Category: Uncategorized

Hence the need to target those frivolous Asbestos Lawsuits…
W.R. Grace indicted over asbestos claims.
I mentioned this a while back…some people close to The Obsfucator are tied to this asbestos thing.
I have no sympathy for the asbestos industry. A high-school friend of mine lost his father due to a one-time, one-day exposure to asbestos 30 years ago. This material is hyper-dangerous.
It killed Warren Zevon. [here] ‘Nuff said.

An old colleague of mine, Dr. Zulu-at-a-Bar-Mitzvah, has turned up on the streets again. He has managed to get new id with the name el Furioso printed on it, and is playing bass in a Vancouver punk band called Aging Youth Gang.
The good doctor was a plunker the last time I saw him; AYG is a definite throwback to the screaming thrash and punk bands of our shared youth, and his bass talents have come a long way in 15 years — I will let you try and determine what he has been doing for that time.
It brings back good memories from a time so long ago.

Great article on how FedEx needs automated customer tools, and humans too! [here]
The Takeaway.

For every anxious caller that FedEx diverts to its Web site, the company saves as much as $1.87. FedEx says its call centers handle 83,000 fewer calls per day than in 2000—currently 470,000 calls per day—a saving of $57.56 million per year. FedEx also claims that its Web site handles an average of 60 million requests to track packages per month. These requests cost FedEx 3 cents each or $21.6 million per year, but would cost over $1.36 billion per year if all those people called. Still, by allowing its customers to keep calling reps like Steward, FedEx spends nearly $326 million per year.

Can you imagine an economy of scale that allows you and your organization to save $1.87 for every call your call centre does not have to answer?

Silicon Valley Watcher has this tidbit that concludes that Ballmer may be “retiring” soon.
I agree that the Appearances of Bill have increased exponentially recently and that many stories have appeared of Microsoft’s lack of new “vision”. The question is whether Bill can provide the credibility and leadership that Steve Jobs return to Apple did.
I care less and less about “traditional” applications every day. The operating system is a way to get to the Internet. In that regard, can Microsoft really re-invent itself and move completely into a virtual world? Can Bill lead a company that has a great brand, but is increasingly not seen as innovative?
How will Bill Gates ensure that there is the internal leadership at Microsoft to allow him to truly walk away from the organization and be pleased with where the ship drifts? How is leadership developed in Microsoft today? Is it? Does Microsoft truly attract great leaders?

My little PHP/cURL Tool called GrabIT2 has a new playmate.
Someone with programming knowledge has taken the basic idea and made it more functional. Cool! I like the echoing USER-AGENT string. I know how to do that — I may copy it.

Chris Lawer is stating that he is available for speaking engagements. [here]
I made the same plea a while back.
Anyone need a management-customer strategy/Web performance excellence double-header?

eBay woke up. What a concept! A real person answering your e-mails. Now, of course, the downside of this is that the e-mails will be answered in Bangalore and Mumbai, and will still be from controlled response scripts.
But still, it’s somewhat of a concession from eBay that they stumbled a bit…and that the response to the latest earning results may force them to re-think their end-to-end response.
Oh, and in case eBay missed it, the “Lincoln Fries” were auctioned at Yahoo! Auctions…And JupiterMedia is talking about alternatives to eBay. [here]
Re-invention is a wonderful thing. And the response from the community is likely to be…when will eBay begin encouraging its leaders and evangelists to take to the Blogosphere?

A Message from Bill Cobb
Since becoming the President of eBay North America in December, I’ve spent a lot of time listening to you, our Community. There’s a lot on your minds right now. I’ve been taking it all in and thinking hard about how we can make sure eBay remains a fun, safe place to trade, and a prosperous home for our many dedicated sellers.
One of the issues I’ve heard a lot about is our recent fee increases, particularly the increase in Store Inventory Format final value fees. I’ve also heard concerns about customer support, the amount of change we make to the site on a regular basis, and trust and safety. We’re listening to everything you have to say.
eBay has become a hugely successful marketplace as a result of the innovation, enthusiasm and hard work of our Community. The site has also become more complex as it has grown to meet many of your needs. So our challenge is to keep pace with the Community’s changing requirements, while preserving the things that make eBay so special. With that in mind, I’d like to give you a preview of some upcoming changes for the United States and Canada.
eBay has a fantastic Customer Support team, but Meg and I agree we haven’t invested enough in giving our CS reps the flexibility and tools they need to really take care of you. So, to start, within the next 90 days, we’ll shut down most of our automated email responses. Our users will get a “real” e-mail response to their questions – you’ll hear from a human being who will try to help you with your problem or question right off the bat. We will only use auto responses to acknowledge receipt of spam or policy violation reports.
We also think the time has come to expand phone support. Currently phone support is available only to Silver, Gold, Platinum and Titanium PowerSellers. Starting April 1, all eBay Stores owners also will have access to phone support. We’ll provide details on the benefits of phone support to Stores owners soon.
We know pricing is a critical issue for our sellers. While we stand behind our decision to increase final value fees on Store Inventory Format listings – because they make sense for items that list with insertion fees of two cents – I know this increase has been difficult for some of our sellers. To reward our eBay Stores sellers, we’ll be crediting $15.95 – a month’s Basic Stores subscription – in May to all sellers who operated an eBay Store for the month of April. Stores owners will receive more details on this soon.
We also want to do something for the rest of our sellers. I’m happy to announce that effective at midnight tonight, eBay.com and eBay.ca will reduce minimum insertion fees for Auction-Style listings, Fixed Price, Motors Non-Vehicle and B&I non-Capital Equipment Categories from 30 cents to 25 cents (CA$0.35 to CA$0.30). eBay Germany has always used this pricing, and users there have benefited from higher conversion rates on items with lower starting bids.
One of the great things about eBay is the candor and passion of our Community. Your input keeps this company focused on what’s right and important. Later this month, I’ll be hosting an online meeting to hear more from you. You’ll see more details on the Announcement Board soon. And I’ll periodically post notes like this one to talk about issues of importance to all of us.
eBay has never stopped listening to our users and we never will. I know many of you already have Meg’s e-mail address and frequently send her messages about things you care about. I hope you will do the same with me. My e-mail address is billcobb@ebay.com. I promise I’ll read every e-mail. And most of all, I’ll listen.
Sincerely,
Bill Cobb
President
eBay North America

My point was NOT about pocket wars, as Scoble seems to think it is. My point is: Where the (&^*%&$%$*^(*&&^ do people get the money to pay for all of this crap that dominates their lives? How does Scoble pay for it?
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT THAT I HAVE SOMETHING “COOL” IN MY POCKET?
This post seems to further substantiate my view that most residents of the US cannot read between the lines, are ideologically cast in stone, and lack a sense of sarcasm.
White headphones do not pay the bills, feed the hungry, educate the poor, and help bring a better standard of living to people. If Scoble thinks that white headphones are the cure, he is about to get dropped from my read list.
This post is closed.

The more I read posts like this from Scoble, the more I realize that a lot of the Bloggers that I read live in a completely different universe from the rest of us in the real world?
I am sorry, but the more I read, despite Robert’s unflagging entusiasm for Microsoft, Tablets, and other things, the more I realize that he leads an extremely privileged life that bears no resemblance to a reality that I know.
I know…a bitter old man on a rant. Sorry.

Scoble comments below. He missed the point.

1. SiliValley and Seattle are not the norm. Please come to Massachusetts.
2. My point was: How can people with kids, mortgages, schools, and real lives keep up with portable media, hot new tech and trends?

I would love to be hot and trendy with cool tech and lots of places to go. Guess I have other “reality-based” needs to deal with.

Ouch!

Wow! No spineless pandering here! I was stunned. Would have loved to hear the audio of how this interview went down.
Courtesy of Scoble.