From: berger@atropa (Mike Berger)
Subject: Re: Bashing (was Re: Gateway 2000 - $195 v.32bis modems?????)
Keywords: Okay, enough already
Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana
Date: Tue, 7 Apr 1992 16:45:14 GMT

ncc1701@madoka.its.rpi.edu (Mark O. Chadwick) writes:

>A couple of people (actually, several people) have complained about
>Gateway's "lousy service" and "untruthfulness."  I noticed that most of these
>people haven't gotten out into the real world yet (i.e. are still in
>college or somesuch).

>I hate to tell you guys this, but welcome to the real world.  You'll 
>find that a HECK of a lot of stuff works just like this--people
>try to do their best, tell you what they know, and it turns out
>to be wrong.  It'll even happen to YOU, and somebody's gonna flame your
>ass off for it.  They'll claim you were lying, that you knew the
>real situation, and you should be sued etc etc etc...Well, 
>hopefully it won't be that bad.
*----
I wouldn't mind an occasional slip-up.  When it happens consistently,
then it's clear that it's not a case of "doing their best".  It's
outright lying.  When your shipping date goes by, and another
shipping date slips, and yet again, then somebody isn't trying
very hard. 

>Also, there will be times when you order something, and suddenly
>it's out of stock, unbeknownst to the poor soul on the other end
>of the telephone line (see above).  So shipment will take longer then
>originally expected.
*----
Such times are VERY rare.  Most operations have a computerized inventory
and it would be quite a coincidence to have somebody else order the
only remaining stock of some item at the exact same time you do.  And
if that happens, shouldn't the seller let the buyer know right away?

>All I ask is you put yourself in their shoes.  Someone mentioned that
>they should call everybody and tell them shipments have been 
>delayed.  Not a bad idea, if they hire 15-20 more people, and crank up the
>prices accordingly to cover the additional cost.  Come one, it's 
>hard enough to get through to them...can you imagine if half their phone
>force is out calling the 100's, if not 1000's of customers that have ordered
>something to tell them that it'll be a few days late?!
*----
Okay, send a postcard.  Don't forget that the buyer might be depending
on the promised shipment to make his living too.  Why is the seller
the only one that needs to be protected?  Anyway, you seem to be
contradicting yourself.  First you say that most of these delays
are rare accidents.  Then you tell us that it would cost a lot for
the company to inform "1000's of customers".  If it affects
thousands of customers, it's no accident!  If it's enough of a
problem to drive up the cost of doing business, then the company
should not be in business in the first place.


>Sorry for the rambling.  No flames intended here, just a "wake-up-and-
>smell-the-coffee call."  This world ain't perfect, and neither are the
>humans living in it.  Sorry to burst your bubbles.
*----
I, for one, am not demanding perfection.  I just want honesty.
I can't imagine how you can rationalize outright lies and bad
service as "normal business practices".

>-- 
>---
>Mark "Emerson" Chadwick -- ncc1701@acm.rpi.edu    chadwickmo@space.laafb.af.mil
--
	Mike Berger
	Department of Statistics, University of Illinois
	AT&TNET     217-244-6067
	Internet    berger@atropa.stat.uiuc.edu
From: dlow@pollux.svale.hp.com (Danny Low)
Date: Mon, 6 Apr 1992 18:20:35 GMT
Subject: Re: 386 AMI BIOS doesn't recognize the memory above 640K... Help....
Organization: Hewlett Packard CPCD, Sunnyvale CA