From: spt@waikato.ac.nz (Simon Travaglia)
Newsgroups: nz.netstatus
Subject: Re: Letter from Auckland university
Date: 29 Jul 92 10:45:47 +1200
Organization: University of Waikato Computer Centre

In article <B4ikoB1w164w@status.gen.nz>, jonc@status.gen.nz (Jon Clarke) writes:
>  
>  It is a matter of record in nz.general where I offered my services 
>  ( I am a bank manager) as a donation to the Auckland University, to help
>  them sort out their email billing problems and then in the mail I receive
>  this letter with this months email bill.

Shame on them!  The Bastards!  Try high court for satisfaction!  As a bank 
manager they'll listen to you!

But seriously how many administrators have the time to read news.  I know that
very few of ours do - the time involved in wading through the screeds of crap
that I (for one) post to the net probably puts them off.  If I want to offer
something, I usually,  in the first instance, use a device called a TELEPHONE.
See, with a telephone, you can be reasonably sure that the person you're
talking to is the one you want, instead of talking to Walt, the janitor, who
just publishes his unconnected thoughts.  In other words, a personal approach
would have established better contact than posting to news.

Secondly, by your tone, you imply that the Auckland University should show
you more respect because you made an offer to help them.  In the same vein,
they maybe could show me more respect (by sending money) if I offered (in news)
to mow their footpaths once a year or so)

>  I am interested to hear how many other sites under the Auckland
>  University domain received such a letter.

Probably only the ones who were slack at paying up.

>Which brings to mind several questions to which I would like some vaild
>answers from sites under the Auckland University domains'.
>  
>  3/  Is this letter indeed cover under the terms and conditions of the
>      credit contracts act (does someone have an opinon)?

Well, geographically, we're under the Auckland University Domain, being
South, but I can't give a vaild or valid answer, not knowing the credit
contracts act.  Perhaps as a banker you could tell us?

>  4/  Does this J.D.Luff have the authority to demand such payment, does
>      someone have an opinon, maybe the Financial Registrar's Office?

No, he probably doesn't have the authority to demand such payment.  Nor does
he probably have the authority to trip over your feed connection, accidentally
stomp on your modem, cut down your news feed, duplicate your news feed by
modifying message ID's etc.  (It's extremely doubtful he would ever do
something like this but if you talked to the guy, you could probably work 
out something to relieve your apparent problem)

>   Finally will J.D.Luff have the decency to please respond with

So what you're saying is that YOU haven't tried to contact HIM (- his number 
will be at the top of the bit of letterhead he sent you.  To help you out, his
name is Jim Luff, you'll probably get hold of him at the Computer Centre, 
Auckland University), you've just posted to the net so we all think he's a real
meanie for wanting payment for services.



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This signature was created using RoboSig, the errorfree sigmaker.
Simon Travaglia, spt@grace.waikato.ac.nz, Uni of Waikato, P B, Hamilton, NZ
Disclaimer:  The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author
and have no bearing his work or employers (but his teddy agrees with him)
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REVIEWER'S NOTE: A rejection slip based upon literature and theories in
 vogue during the period the reviewer was studying for his or her Ph.D. 
Newsgroups: nz.netstatus