The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

JULY 2004 §H§§€E§03§§d .a-llucongitgg fins: .20 dizagsgszfi gigagéogfiéil iii ”figgsftganflhliuv 1.1....” eight-{55.111131}!!! “Iva “Iig‘ilfi‘uIF-‘sfi! I! ziiilgiig Historic photo submitted counasy oi Whltchurch-Stouitvilla Museum “WM" mmmmu Optometrists . ms mm 8:. - nos 642-3931 “aluminum www.strawberry19$flval.ca Recognizing the importance of expert help. I went into the electronics store which specialized in my chosen brand and asked if it was compatible with my computer. Assured that it was. I bought it and drove home. The next day, when my daughter input the software, it didn't work. After plowing through the accompanying literature we eventually discovered that her player was, in fact, not Mac compatible "Abandon all hope, you who press Enter here." Once again, Anon says it best for those of us who endure the slings and arrows of outrageous software incompatibility. My new eMac is a joy to behold and a thing of beauty for at least three months, or however long it takes to become obsolete. But. like an introverted child who'd rather be reading. it doesn‘t play well with others. She phoned the manufacturer‘s Canadian headquarters and spent 10 minutes on hold, while a voice-activated answering machine ignored requests to put her through to a person. when she finally reached someone and asked whether Mac software was available for the product, the woman didn't know and suggested she call the US. office. Another long wait ensued, with similar results. and a suggestion that she should phone the original number in Canada. it was time for a consumer rant. Thanks to the wonders of technology i was able to vent instantly. by e-mail. Five days went by before a reply arrived, expressing regret that my purchasing experience had been less than stellar. Apparently. however. the person who sent it was not up to helping me electronically. 'You may be better to attempt to call our Customer lnforrnation Centre toll free. and hopefully one of our representatives can bring this matter to a satisfying conclusion." my correspondent suggested. rather tentatively, I thought. "We should also be able to address the less than pleasurable customer service that you received. Thank you for your feedback. because without honest feedback from customers like you we would never be able to improve our company." The e-mali was slgned Customer Information Centre. Service and Engineering Division. lulled the number supplied and reached a machine. which informed me the average wait time to speak to someone was five minutes. Unwiiling to spend another fruitless hour on the phone. I decided to resort to e-mail again. After all, this was an electronics company. so you would think this would be their preferred method of interaction. I suggested that. in light of my previous unsuccessful attempts to phone them. the company might like to call me. If I was home when they rang. I added. they wouldn‘t have to wait even one minute to speak to me. ludging from their remarkably prompt reply. however. their enthusiasm for my honest feedback was clearly on the wane. I know this because I decided to buy my daughter an MP3 player for her birthday. Because I love her, I spent an endless afternoon at the mall comparing models before selecting a cute little blue box. 'We have once again received your e-mail reply.“ they wrote. "Due to the complexity of your situation. we absolutely require verbal contact with you to discuss your inquiry further and In depth. We have already directed you to the appropriate telephone number and department to have this matter addressed and this will be the final email response from our office." Al that point. I threw In the towel and looked up computers in my quotations' dialonary. As always. It came up trumps: 'Smash forehead on keyboard to continue". T-shlrt. Los Angeles. I996. @NK n te MOLLER INSURANCE\ Honest Feedbaek Not The Best Policy 64 Sundlford Drlve, Unlt 1, STOUFFVILLE A Home * Auto "WHITCHURCH-STOUFFVILLE THIS MONTH" - 7 ‘la carte