Oscar needs to understand that X is highly unlikely?

Question

A little scenario: > Bobs computer is behaving weird, so he asks Alice about it. > Alice thinks Bob has a virus, she gets help from Oscar, who tells them to run an anti virus scan. > The scan then eventually finds some ad-ware, which Bob deletes and reports to Alice and Oscar. > Oscar is happy with the result, patting himself on the shoulder. > Bob is certain, that the ad-ware was not the cause of his computers weird behavior, but he can't seem to convince Oscar which is important, because it might be a serious security risk. I want to describe X as being in no way possible, but I can't seem to find the right words. The only expressions I could come up with are `"X is highly unlikely"` or `"I really doubt that X is the cause for Y"` or `"I extremely disagree with your evaluation"`. Now I also want/need to be as polite as possible, because I want to be as diplomatic as possible, but it also needs to be strong and convincing. How to can I tell 'Oscar' that it is _soo_ unlikely for X being the case while not sounding pedantic? <hr>_{As this is my first question on EL&U, I appreciate any hints and pointers.}

Answer 1

Yes there are situations and people that sometimes require expertise handling. :) You has more knowledge in this area, Oscar? I would approach the situation something like this "Oscar, I want to say thank you for suggesting to lok for ad-ware. While it helped, I am still experiencing some weird activity. I want to rule out any possible security risks. I was wondering if we can run further scans. Try and cover all the bases of what the problem could be. Do you have ideas on what else to look for?"

You want to start with a compliment, explain the situation, and end with asking their advice again. This might make Oscar less likely to be offended or hurt..