Big IT services organization starts a new internal mailing list for its hundreds of IT architects around the world. The results are predictable: Someone sends a reply to the whole list with an "unsubscribe" message, others follow suit and soon most of the traffic is people trying to unsubscribe and others irritated about the "unsubscribe" spam. "The whole situation is reduced to a farce when someone on the list takes the opportunity to ask the mailing list where he can buy an inexpensive Armani suit," says a pilot fish on the list. "Someone else even responded with a Web address for him to shop from. And these people are IT professionals."

Too quick

This company has been using a spam filter on its local mail server, but at this point, the number of summary reports is getting to be as much of a problem as the spam, says a pilot fish on the scene. "Corporate headquarters mentioned they were looking at a new service but failed to mention they were turning it on over the weekend," fish says. "They broadcast an e-mail explaining the new service. You guessed it: The old product blocked the announcement, and everyone was afraid it was a phishing attack."

Too quiet

Receptionist is having problems with the new VOIP system with unified messaging. "She said she couldn't hear her voice mails, and every time she tried to adjust the volume, the phone would ring," says a help desk pilot fish. "Turns out the volume on her computer speakers was turned down, so when she clicked to hear the voice mail, she couldn't hear it. She would then reach for the volume control on the phone and turn it up. When she did this, it would ring to indicate how loud or soft she was adjusting the volume of the ringer. She would pick up the phone, but no one would be there. Even 18 months later, when the phone rings in the lobby, everyone knows, because it's so loud."