

It-Humor-And-Memes

Alex Kluemper Report

Add photo comments
POST
frogglin avatar
Little Wonder
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

In the late 90s I did a short course in computing (hoping a certificate would get me a job if I could prove I knew what I already knew). Anyway, the instructor said in the 80s when the 5 1/4 discs were used, people used to fold them up and put them in their pockets after class. Weirdly, they didn't work right next class...

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu

One stereotype that IT professionals often get is that they are introverted, quiet and enjoy sitting at their desks and avoiding human interaction all day. However, like any field, there are a wide variety of people who work in IT. Austin notes that soft skills and interpersonal skills can actually go a long way in IT as well. For example, people who interact with their customers and provide troubleshooting guidance are often very personable and friendly. Plus, it helps to have a lot of patience and sympathy for people who call in experiencing tech issues, because they are often feeling extremely frustrated and upset. Kofi Friar, Senior IT Manager at Codecadamy, even refers to IT as “technical therapy” because “you might find yourself consoling someone who can’t access an essential file or talking to someone who’s angry that their kid spilled a drink on their laptop”. 

#19

It-Humor-And-Memes

Andre Sam Report

Add photo comments
POST
rayceeyarayceeya avatar
Ray Ceeya (RayCeeYa)
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Silly machines, humans don't need your help. We're quite good at destroying ourselves.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu
#21

It-Humor-And-Memes

Instead of Velcro or the dreaded zip ties, please welcome the Lego me cable holder. These are all I will use now.

Jamie Ian Macgregor Report

So if you’re considering a future in IT, but you’re still on the fence, let me point out some of the pros of the field. For one thing, the jobs are certainly in demand. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, employment in computer and information technology occupations is projected to grow 11% from 2019 to 2029, meaning there should be about 531,200 new IT jobs. Nowadays, job security is increasingly difficult to find, so if you want to know that you’ll always be in demand, information technology might just be the path for you. 

#22

It-Humor-And-Memes

Allen Clark Capistrano Report

Add photo comments
POST
ssnx01 avatar
Chich
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Gotta kick this windows habit. One more "install Win 11" might just do it.

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu

There is also very strong earning potential in the IT sector. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the 2020 median annual income across all computer and information information technology jobs was $91,250. That’s over $20,000 more than the national average income in the US for 2020, but depending on the specific job, IT professionals can make much more. For example, software developers made an average salary of over $110,000 in 2020, and computer network architects earned an average of over $116,000. Not too shabby.

#25

It-Humor-And-Memes

Mark Snider Report

See Also on Bored Panda
#26

It-Humor-And-Memes

Shoaib Shoaib Report

Add photo comments
POST
shyness-cliches-0z avatar
Pamela Worthington-Smack
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I looked for an image to represent the world if people treated each other as they do on social media, but it appears no one has taken a photographs of an entire planet covered with bomb craters, sewers, and zombies.

e-m-long-1701 avatar
Kieran Bushey
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I’ve seen that in a JW propaganda leaflet, they were always coming by my parents’ place when I was living there.

camaroaustin avatar
Keisha
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

There would be nothing there because I either don't check it or I delete enmasse.

floorclarijs avatar
F.clarijs
Community Member
1 year ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Hey! That would be if Adam and Eve didn't eat from the tree in the middle of the garden (but without the clothes 😂)

View More Replies...
View more commentsArrow down menu

Whether you currently work in the IT field, you've previously done your time, or you have no desire to ever step foot into the stress chamber that is IT, we hope you're enjoying this list of funny posts and memes. Keep upvoting the posts you find most amusing, and then let us know what your personal experiences have been like if you've ever worked in the IT sector. And if you're interested in even more of this content, you can join the IT Humor and Memes Facebook group right here.

#29

It-Humor-And-Memes

Because someone on the other side of the wall needed a network jack and they couldn't or wouldn't install a new one so they just punched a hole in the wall and fed the cable through

அக் ஷய் Report

See Also on Bored Panda
#40

It-Humor-And-Memes

Timmy Marroccelli Report

Note: this post originally had 63 images. It’s been shortened to the top 40 images based on user votes.