public int compareTo(Object o)	{
		Consumer cc = (Consumer)o;
		int i;
		i = getStartVariance() - cc.getStartVariance();	// be as exact as possible
		if (i != 0)
			return i;
		i = cc.getStartLength() - getStartLength();	// be as significant as possible
		if (i != 0)
			return i;
		i = cc.getFixedLength() - getFixedLength();	// be long as possible
		if (i != 0)
			return i;
		return 0;
	}