Salesmen can't turn a computer on: Official

Over half the respondents to a global survey by Support.com said that sales and marketing personnel are undisputed kings of the silly computer question.

Finance professionals also find it hard to turn their machines on. In fact, 16.7 per cent of propellorheads blame the bean counters for making their lives unbearable.

Management have fewer problems with their computers, according to survey. Only 12.6 per cent of desktop support staff took the risk of calling their bosses IT illiterates.

"They systems that sales and marketing have to use are getting more complicated," he said. "They're often using them on a laptop, in a disconnected environment, and that causes a lot issues."

Despite being a marketing man himself, Lawlor was able to confirm that he does not cause more than his fair share of problems for the IT department. "I am actually quite a competent user," he said, "But some of the people who have worked for me in the past were capable of causing a lot of problems."

silicon.com's own desktop support guru refused to point the finger at any department in particular, blaming "certain individuals" from unnamed departments for pestering him with the most silly questions.