Posts by Fihart 1150 publicly visible posts • joined 3 Jun 2008
There seems to be a self-defeating sadism in the online sales channel. Ditto those who "design" complex automated phone answering systems. If the latter confused one, it used to be possible to wait silently until connected to a real person, but some systems now just end the call. Much the same with call centre staff who recite from scripts -- I just warn them I'm about to hang up.
Once any such task becomes an ordeal, abandon and seek an alternative.
Sometimes I've been so maddened I've written via snail mail to the CEO of the company concerned. At which point, usually, a middle class flack will phone you, apologise and sort things out.
I suspect this is the only way that large companies will realise that their 'efficient' customer interface is actually driving business away.
The change coin receptacle is too small for any man with normal sized hands so coins fall into the "bagging area". On the upside that means there may be money to be found there.
Change (notes) are ejected at knee level so I've occasionally walked away leaving a fiver down there. On the upside, so do other people, subsidising my purchases. Since, Sainsburgs have introduced an alarm to direct you attention to the notes, but it would have been a lot smarter to eject them at waist level or above.
Receipt ejects with sufficient force to float gently to the floor between the machines where it must be retrieved by bending down.
Reduced items frequently don't scan -- one is then expected to key in a vastly long series of digits -- I get the assistants to do it, claiming I don't have my glasses.
Obviously, the machines crash regularly showing Windows BSOD, to much chortling from nerds.
These days very little seems to be done about so-called music stations broadcasting from the tops of tower blocks and blotting out BBC FM stations. Most seem to be highly commercial, promoting local venues. Following the money and nicking those who sponsor pirate stations might be more effective than trying to confiscate hardware.
Mobile Minded BV -- the BV indicates a Netherlands (or perhaps even Netherlands Antilles offshore) location. If advertisers were forced to display such info it would warn off some victims. As it is, I doubt if any money will be recovered by a UK authority.
Advent of premium rate calls just signalled a free for all for conmen. What possible value do most of these services add ? And why do otherwise respectable phone companies participate in crime, collecting money for obvious crooks ?
Few places are more parochial than California - in an LA suburb when offered a UK passport as ID for changing travellers cheques, the clerk stated "don't you have a California driving license ?".
I did.
I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised when dealing someone from a state where few travel outside its borders, let alone outside the US.
My gripe with Virgin is their issuing the Netgear DGN1000 to their ADSL customers -- a router which has had pretty negative reviews. Worse, Virgin customised the firmware. The router didn't seem to work very well until a recent firmware patch was issued.
I suspect the patch from Virgin only became available some time after that for the standard Netgear version of the firmware.
Orange, who previously used the DGN1000 have recently replaced it with a non Netgear model.
I'm one of a few who own a standalone CD recorder, which is handy for transcribing LPs but crippled requiring so-called Audio or Music CDR blanks. These are identical to data CDRs but have a sort of spoiler code on them and cost around 40p more per disk than data CDRs. That's if you can find them.
The extra cost is, in part, a levy to the record industry to appease their panic that CD Recorders would be used to copy their artists' CDs. Of course, nobody uses them for that because it's as easy to do it on a computer you already have and you save paying £200 for a CD recorder and a 40p tax on every blank disc.
The irony is that the only other people I know who use CD recorders are musicians recording their own work. So most of the people paying the levy are musicians, effectively being taxed for recording music to which they already own the copyright.
There is a legend that BL built some three door cars by accident -- but I just don't believe their Marketing people would have had the smarts to flog them to the cops. Typically, they would have been crushed.
Incidentally, did anyone notice that there's a modern Mini with only a single rear passenger door -- but regardless of the fact that the car is built in Britain the door is on the right hand side !
Perhaps just rose tinted memories but I won't forget that Sony replaced a damaged front fascia for an amplifier by getting one from Japan and charging (as I recall) just £12 all in.
In fact, I presently listen to a Sony MP3 player -- cheaper than an iPod and no vile iTunes to contend with. .
One visit to iphone5.com and you know you are not on an Apple site.
Rather than stamp their feet about "fake" websites I wish manufacturers would stamp on the makers of fake branded goods.
For example, by lowering the ridiculous prices for genuine Nokia batteries quoted by Nokia's franchised 'care centres' (in our area the local Carphone Warehouse).
The recent London Freeview changeover led to several calls from older friends (and one younger) complaining that BBC2 had disappeared or, later, that they had no channels at all.
For people used to treating a TV like a toaster, switching to Freeview has been a a minor trauma. And sadly only a few of all those many extra channels make the extra effort worthwhile.
Am I right in thinking that the others only offer Fibre to the Cabinet and then copper from there ?
Annoyingly, VM (or their database) seems to have overlooked part of my street, though some adjoining buildings clearly have cable.
Virgin's ADSL can be blighted by the less than brilliant wireless of the Netgear DGN1000 they supply. Revised firmware recently released seems to help but it's still no match for the bigger, better, Netgear router issued to cable users which noticeably improves wireless coverage.
Nobody I know has upgraded to Win7 (though doubtless many have received it on new machines) because it's just too big and, though the inbuilt drivers are good, drivers for many old video cards, wireless adapters etc are non-existent.
Most people and companies are still on XP for the same sort of reasons.
When Microsoft issues a version of Windows which is smaller than XP, I'll be the first in line to buy it.
But Microsoft isn't about making good software, it's about regularly paying its shareholders.
Exactly. I only got a Sony a couple of years ago after being driven to fury by iTunes' illogicality while "managing" a girl friend's iPod -- and with the result that my computer is clogged with Julio Iglesias and Barbra Streisand tracks that I can't dump because they relate to her iPod. With the Sony I have no reason to duplicate its inventory on my hard drive. Loading stuff is d&d using Windows and (like the iPod) it supports folders so I can avoid the chore of tagging.
You are also right about UK consumer protection and reasonableness. In a small claims case I took against a repair guy who failed to pack a monitor properly on its return to me, the District Judge used his own experience of the lifetime of his TV as a benchmark for my loss of the few years old monitor. Actually ruled I had overclaimed and reduced damages but I was happy because I could see the logic.
Even UK manufacturers/importers and retailers propagate the misconception that the only protection you get is the manufacturers warranty.
Trading Standards will tell you that consumer durables are expected to be durable -- rule of thumb 6 years. Not unreasonable as CRT televisions lasted 15 years before the power supply or tube failed. I have hifi nearly 40 years old that works fine.
Several brands of LCD TVs and Monitors have been known to fail within 3 years due to crappy capacitors in the PSU -- a component fault entitling a UK customer to repair, replacement or a 50% refund. Instead, in recently months I've found three 19inch monitors dumped -- and repaired them for less than a quid each.
As for Apple, (apparently) until recently anyone returning a failed iPod outside the 12 month warranty was only offered a 10% discount on a new one. I say "apparently" because I wouldn't buy an iPod as they suck compared with Sony's MP3 players (mainly due to iTunes). I've found two iPod Minis in the trash -- one with a failing battery the other with a failed drive -- either could have been fixed fairly simply had they been designed to be repaired.
A friend based in Brussels continues to use a UK contract. He says that used carefully, even with roaming charges, a UK provider is cheaper than a Belgian one.
Doubtless, lobbying by various countries' major providers has blunted the EU appetite for cuts -- which should be mandatory, fulfilling the EU objective of, well, a COMMON market.
Last time this topic arose we saw how Vodaphone had been staffing up with ex-Dept of Trade people. Presumably to help them thwart attempts to interrupt the cash stream from confused UK holidaymakers faced with ruinous bills for daring to cross an EU border with phone in hand.
I cannot understand why people pay for Sky and are then prepared to sit thru ads. Surely the point of a subscription (as per the BBC Licence Fee) is to be free of pesky commercials.
Meanwhile Freeview is killing itself by running too high a ratio of ads versus program on many channels. I have virtually given up on TV as a result these extra unwelcome interruptions.
I was struck when living in America that NONE of my friends seemed to watch TV -- doubtless because of the saturation advertising they had to endure. We are now approaching that level.
Incidentally, there was a reception problem with the Philips-made On Digital boxes -- swapping to a Pace unit showed a great improvement.
Fond as I am of old Neil he has some odd ideas about fidelity, given the abysmal quality of some of his recordings and the way he has made an art form of guitar distortion.
Personally I prefer CD to MP3 because I'm old too and can find tracks more easily in physical media than hunting through menus.
I have many vinyl albums but only a few (early Decca stereo and EMI Motown monos) which could really be said to sound better than the best CDs -- mainly because they were mastered at high levels (probably with lots of compression) and using valve (tube) equipment, so have a warm sound.
Many 'classic' 1970's US rock albums recorded on analogue transistorised studio equipment sound appalling on vinyl but may have been improved when remastered to CD.
Well produced material (e.g. The Doors albums which were recorded in a simple manner like modern jazz ) sound better once remastered to CD.
I have CD-Rs burnt from MP3 tracks converted to WAV and most sound okay to me.
Though Neil Young's music with Buffalo Springfield and some with CSNY is fabulous, a great deal is idiosyncratic to the point of being eccentric -- as are his views (like those of most musos) on electronics.
Thanks for the practical guide -- I've been flame grilled on other forums for suggesting that UK consumers have rights beyond the manufacturer's warranty.
Perhaps the best way to explain things to stubborn sales staff is that the warranty is an arrangement between the manufacturer and the vendor that does not affect the consumer's rights in law.
In effect, the mfr. agrees to take on (usually for one year) a UK vendor's (six year) obligation to repair/replace/refund the consumer on faulty consumer durables.
The other key phrase, I've found is to state that "any reasonable person would expect consumer durables to be reasonably durable (e.g. more than one year)".
It is worth buying major items from supermarkets. Supermarkets rely upon your weekly shop for their living and cannot afford to lose that business. Specialist stores (and consumer durables manufacturers) can be fairly confident that you'll only buy (say) a TV once every 10 years -- and you probably won't buy the next one from them. So, to hell with you when something goes wrong !
The writing was on the wall when, on the cusp of the digital revolution, Kodak introduced APS — a more expensive film that cost more to process and was incompatible with existing cameras.
Though in the distant past they built some quite serious cameras, Kodak today are crippled by an association with trashy Instamatics. Though their digital models are pleasant to use they have styling best described as homely.
Not exactly an image to compete with Nikon.
I assume the objective is part of the plot to monitor what's in our fridges and "remind" us that we're running out of milk, etc. via ads on an interactive Google kitchen whiteboard. Or, worse, order more goods to be delivered by Google's retail clients.
This sort of networked integration will probably prove as useful -- or plain stupid -- as a Teasmade (for US readers; a cosy device with an alarm clock and electric kettle will wake you to a nice cup of tea).
One lesson we should have learned by now is that, just because it's possible, we don't have to do it.
Autocomplete in browsers which seems reluctant to accept that I might want to address my router by its IP address.
Printing "option" which assumes that I want a portrait shaped image rotated to best fit a landscape page.
Computers ain't smart, they just do lots of dumb things quickly.
I'd like them to do what they're told.
If you take a product back to Apple Store in London one week outside 12 month warranty do they still try to charge for repair or offer you just a 10% discount on a replacement ?
My understanding (from Trading Standards Officer) is that consumer durables should be durable. That means long outlasting a 12 month warranty.
To be fair, several High Street chains need reminding of this -- the "sorry we only replace within warranty" nonsense is usually overturned via a call to head office. I'd be interested to know if any customer has had to challenge Apple on this.
I'll concede that the interior looks like a Miami hairdressing salon.
Exterior looks typically Japanese -- i.e. blobby/friendly.
Without any style, in other words.
With the exception of a few luxury models (Aston, Ferrari) most cars look awful these days -- even Jaguar has gone the bland Lexus route.
Well, already actually.
If I recollect correctly, 20 years ago there was one commercial break in a 30 minute programme and one between programmes. A one hour programme had two breaks and one between programmes.
With the advent of Freeview breaks multiplied so that programmes were constantly interrupted by what seemed like longer breaks.
I'm not interested in watching TV commercials. So I'm not interested in watching commercial TV.
Poor old Nokia, though they're right about Android being complex. I've watched with amazement as a friend struggled with his new ZTE compared with the relative simplicity of using Symbian on my ancient Nokia E71 that has most of the smartphone essentials.
As for the iPhone, it's a bit rich to suggest that it's passe simply because it's so successful.
Where I really think Nokia have lost it is on price -- Android phones can be bought for as little as £40 which is nearly what Nokia expect me to pay for a new battery. Won't be a difficult choice when my battery finally dies -- new battery for an old phone or a brand new phone with a new battery included ? And another Nokia customer is lost.
This whole grey area of unsolicited calls, whether on landline or mobile needs to be brought under control. I now receive several 0845 and number withheld calls daily on my home phone. I gather that some people are bombarded with them -- and some get tricked into buying stuff they don't need.
I ignore such calls thanks to caller display but, what about bona fide calls from my bank etc ?
This nonsense began when premium lines became available and as far as I can see they serve no good purpose and should be ended.
The contest between WordPerfect for MSDOS and Word for Windows was over the moment one tried Word -- the weird formatting marks and preview options of WP were stone age.
The problem is that Microsoft now own the word processing market and have tried various annoying strategies to crowbar users into buying unnecessary new versions which are merely bigger rather than better than the existing.
Latest nonsense is to make .docx the default save in Word so that more idiotic users send me attachments that my perfectly usable Word 2000 won't open. I usually respond with a sharp note that they should investigate the "mysteries" of Save As options and resend their document in the universal .doc format.
Given that Nokia maps were "free for life" and (I presumed) relied upon free GPS, was surprised to be billed for mobile broadband usage.
Apparently due to a phone's small antenna, broadband is needed too. There was no option offered while maps were in use -- unlike email and internet where my phone suggests you choose between wifi and cellphone connection. I did notice what I later realised was a tiny antenna symbol flashing while on maps. And then £2 off my PAYG balance.
Experimenting showed that it cost 6p just to turn on GPS. I complained about this, among other irritations, and was offered a month's free broadband.
Also discovered how to turn off broadband support under Settings, General, Positioning Methods -- untick everything except integrated GPS.
Mapping then works for free, albeit updating more slowly.
A Rolex is only like an iPhone in that both are overpriced and many other products offer most of the main functions for under £10.
The big difference is that a 30 year old Rolex that hadn't been serviced for 25 years could be restored to almost new condition and accuracy -- at a cost of nearly £250, but with a 3 year warranty. I would guess this now rather old watch could still sell for around twice the original purchase price -- some rarer Rolex models go for much more.
What sort of support do you get for an iPhone that's five years old ?
Bought a pair of Comtrend DH10PF (not in the safety recall but BT are taking them back anyway) brand new at carboot sale. Could barely get them to connect and very slow when they did -- terrible interference on audio equipment.
To be fair a similar Netgear product was better (no interference) but near impossible to set up.
This technology is convenient when it works -- but generally it doesn't.
Can't imagine why BT ever got involved with it.
Diamond Rio pre-dates the Apple iPod and even the Rio wasn't the first MP3 player. The thrust of your argument is right, though, as evidenced by how much of an improvement visually the early iPods were over the fussy Rio's styling.
Pity that the pretty iPod is so flawed by the ugly (to use) iTunes software.
In the days of dial-up modems victims of rogue dialler programs were pursued by BT who'd happily paid out to the scammers offshore.
One has to ask how this was legal -- BT might be bound to pay out on normal transactions, but these were clear frauds. By enforcing customers' payments, BT seem to have been open to criminal charges for profiting from these crimes -- but of course nothing was done.
Instead BT's effort went into claiming that victims had simply forgotten making the calls or were negligent. People who refused to pay were disconnected.
I came across plenty of failed motherboard caps at that time. Story goes it stemmed from Taiwanese guys working for a Japanese firm and stealing the formula for the electrolyte and selling it to Taiwnese cap brands. Problem was they got the formula wrong.
Right now on the forums there are daily postings about capacitor failure in flatscreens affecting several brands. From checking a few myself (repair is very easy, incidentally) it seemed to me that the heat generated, perhaps by the illumination or the power needed for it, was excessive in a slim, poorly ventilated space.
In the mid 1980s I bought a nearly new Canon F1n for around £300 and a 1958 Leica IIIG for about the same money. The Canon is now worth £150 at best and the Leica perhaps £900.
The difference between these and a £5k digital Leica is that as long as film is available both the Canon and the IIIG will be usable (the Canon will work at some speeds work without a battery).
Already there are problems sourcing batteries for some 1970s and 80s cameras. I really don't think one can rely on being able to obtain SD cards (which wear out) in, say, 30 years time.
I do own several digital cameras -- mostly hand me downs from friends, including a Canon SD1000 which cost £175 less than 3 years ago.
Still, hopefully, the $5k Leica probably overcomes the greatest issue with rangefinders -- leaving the lens cap on while taking that shot of a lifetime.
I got this weird notice a week or so ago suggesting I might like to associate with other websites or something and offering the option to select those I didn't want to share with.
When I tried to untick one, another I'd already unticked would be ticked again. I assumed it was some sort of hoax and closed the page.
Same notice appeared today, I again exited. I then read your piece. Just gone back, the bastards have wiped all the stuff I put in my interests and hobbies. Why ? And why didn't they mention this ?
Frankly I don't care because it was already freaking me out getting targeted by ads relevant to the interests I'd listed. Clearly they had already published info about me to advertisers.
Facebook is over.
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