……over the edge

O boy am I mad, angry at a company who waves shiny offerings across gleaming pages and screens then when the exquisite object turns up – it bluescreens to oblivion!!!!!

A bluescreen for the non-nerd is a warning screen that comes up on your computer when something is REALLY wrong, a blue background with white writing which flashed across my screen when I first powered up the beautiful red computer, no not toybox red! A deep ruby red cover, the surface of which felt like leather, the rest of the laptop was silver, everything, keys too with engraved lettering, so this blue/white flash on screen was nothing. How could it be? On this hyper-powerful enlarged capacity three quarter of a grand plus piece of enhanced technology? But within 10 minutes I knew it was going back to the manufacturer and I wanted a replacement!!!!

The thing was so ‘enhanced’, it took the internal diagnostic, set off with the help of the Technical Team, 16 hours to run!!! A hardware test that occasionally needed responses from me – but I was going to bed! It was like having to sit up with a new born baby who needed tests to confirm it had two heads! It died I told them, blue screen warning after blue screen warning with the software fighting back wanting to recover system failure, check the hard disk for ‘uncertainties’ and finally spiraling down to ‘unreconcilable’ and then ‘unrecoverable’ error! The diagnostic program said everything was OK next morning?

So……one more time please, bang, blue screen, system failure and I did not even bother to read any more after providing Tech Support with the Technical Information of other warning screens, ***stop: 0x00000124 (0x00000000, 0x841C4868, 0xB6200004, 0x00080A01) for example?? It went straight back in the fancy plastic bag and then the polystyrene protection and then the box and then the second plastic bag, gaffer taped and will be picked up next Tuesday.

Replacement sir? May take up to 2 months because of shortages of glass for screens, such worldwide component shortages are effecting all suppliers sir. And I was so good I did not throw it out of the window! Not a chance of a refund if I want a replacement as it is the same as making a new order, of course if sir wanted the present machine repaired that would be much quicker we could send an engineer to you with certain components and perhaps resolve the problem sir. And I am being so good, I have not yet mentioned the departments phoning up 3 days later to ask if the damned thing has been delivered? The shower of emails from staff in India and Ireland wanting to know if I needed further assistance in resolving my case, for which each issued a case no. 20070820205606435, the phone calls not returned or made as promised. And most of all how every time someone did call back it was always someone different or I got shuffled around 4 departments because there was obviously a message flashing on their screens: ***PROBLEM*** ***PROBLEM*** ***PROBLEM***! 

……………….I wish there was something flashing on MY screen embedded in the polystyrene and cardboard next to me as I write this and if anything else happens the company’s name and this will be emailed to every mag that carries their ads……………..I have already begin suffering some interest on my credit card for it as well, this gorgeous ruby, that is as functionally useful as a tea tray.

dwk