Archive for March 6th, 2006
Liberals like Cats, Conservatives like Dogs?
Via Kevin Drum at Washington Monthly Via Talkleft.
And the original source: http://neuropolitics.org/.
BTW, just in case you haven’t noticed a couple of the links to the right, I’m definitely a cat person, and miss having a cat. Actually, I think I need more friends with cats who I can visit…
I recently had a last straw customer service experience with my soon-to-be former internet service provider, SBC. While their service has never been extraordinary, I did appreciate being able to take care of several services with one bill. But it’s not worth it anymore.
My wireless router developed a problem where it would not consistently transmit a wireless signal. The USB connection seemed to work, although it had problems connecting once or twice also.
For the wireless connection, I escalated through a series of steps to try to get it to work. I shut down and restarted my computer. I used the Windows repair connection function. I turned off and reset the modem/wireless router. I tested my computer’s ability to connect wirelessly in other locations to other networks I used. I came to the conclusion that the problem was indeed with the router, that it wasn’t going to resolve itself, and that I had reached the end of my limited knowledge and experience. Time to call tech support.
To be honest, SBC’s customer service support is not the worst in the world. After about 20 minutes of searching through their online support FAQs, I was A) able to determine that my issue wasn’t to be found in the FAQs and B) able to find a number to call for live tech support. A toll free phone call and somewhere between three and five hoops to jump through with the annoying automated voice system I was able to speak to a “tech”.
At least SBC isn’t Netflix… Via Biz Bytes
Like so many companies these days, Netflix makes it nearly impossible to find a customer service phone number online. I spent a solid hour looking for one. Nothing. Nada. Not even close. They would rather drive you to the brink of insanity than let you speak to an actual person. … given no other choice, I carefully crafted my e-mail and demanded a specific, personal response to my questions.
….After a heated exchange, I eventually got a human being (I think) to respond to my e-mail. Perhaps their ERM system is designed to recognize patterns of escalating expletives, and then, and only then, refer it to a service rep. Dan Briody
a whole lot (more…)
