RS / Designspark - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: Bloch
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 03, 2011, 04:54:08 pm
content: Before it was not possible to buy from RS (Denmark)But i must say that i a bit impressed. A question on the Designspark "forum" and some weeks and now i can !http://www.designspark.com/content/designspark-hobbyistI wonder why suddenly i can ? but it is great i don't have to buy it at work anymore.

author: Bored@Work
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 03, 2011, 05:44:36 pm
content: Last time I asked that for my country I got banned on the DesignSpark web site.For me RS and Farnell are just the same kind of clowns. To arrogant to take my money when I come to them as a hobbyist, but keen to sell to my employer when I come to them in my day job as an engineer. I make it a point to avoid them in the later capacity.

author: Bloch
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 04, 2011, 05:13:47 am
content: Quote from: BoredAtWork on August 03, 2011, 05:44:36 pmWow That are they thinking ?

author: Bored@Work
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 04, 2011, 08:43:52 am
content: Quote from: Bloch on August 04, 2011, 05:13:47 amProbably not much. Maybe I was not the first one asking that question, and they figured they haven't a good answer.BTW, just entering 00 when asked for the tax registration number doesn't work with my RS. You can register, but they immediately send a cancellation the moment they figure out you aren't a business.

author: EEVblog
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 04, 2011, 10:50:39 am
content: Quote from: Bloch on August 04, 2011, 05:13:47 amWow alright. You seriously got banned for simply asking that?Dave.

author: Bored@Work
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 04, 2011, 11:57:20 am
content: Quote from: EEVblog on August 04, 2011, 10:50:39 amIt went like this: A fresh account, and asking that in the Q&A section of the site. The posting was removed. Then asking again in a second posting, and asking also why the first posting was removed. As a result the second posting was removed, too, and the account gone.Not that I feel I am missing much for being expelled from DesignSpark or not being able to buy from RS while wearing my hobbyist head. But just like with Farnell I find it funny that they spend money to build a community, but then screw it up. And I feel a little bit insulted whenever they talk about including hobbyists, but then they shit all over themselves when a hobbyist actually threatens to buy there wares.

author: johnboxall
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: August 05, 2011, 05:21:40 am
content: Quote from: BoredAtWork on August 04, 2011, 11:57:20 amI think they're getting a little desperate ... a prominent designspark blogger was sprung leaving links to designspark roadtests in the element-14 roadtest forum (!). And the company who built the website emailed me directly asking for me to promote their e-tech magazine in twitter for them. Ugh.

author: metalphreak
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 05, 2011, 07:48:31 am
content: I don't understand why they're so arrogant in Europe and refuse to sell to hobbyists.After making my first <$50 at RS-Components I was called the next day and asked if I wanted a trade account (despite telling them I don't order much as a hobbyist).Element-14 (aka Farnell) called me within a month and set me up on a "Hobbyist" account (yes, they actually acknowledge you as a hobbyist). I'm sure Element14 have spent more money on postage than I've paid them for goods. So far each of my 6 different sets of 100 0603 resistors have each come in a separate package due to backorder...I guess we have it good in Australia

author: Bored@Work
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 05, 2011, 08:07:15 am
content: Quote from: tronixstuff on August 05, 2011, 05:21:40 amOuch! This is a good way to invite a nasty C&D letter from a nasty corporate lawyer.QuoteDon't get me started on that magazine. 99.9% advertising with a dash of technical platitudes. One of the most strange things is that they don't even manage to embed links to all advertised products. It is more often than not "got to rs.com and search for product number xyz". I mean, really? This is what you get when you hire an advertising company to do a magazine. It is even worse than the likes of EDN and electronic design.BTW, a magazine that IMHO has some potential comes from that EEweb web site. You know, the site that mysteriously popped up some time ago, saying they are independent and are heavily sponsored by DigiKey. It looks like they publish their Pulse magazine on a weekly basishttp://www.eeweb.com/pulseThe magazine has very few advertising, which is maybe the key why it is bearable.

author: Bored@Work
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 05, 2011, 09:00:51 am
content: Quote from: metalphreak on August 05, 2011, 07:48:31 amHere it is kind of a tradition. There was once a very strong electronics industry in this country. Distributors dealt in volume only. And they could literally choose to whom they sell, because many components were constantly on allocation. As a company you had to suck distributor's toes to get parts. This was before the Internet, and looking abroad for parts was impossible for smaller companies. You had to go via a local distributor.In those times distributors just didn't need and didn't want the money from hobbyists. And in those times they developed an incredible arrogance. It is deeply engraved in their genes that they don't want to deal with hobbyists. They are Distributors, dammit!The electronics industry is long gone. The remaining companies can buy from all over the world. Many of the local distributors got bought by large international distributors and became small local branches or got closed. The survivors carried the old attitude over. They still live in the past, local branches are lead by old-age hardliners who don't get it, dream of big volume sales only and of having the customer over a barrel. They feel personally insulted when a hobbyist dares to want their wares.These days most of them have at least opened up slightly to students. Someone must have figured out that this is a good idea. You could call that progress. Many moons ago when I studied EE it was different. I was a naive student and once called a distributor to get a special part, because the manufacturer pointed me to that particular distributor. I didn't want samples, I didn't even know what samples were at that time. I just wanted to buy that part. I got 15 minutes of insults on the phone from a sales guy. How I could dare to wish to buy a part as a student ...Years later I shared that story during lunch with some colleagues. One colleague could instantly name the distributor. He made the same experience with them as a student. The distributor got bought by an international company and later got bulldozed by the new owner. I then called my colleague and we had a few drinks, celebrating that these assholes were gone, and hoping that their employees would only find jobs as cloakroom attendants and burger flippers.QuoteHere you don't get parts, but an unfriendly e-mail telling you they don't want to deal with you and that they canceled your order and your registration.QuoteSee above. They cancel all hobbyist orders and accounts.The funny thing is, every ten years they come up with a new excuse why they don't deal with hobbyists. Currently the standard excuse is "consumer protection laws". The funny thing is, those are harmonized in the EU, the EU directive is from 1997. They do sell under the "burden" of EU consumer protection laws in some EU countries, while they refuse to sell in others.Lately the gradually move the excuse over to tax laws. They claim they aren't prepared to charge and process VAT. Which is funny. When they deal with students or very small companies that aren't tax registered, they also need to be able to handle VAT, and they are of course able to do so.The truth is, it is just arrogance. They don't want to. And whenever companies like Farnell/Element-14 or RS/DesignSpark talk about hobbyist communities I know it is a BIG FAT LIE, because their actions speak louder than their words.

author: Slothie
author_rank: Regular Contributor
timestamp: August 05, 2011, 09:47:52 am
content: Hmm where are you guys from? I'm in the UK and I've never had trouble getting stuff from RS or Farnell. A few years back RS would only do trade, but they had a "hobbyist" wing called "Electrovalue" (I think) you could get RS stuff from. Since they opened their website circa 1999 they canned that but I've got the odd chip or so from them ordering on the web; I haven't bought from RS for about 4-5 years now as overpriced and I've been able to get what I want cheaper from Farnell or Rapid but I still get the odd email every 6 months or so from them....

author: Bored@Work
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: August 05, 2011, 03:11:07 pm
content: For fun and giggles, RS just recently declared DesignSpark a huge success:http://www.electrocomponents.com/ecm/press/releases/pr2011/2011-07-28/Quote

author: metalphreak
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: August 05, 2011, 06:19:12 pm
content: I just find it amusing (and quite odd) that RS-Components Australia (and Element14 and so on) are so different from the European regional arms of supposedly the same global business.The issue here seems to be that RS is operated differently by region, and while globally RS is a "big supporter" of hobbyist, some regions continue living in their own big volume world...