Things That Bug Me

Some things really bug me. Really, really bug me, to the point that I feel like a frustrated little kid throwing a temper tantrum, because complaining just doesn't help and nobody cares.

Here's a cartoon chaser, though:


It's from xkcd, a brilliant comic I just discovered. Some of them are funny, some are cool, some are insightful. But this one made me burst out laughing, out loud, even though there was no-one else around :-)

So, things that bug me. Like Google deciding that I have to switch my blog to the new GoogleBlog system, associated with my google id. I don't want everything connected to the same id; maybe I want to keep my blog and my searches and my email and my usenet posts and my googletalk logins all separate. But Google just doesn't give you that option. And being signed into one automatically signs you into all the other services, even if you use them in a different window - so while I could theoretically use a different google username for each service,
it gets really difficult to do so. It frustrates me, and I know that they don't care, won't do anything about it, and I'm just going to have to change the way I want to do things.

Which, incidentally, is what bugs me about Microsoft - I have to change the way I want to do things, because it doesn't fit in with the way they do things. Even just on my own PC.

And here's something else - my dad's Epson printer stopped working yesterday. Without warning, it started blinking red and green lights. Eventually he managed to find out that this means that 'parts are worn and need a service'. It turns out, that after a certain number of pages, the printer decides it needs a service and refuses to print until it's been serviced. There's no way to override it (although I suspect flashing the bios might fix it; after all, there must be some way for the service tech to reset it, right? But there's no user way to override it). So to be able to continue printing - and remember, this happens without warning, halfway through a print job - you have to take it to Epson to have it serviced. And the service costs about 80% of the price of a new printer. And there's nothing you can do!! And no-one at Epson cares! And it certainly isn't on the packaging; you don't know this when you buy the printer. This really should be illegal; it's planned obsolesence. Your printer essentially expires, with no warning, and there's nothing you can do. I know we always joke about things breaking the day after the warranty expires; this is like that, except it's not a joke.

And broadband in South Africa bugs me unbelievably much; but I'm not even going to get started on that one. All I'm going to say is that it's ridiculous and pathetic; both in terms of monthly costs, installation costs, speed, stability, and customer service.

Well, enough complaining for now. Enjoy the weekend :-)

This one's pretty good, too:


Oh, and here are some more things that bug me: companies who have email addresses, but never reply to their email, or who think that just because their ToS says they'll respond in 14 days, that really is a reasonable amount of time to have to wait for a reply, or who do reply but with an automated or monkey-driven scripted reply, based on keywords in your email, that just regurgitates the info on their website and doesn't answer your question at all (tiscali's particularly bad with this).

And websites who check your browser version, and if it isn't one they recognise, advise you to upgrade to the latest version of IE. Firstly, I'm not going to change my system for the dubious privilege of viewing their website; secondly, while I don't expect everyone to design their sites for access by mobiles, at least acknowledge the possibility that your visitor is using a perfectly up-to-date version of, say, PocketIE. Or that they might be using a system which they can't upgrade - a mobile, or a *nix system on which IE wouldn't install, even if someone, bizarrely, actually wanted it to.

I'm sure i'll be back with more. But for now, goodnight :-)

Aaaaargh! And Blogger, who's site works on a mobile, in that you can log in, choose a blog, view your posts, edit a post - but then doesn't let you click submit. Aaaaarrrggghhh!