• thedoginthewok@lemmy.world
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    2 months ago

    It took the US state department days to work out how to open the document.

    My nieces school sent her mother (my sister) a WPS document “share” link. The website does not offer a download, but the link can be opened in the installed free version and from there the file can be obtained.

    It wasn’t difficult or complicated, so I think this says something about the IT skills of the US state department…

    • UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world
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      2 months ago

      For what should be fairly obvious reasons, officials at the US State Department aren’t able to easily download and install software from foreign governments. This is doubly true in file-formats that the security system isn’t equipped to screen and vet.

      If you were working at a corporate office, you’d have likely run into the same set of hurdles.

      • thedoginthewok@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        Well, yes, but I would expect something time-senstive to be solved quickly be the State Department’s IT department.

        They should have been able to do something like this in less time than “days”.

        For what it’s worth, I think our State Department equivalent (I’m German) would have also struggled with something like this, but I am quite certain that they are extremely lacking in skilled IT workers lol