• Cheryl does an about-face

    About 38 hours ago my wife wanted nothing to do with another old computer. In fact, I had to agree to dispose of my vintage, 1994 Macintosh Performa 577, to make room for my prized new addition to our little Mac Museum.

    About 17 hours ago my wife walked into our family room and noticed the TV was on… on the computer screen. “How did you do that?” she asked. “Elementary, my dear Cheryl,” I replied, “behold… a computer with a television and FM tuner built-in.”

    About 16 hours ago my wife walked into our family room and noticed music and diaphragm curling base… coming from this same computer. “Don’t tell me that’s coming from the computer too?” she asked. “Indubitably, my dear Cheryl,” I replied, “behold… a computer with a built-in Bose sound system, rounded out with a powered sub-woofer.”

    About 15 hours ago my wife asked me the unfathomable, just two hours prior… “You aren’t really going to take that to work with you, are you? I think we ought to keep it here for the kids to use.”

    Yeah, sure… for the kids to use….

  • Another epic struggle against the forces of evil

    Health insurance, billing departments, complaint resolution offices, and the automated phone answering system… horsemen of the apocalypse or God’s warning shot across the bow of today’s later day ark of bureaucracy and civilization?

    All I know is that I don’t want to pay $800 for services that were supposed to be covered by my health insurance provider.

    See if this sounds eerily familiar… your doctor sends you a bill for services your health insurance provider (HIP) denied coverage. You call your HIP and verify that these kinds of services are normally covered; but, they tell you your doctor never submitted the claim. You call your doctor and they tell you they did. You call back your HIP and they tell you your doctor didn’t. You call back your doctor for proof they submitted the claim, and they tell you it was submitted electronically… or in other words, fat chance getting your proof. You ask to speak to a supervisor, and they tell you she’ll call you back. A week later you get that call in the evening, at dinner time, at the precise moment your one year old son starts tossing a grand fit, whilst in the throes of hunger. The supervisor assures you she will have someone call your HIP and get things all straightened out… and that if she has any problems she’ll be back in touch. When she doesn’t get back in touch in two weeks, you become hopeful… until you get another bill in the mail for $800. So you call your HIP with the specifics of the bill (again), and they advise you they’ll forward the information to their complaint resolution office, who will respond in two weeks with their results.

    My guess is there’s some research out there which suggests “two weeks” is the optimum answer to give to a complaining customer. It’s not enough time to seem like NEVER to the customer (like three months would), while still giving a fair chunk of time to actually do something; and, (most importantly) it gives the customer plenty of time to forget the complaint in the first place. What I’d like to know is if they actually intend to be DONE in two weeks, or if they’re giving a research based answer of placation. In either case, I’ve got my calendar marked. Maybe this is one case where business should run more like a government?

  • Twentieth Century Mac

    My wife thinks I’ve finally lost my mind. My wife’s friend since high school agrees. Me? My heart is pitter-pattering like freshman invited to the senior prom. I got my hands on a piece of Macintosh Lore… a genuine Twentieth Anniversary Mac.

    To the average layperson the Twentieth Anniversary Mac (TAM) is nothing but an eight-year-old computer. Weighing in with a 250MHz, 603e PPC processor w/ 32MB RAM, 2GB hard drive, 4x CD ROM, 800 x 600 12.1″ LCD, and a TV/FM tuner… the TAM is no longer state of the art. That, as they say, is not the point. It was released in May of 1997 and retailed for $7499. Apple made around 12,000 TAMs. That is partially the point.

    Imagine you really wanted something as a child… say a really expensive toy… but as a child it was unattainable. As an adult, wouldn’t you be a little curious to see what you were missing if someone gave you that toy for free?

    It may be eight years later, but I still like to play.