Rodent Regatta

February 1, 2024 and 70 comes Monday! I’ll start maintaining this weblog again. Styling needs to change to a responsive/mobile first design. I don’t know how to do that. I’ve also got a lot of work to do to make changes or eliminate plugins that are no longer necessary. Suffice it to say that I’ll have to run a checklist of alterations for every section of the website. Here’s a tiny example:

• mobile first implementation for phones & tablets
• plugin inventory & maintenance
• comments
• contact page functionality
• categories and/or tags
• navigation menu
• header image/fader
• blogroll
• pullquotes implementation & styling
• code block implementation & styling
• image thumbnails and/or small galleries
• footer
• RSS and/or Atom feeds
• search implementation on the site
• purging useless old articles
• maintenance of the Links list
• security & performance audit

Tonight I learned this.

I’m sad. I feel old.

The inspiration that first came from Textpattern, Textdrive Lifetime Accounts and the writing of Dean Allen have faded to a dim glow like the wick of an old, oil lantern.

My only self-serving way to hold those memories and trim the wick will be to revive a bit of writing here and get reacquainted with all that remains from the list above, Textpattern.

Perhaps 2018 is the year. Thank you, Dean. You have been and will continue to be missed.

Don’t watch. It will be ready…soon(ish).

It was 1969. I was in the tenth grade. Clearly, we weren’t thinking about things like this.

There’s not much no chance that I’m going to take up computer programming any time soon. However, I like the motivational aspect of seeing what a 15-year old has done with his skills. Spend a few minutes at Yuvi’s weblog and you’ll probably find a lot to like about his weblog design as well as its content.

Sometimes I find myself wishing I could be more positive about goods and services that I spend money on. More accurately, I wish I could bring myself to spare loyal readers the grimy details. Alas, I can’t.

Regular readers are well aware of The HP Way and how After Hours ships the wrong sizes of clothes for the most important events in a person’s life. It’s tiresome to write about such atrocious service, but cathartic and necessary.

On December 8 Amazon took an order for a camera. I didn’t realize at the time that they were “farming the order out” to TigerDirect. Worse, TigerDirect was backordered. None of that stopped these two companies from billing my credit card and going completely silent. When I finally inquired I got a string of differing delivery dates and promises.

When I attempted to cancel the order, I was given a couple of email lectures followed by a return authorization. Why would I need a return authorization when TigerDirect is backordered and I never received the camera?

Finally, when I suggested that TigerDirect simply cancel my order, they went silent again. Please understand that this is all about $129.99 plus $7.24 for shipping which has already been charged to my credit card. In other words, it ain’t about the money, it’s about the lousy service and misrepresentations. Hint to both companies: Christmas has come and gone!

We’ll see whether Amazon and/or TigerDirect are willing to make good on this mess. As for not reporting these matters in the New Year, fugedaboudit.

If your company is clueless (and careless) about quality, the public (including my 7 readers) deserves to know.

UPDATE: For those who want to read a little more about Tiger Direct and the parent (public) company, follow this link and then, this one. Here’s a quote:

Users at several Internet scam-reporting message boards report that TigerDirect and its sister organization OnRebate.com deliver shoddy equipment or fail to pay promised large rebates on items. Support requests by e-mail and phone are refused or delayed. The Better Business Bureau has given TigerDirect an “unsatisfactory” rating for its performance in these matters. These allegations also exist against its twin site (in design and merchandise), globalcomputer.com. A website named TigerDirectSucks.org carries pro and con messages about the company, including what purport to be postings from ex-employees.

Oh, by the way, HAPPY NEW YEAR!