The Lone Elm

How to Connect with a Person When You Need Help

Courtesy of a link off of Yahoo!Finance, I came across this rather remarkable (and potentially useful) piece of work that deserves wider distribution.  Paul English has compiled a lengthy list of how to bypass the computer managed phone service and get to a person!  I can't imagine what it took to do this, but here is his "IVR Cheat Sheet(tm)" (IVR stands for Interactive Voice Recovery) .  He also has a much shorter list of several companies that he feels have outstanding customer service and deserve your business.  Definitely worth a book mark.

Good Thing I Haven't Bought a BlackBerry Yet

I must say that I've toyed with it, the convenience and multi-purpose aspects are great.  Plus, the ability to surreptiously check your email while you're in a meeting...Well, the Washington Post reports that there is a possibility that patent litigation in Northern Virginia could result in an injunction shutting down BlackBerry.  There are 3.65 million U.S. customers (it sure felt to me like there were more, but maybe I just operate in BlackBerry intensive circles).  The article also says there is an exemption for government employees -- that's interesting, the government will continue to support a product that is violating the law?

Perhaps even more interesting is an accompanying Washington Post article by Steven Pearlstein discussing the legal history of this case, and how it has ended up in this sad spot.  To quote:  "By pursuing a scorched-earth legal strategy, RIM has spent more in legal fees -- Stout estimates them at between $25 and $50 million -- than it would have cost to license NTP's technology in the first place. The price of settlement has now grown to at least $500 million, which Stout would split with his lawyers and Campana's widow."  Unfortunately, that's now all a sunk cost.  Pearlstein concludes:  "What these cases are about is legal thuggery -- big companies, with their endless motions and discovery and appeals, abusing the legal system no less than the plaintiffs' attorneys they always complain about. The only way to end these wars of legal attrition is for courts to issue business-threatening injunctions that force the parties to the settlement table."  UpWord has more background on the specific legal issues at play here.

Wireless Shopping in the Grocery Store

Giant has just opened a grocery store in Pennsylvania that makes use of wireless technology.  Customers are able to scan and pack their groceries as they shop, and just have to make their payment at the end of the visit.  This certainly seems like a positive advance over the self-check-out process.  I wonder how it works for produce? 

The reference for this story came from GroceryLists.org, which, among other things has displays of grocery lists from around the world!  As a columnist has pointed out, grocery lists (and grocery carts) tell you a lot about people!  I like 0029 which has several items on the back of a reply card saying that the person will definitely attend!  This one's pretty good too - diet pills along with ice cream and cheese!
Which lists do you like??

History On-Line

Wow.  I am perpetually amazed at the power of the internet.  I stumbled on this terrific resource for studying history and finding primary documentation on-line, which definitely deserves a bookmark.  It is just incredible what you can now do from your home or office.  Within three clicks I am at The Proceedings of the Old Bailey On-Line with accounts of trials in England from 1674 to 1834 or the Library of Congress Collection on the Chinese in California.