Some-what related funny story: at my old job we removed the built-in games from Windows as part of our Windows 7 rollout. Most people didn’t even notice, but the director of public safety was so upset that he demanded (not just asked) we put them back on his computer. When we refused he went to his DOCTOR and got a note stating that he needed Solitaire on his work PC as it helped him manage his anxiety. I was flabbergasted.
Why “unfortunately”? Surely there’s minimal security risk in having solitaire installed? And surely your workplace treats people like adults who can responsibly manage their own time and workload?
Because it undermines the departments authority to make decisions regarding the systems they manage. Sure him having solitaire in and of itself isn’t a big deal, but it sets precedence that decisions made by the department can be overridden if someone simply complains loudly enough. This could be particularly dangerous in the case of new or tightened security policy put forth by the department (this exact scenario did actually playout with another individual a few years later regarding password policy)
I agree completely. “Executives” basically anyone above a director level loves to throw their authority aeound. We recently got a new CEO and he wanted to get OneDrive working even though we’re a Google shop. At least 3 different teams had to adjust policy and then put him in his own Active Directory OU, because he said “we shouldn’t be in the business of telling employees what software they should use, we should just support it.”
Some-what related funny story: at my old job we removed the built-in games from Windows as part of our Windows 7 rollout. Most people didn’t even notice, but the director of public safety was so upset that he demanded (not just asked) we put them back on his computer. When we refused he went to his DOCTOR and got a note stating that he needed Solitaire on his work PC as it helped him manage his anxiety. I was flabbergasted.
So did you put it back ?
Yes, unfortunately in the end he got his way.
Why “unfortunately”? Surely there’s minimal security risk in having solitaire installed? And surely your workplace treats people like adults who can responsibly manage their own time and workload?
Because it undermines the departments authority to make decisions regarding the systems they manage. Sure him having solitaire in and of itself isn’t a big deal, but it sets precedence that decisions made by the department can be overridden if someone simply complains loudly enough. This could be particularly dangerous in the case of new or tightened security policy put forth by the department (this exact scenario did actually playout with another individual a few years later regarding password policy)
I agree completely. “Executives” basically anyone above a director level loves to throw their authority aeound. We recently got a new CEO and he wanted to get OneDrive working even though we’re a Google shop. At least 3 different teams had to adjust policy and then put him in his own Active Directory OU, because he said “we shouldn’t be in the business of telling employees what software they should use, we should just support it.”
That’s kinda shitty on your end
It wasn’t my decision.