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3/15/2010 |
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 "The Bucky Look" is the look a dog gives you when it sees something it doesn't quite understand - a tilt of the head, the wide eyes, the outstretched ears. It was named after a friend's dog (aka Bucky) who didn't understand that much, so even mentioning his name would elicit The Bucky Look. I guess I don't understand that much either because I find myself all too often with a Bucky Look on my face.
So this will be a series of posts about things I come across that bring out The Bucky Look in me.
Here's a quick one to illustrate what I mean:
Oooh. let me pay more.....I have a credit card with a well known and very large bank which offers "points" for every dollar charged on the card. In their rewards catalog you can purchase an Apple iPod for some 31000 points. If however you opt for a check, the points are worth 1% or $310. The same Apple iPod is available at a well known and very large store for $168.
Hmmm, should I buy one through the bank's reward catalog or get a check, kick in $26 and BUY 2 at the store?
[INSERT BUCKY LOOK HERE]
To me, this little tale indicates one or all of the following:
- The bank thinks we're all stupid
- The bank is stupid
- The bank is trying to cheat us
- Charging for nothing is so engrained in the bank's culture that it just can't help it
- Oh wait. I got it! Their iPod price includes a $142 "convenience" fee (that's 85% for the mathematically minded). Of course.
Take your pick.
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3/14/2010 |
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It seems Microsoft's support budget is spent mostly on paying people to tell you to go somewhere else for support. Case in point: Web Apps. Great product. It lets you embed actual Powerpoints/spreadsheets on a web page instead of that silly Sky Drive icon. Finally something that I think everybody has been waiting for for a long time. But it's new-and is something you have to support to help people like me who may find it doesn't always work as expected.
Recently, I got this error message:
"PowerPoint Web App cannot open this presentation because of an error. To view or edit this presentation, open it in Microsoft PowerPoint".
Since this file was created at the same time and the same way as others that worked, I went to the Web Apps section of the Windows Live Solution Center to ask for help. Simple enough question, right? The response I got was:
"Your issue requires the expertise of the support team of Office Web Apps. Just post your question in this forum:
http://social.answers.microsoft.com/Forums/en-US/officewebapps/threads?filter=answered"
To which I replied:
"This may seem like a dumb question, but what is the purpose of this forum if it's not to provide "expertise"? It's called "Windows Live Solution Center-Office Web Apps" so it would seem the logical place to come for "expert" advice. Should I not bother posting questions here?"
As the Bucky Look left my face, I then dutifully posted my question in the other forum, wondering where I'll be sent to next in the maze that is Microsoft..
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