Jason · R. · Coombs

I was offered one of these about 5 days ago. I wondered what the scam was. I think on the same day I overheard some victims of the scam who had bought a card and then weren't allow to use it. I definitely heard the word "counterfeit" while they were talking within station attendants.

When's metro 2.0 coming?

The coolest thing I've seen in a while, an hypothesis on abiogenesis (spontaneous creation of life).

There is now substantial evidence that the DHS and the TSA are violating my constitutionally-protected right to life.

Due to an unexpected interruption in my sleep (our building's builder came to work on a leaky window), I had the opportunity to catch my mind trying to mis-remember something.

I was on travel (as I often am in dreams). I was also playing some sort of frisbee game, some cross between ultimate and frisbee golf. I was playing with novices, so I was playing less competitively than I otherwise could have played. There was water all around, like in Hangzhou West Lake or Venice. One player jumped from one surface to another, and two players, including myself, called a "travel" on that player. Everyone was a little confused, so I explained the rule.

At one point, we climbed out of boats and Barenaked Ladies were performing Auld Lang Syne over the PA. Someone asked what "Auld Lang Syne" meant. I didn't know, but an older man seemed to know. It means "Aunt Susan". He proceeded to make a joke about their family's actual Aunt Susan, who wasn't present.

At this point, I woke from my dream and realized that my brain was trying to trick me into remembering the incorrect meaning for "Auld Lang Syne".

One might never realize how difficult it is to have an address that's both a PO Box and has a number sign (aka hash, pound sign) in it. The following is a letter I sent to one of my service providers regarding the challenges I encountered when trying to update my address.

---

Since -quote-Comments or Questions must only contain the following characters a-z A-Z 0-9 , . - ! ?-quote-, I-apostrophe-m going to encode my message by replacing disallowed punctuation with the name of the appropriate punctuation enclosed in dashes.

I-apostrophe-m having difficulty changing my address through your web site. Your website seems to not accept my address. My correct mailing address is-colon-

PO Box 96503 -number sign-41825
Washington, DC 20090-6503

When I try to enter the address correctly, I get an error. The error message appears behind the form, so I-apostrophe-m unable to read it, but I suspect the problem is the number sign -open parenthesis--number sign--close parenthesis- in the address. So I try this address-colon-

PO Box 96503 No. 41825
Washington, DC 20090-6503

This address is accepted without error, but it replaces the address with an incorrect address -open parenthesis-it removes the -quote-No. 41825-quote--close parenthesis-. Apparently any address with a PO Box in it removes all other information in the address.

Finally, I tried one more address-colon-

PO Box 96503-41824
Washington, DC 20090-6503.

It accepts this address, but it strips off the -plus-4 of the zip code. While this is probably acceptable and may get to me, it will likely be delayed due to the fact that the post office box number can't be matched to the zip code.

Can you please see that my address is updated in the system with the correct address? You may have to forward this to the web developers or the core system developers for it to accept my address.

I'm sure you all remember the days of "Buyer Beware" (if only from U.S. history class).  I've also visited 3rd-world and emerging industrial countries where the same principles apply (like the tourist infested markets in Beijing).  There you can go and you can buy many items for much less than you would find them in the U.S.  You can even buy items that aren't available in the U.S..  Unfortunately, the quality and authenticity of those products are often lacking.
Now with DRM, we're bringing back those good ol' days.
Recently, I bought Catan, a remake of the Settlers of Catan board game, for the XBox 360.  It was 800 points (or about $10).  After I downloaded the game, I found out it only allows multiplayer online.  In other words, you can play against the computer or against random strangers.  If you want to play with 4 people in your home, you have to have 4 xboxes, 4 tvs, and 4 subscriptions to xbox live.
Because that's how I wanted to use the game, I called customer support, but they were unforgiving.  After you've paid your points, they're gone for good... and you can't re-sell the product either.
Buyer beware.

I couldn't believe how easy this was. Just follow the link, enter your information, and it removes you from the credit report agency lists for pre-screened credit offers. Do the online option to be removed for 5 years, or print and mail a document to be permanently removed. I used FoxIt PDF Editor to paste in my signature and Postful to send off the letter electronically.

Fabulous!

Today I received a call from a representative at Levolor, someone in consumer affairs. She was very kind, calm, and courteous. She explained to me that she read my complaint thoroughly and at every point where there was a disconnect in their process, the problem had been addressed, both the symptom and where applicable, the cause.

Furthermore, she let me know that they had passed on my suggestions to the QA department (particularly having troubleshooting tips on the web site), and these suggestions would likely be implemented in some fashion.

She went on to tell me that my issue should have been resolved, the blind was shipped UPS next day air yesterday, and should have arrived today. It didn't, but I suspect that's because of problems with our building security, and completely out of their control.

Finally, she let me know they would be sending me a check to compensate me for my time and trouble on the matter.

In other words, Levolor has gone far beyond my expectations and even beyond my stated request. They seem to care greatly about the end consumer and his satisfaction. I am confident that the problems I've received were isolated and that any systemic problems that caused the issue are being addressed to a great extent.

I would highly recommend Levolor blinds. I've always been pleased with the quality of their product, and I believe their ultimate customer service to be outstanding.

Here's my letter to Levolor. What a mess. It seems they jerk their customers around and don't care. I haven't received a response to my request nor have I yet received a replacement slat. I hope those of you who read this for updates on my life enjoy the read as an humerous aside. I hope that the rest of you have found this in search for information about Levolor and it will help influence your decision to go with another supplier.

By the way, I did submit a compliant to BBB, for which Levelor is a certified member, but it appears the BBB does not deal with consumer-getting-jerked-around-by-member-company complaints, so they've let me know.

-----Original Message-----
From: Jason R. Coombs
Sent: Monday, 12 March, 2007 14:55
To: 'anissa.reid@levolor.com.certified.readnotify.com'
Subject: RE: Levolor.com: Slat mis-cut

Dear Anissa,
I have to say I am extremely unhappy with the service I have
received from Levolor.

It's taken every ounce of self-control I have not to write a letter
with gross explicatives.

When I first received my blinds, there was a manufacturing defect.
A single slat had the notches mis-cut, so the slat rested 1/2" out of
alignment with the others, causing the other blind to run into it when drawn
up or down.

I first contacted Levolor via e-mail. The first representative
indicated that I needed to provide the correct measurements from another
slat so they could properly replace the slat. These blinds are very large,
so it was a difficult job to measure the slat, but I did do so. I
double-measured to be sure to provide precise and accurate measurements. I
sent the results via e-mail to ensure accuracy.

I then received a response in which the representative required me
to get the all of the numbers from the inside of the head rail. I
reluctantly performed that task this morning, which involved the following
steps:

- going downstairs to retrieve my ladder
- removing my TV screen mounted in front of the blinds
- releasing the first valence clip
- moving the ladder
- releasing the second valence clip
- moving the ladder
- releasing the third valence clip
- moving the ladder
- releasing the fourth valence clip
- releasing one blind retention clip
- moving the ladder
- releasing the second blind retention clip
- moving the ladder
- removing the blinds from the headrail and reading the numbers to
my girlfriend; this is very difficult as the blinds weigh around 50 lbs
- replacing the blinds
- moving the ladder
- engaging the first blind retention clip
- moving the ladder
- engaging the second blind retention clip
- replacing the first valence clip
- moving the ladder
- replacing the second and third valence clips
- moving the ladder
- replacing the fourth valence clip
- replacing the TV screen
- returning the ladder to the storage unit

I then call the phone number that the previous rep had given me and
I explain the situation. All she requires is the bill of lading number,
which is on three different pieces of paper I had sitting around the house.
I mentioned nothing of my previous contacts with representatives, and she
was able to complete the process without any mention of touching the blinds.

In other words, I probably didn't have to get up from my desk. The
entire process could have been completed easily if
- the _first_ or _second_ representatives I had worked with had used
the order number I supplied to determine the bill of lading
- the _first_ or _second_ representatives I had worked with has
simply asked me for the information they needed
- or your web site had a form that provided detailed instructions on
how to get these sorts of problems resolved
- or my problem was handled by the same person each time, rather
than a different person with a different approach each time
- or your QA team had caught the error in the first place

Needless to say, I've spent too much time on this already.

If you would like to keep me as a happy customer, I request that you
apologize for the actions of your staff and provide me evidence that this
problem will be resolved for you customers in the future.

If this is not possible, you can compensate me for my time and
trouble. A check for $100 would satisfy me and assure me that this is not
business-as-usual. Considering that I've already spent $2000 toward Levolor
blinds, this is not an unreasonable request.

If you need to take this request to your supervisor, please do so.
If you need to contact me to resolve this matter, also please do so. My
phone number is 505.459.6655.

If you don't care to settle this matter with me directly, I will be
happy to take my complaint to the better business bureau and to post my
detailed experiences publically. I can't be sure that doing so will resolve
the problem for future customers, but I will at least feel as if I'm not the
only one taking the hit.

Sincerely,
Jason R. Coombs

-----Original Message-----
From: LV Info [mailto:Info@levolor.com]
Sent: Monday, 26 February, 2007 16:12
To: Jason R. Coombs
Subject: RE: Levolor.com: Slat mis-cut

Dear jaraco@jaraco.com,

Thank you for choosing Levolor / Kirsch. Our goal is to provide our
customers with the highest quality and service. I apologize for the
inconvenience you have experienced. My name is David and I will be
assisting you in resolving this situation.

Additional information is needed in order to properly assist you with
your repair. You will need to take your blind down out of the window
and have all the numbers that are on the sticker in the head rail ready
for us when you call. This will help us with our repair process.

You will be able to speak to any of our representatives and they will be
able to help you.

Please contact our Consumer Service Department at 1-800-538-6567.

If I can be of further assistance, please contact us at
Info@Levolor.com.

Sincerely,

David R.
Levolor / Kirsch Customer Service

-----Original Message-----
From: Jason R. Coombs [mailto:jaraco@jaraco.com]
Sent: Sunday, February 25, 2007 1:24 PM
To: LV Info
Subject: RE: Levolor.com: Slat mis-cut

Dear Crystal or other customer service representative:

Thanks for your response. I had a very busy week and so am just now
getting
around to measuring the slat.

Measuring from the left, the notch positions are:

6", 25.25", and 45.25". The total slat width is 50.75".

Please let me know if I can provide more information, and thanks for
your
help.

Sincerely,
Jason R. Coombs

-----Original Message-----
From: LV Info [mailto:Info@levolor.com]
Sent: Monday, 19 February, 2007 14:20
To: Jason R. Coombs
Subject: RE: Levolor.com: Slat mis-cut

Dear jaraco@jaraco.com,

Thank you for choosing Levolor / Kirsch. Our goal is to provide our
customers with the highest quality and service. My name is Crystal and I
will be glad to assist you.

Additional information is needed in order to assist you properly. Please
respond via email with the notch measurements on the slat. The way these
need to be measured is starting from the far left of the slat to the
center of the 1st notch, then from far left to the center of the 2nd
notch and so on to the last notch. Once we get that information we can
send you out a new slat and that should fix your problem.

If I can be of further assistance, please contact us at
Info@Levolor.com.

Sincerely,

Crystal Edwards
Levolor / Kirsch Customer Service

-----Original Message-----
From: Jason R. Coombs [mailto:jaraco@jaraco.com]
Sent: Saturday, February 17, 2007 3:27 PM
To: LV Info
Subject: Levolor.com: Slat mis-cut

Hi. I'm writing regarding order 02203362. I have a single slat that
wasn't cut correctly in my blind. It's the second to the bottom on
the left blind.

It appears the right and left notches were cut about 1.5cm off. The
center notch is probably okay. This causes the blind to rest off
center and the right blind to run into it.

Can you please send a replacement slat for this set?

I can make photos available. I can also provide additional
information if necessary. Please don't hesitate to contact me if you
need additional information.

Sincerely,
Jason R. Coombs

Subject: Slat mis-cut
Reason: Product Support, Parts, Repairs, Warranty
Product: Wood Blind (Real & Faux)
Purchase Date: February 2007

First Name: Jason R.
Last Name: XXXXXX
Address: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Address2:
City: XXXXXXXXXX
State: DC
Postal Code: XXXXXXXXXX
Country: United States
Email: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Phone: XXXXXXXXXX

I heard that the U.S. mint had mis-printed some 15,000 dollar coins without the "In God We Trust" stamp.

So I thought I'd go to eBay and buy one. I figured I'd pay $5-10 for one, but it looks like they're selling for around $70 each.

Crazy.

Today I had particularly ugly experiences with two companies that reflected the unaccounted cost to society of the disorganized nature of call centers and other phone-based customer support.

I'm not going to go into the details, but I've escalated my complaints. If they don't reach a satisfactory end, expect to see some flaming posts detailing my experiences.

Raaaaargh!

rant follows

The other week, I was sitting in a training course with a number of my peers. I mentioned that I don't run a firewall on my computer. Their immediate response was, "Then how do you protect from hackers, viruses, ...?"

I tried to explain (by going on my usual tirade) that a firewall is nothing but a crutch. It's a bandaid put over a non-existent (or unidentified) sore in the hopes of preventing infection.

This is all fine and well, and for the general public tends to do quite a bit of good. The problem is, it does act as a crutch, and for agile or power users, does more harm than good.

As a crutch, the firewall acts to provide a false sense of security. It provides a security perimeter, but this perimeter is only effective while the adversary (or adversarial code) remains outside the perimeter. Because of this fact, firewalls have been drawn closer and closer to the core of the problem (the buggy kernel or application code). While developers eventually address the core problem (these days typically in a very short time), firewall developers and other security "experts" leave behind a trail of broken implementations to "mitigate risk".

One of these broken implementations has been to disable network transport on "uncommonly used" ports. While this approach seems reasonable, it has a particularly crippling effect on Internet development, and with little ultimate benefit for even the general consumer.

Consider, for example, the fascist policy Comcast applies to its customers, that of blocking both incoming and outgoing traffic on port 445. This practice still persists and prevents legitimate use of the Internet. It is a forcibly applied firewall and there is no exemption process.

Practices like these have little benefit for the consumer because although they protect a particular vector of attack, they do not resolve the essential problem, and another vector can exploit the same weakness. And because that channel has been limited for legitimate as well as illegitimate use, the industry will simply create another channel to accommodate the limited functionality. This new channel is often just as weak as the original.

The grand effect of this is a temporary benefit to security but an ultimate degradation in the quality of the network. Instead of using the network in the way it was designed and implementing over-arching security protocols (such as IPSec), developers are utilizing one-time security protocols over web transport (such as Skype does for voice communication).

The biggest cost, however, is that which we can't see. It's the applications that aren't developed because of these limitations and the functionality that doesn't exist because this increased variance in Internet functionality has raised the bar beyond that attainable by many. Additionally, it's increased the amount of effort required for all users to effectively operate in this environment. Time that would otherwise have been spent improving the system or creating new products is instead spent jumping through hoops in the name of security.

I would say that for me, my average productivity in an IT environment has been reduced by about 50%, in both professional and personal areas, as a result of information security practices, and that the advantages of these practices are minimal.

Recently, I was visiting friends and discovered (re-discovered? I can't remember) the joys of the flying spaghetti monster (sauce be upon Him).

I'm now pretty well settled into Washington, D.C.. [Jason ponders how to properly punctuate that previous sentence.]

So anyway, this weekend I was visited by friends (without blogs) (seriously?) (yeah, no blogs; and they're young blokes).

We decided to go to the Arlington Cemetary. You see, since I'm a native now, I can't do tourist things unless my friends visit me (hint, hint).

So, we went to the cemetary. I made some bad jokes about cemetaries, goths, and death. I got bad looks, but had a good time. I wasn't too obnoxious.

During our visit, there was also a spectacular Air Force Memorial Opening. We were not at the memorial dedication, but we did see some of the arial displays, including a fly-over of a Stealth Bomber. The sight was ominous and spectacular. I imagined that a flyover of an earlier plane would have been similarly ominous in earlier decades.

In addition, they had some air stunts, flyovers of various Air Force models, most of which I could not accurately identify. It was quite a good day to be in D.C..

For over 10 years now, I've owned a black-and-decker toaster oven. I very much enjoyed that toaster oven. It's been reliable and one of the best buys ever.

When I bought it, I noticed they had a cabinet mount option. You could buy a hood (for about the cost of the oven itself) that would allow one to mount the oven under a cabinet.

"Fabulous," I thought, but never settled into a place where I thought I'd buy one.

Well, I recently have begun settling into such a place.

And guess what?

They've phased them out. It appears, although I have not authoritatively confirmed, that there are no new under-cabinet-mountable toaster ovens for sale.

This has me sad. I was really looking forward to _finally_ mounting my toaster oven (to the underside of my cabinet).

I've sold my old toaster oven (as part of the move), and so will probably have to accept the wicked fact that my toaster oven must rest on my kitchen counter. C'est la vie.

I found out today that PayPal is offering free identity protection through Equifax. If you have a PayPal account, you can receive free credit alerts via e-mail from Equifax. Normally, they charge for this service, so I'm excited that I can now get these alerts for free.

If you don't already have a PayPal account, I'd recommend you get one. It's one of the few services that allow people to send money electronically the way it should be done.

If you already have a PayPal account, check out the link above for more information about the free credit alerts.