Recent articles in geekdom (page 1 of 8)

1. Mar 19, 2008 Streetwise Will Throw Away Your Mac’s Serial Number

   Over the past week, I have decided once and for all to keep my computer out of the hands of Streetwise, a popular Apple retailer here in Melbourne. I have previously written about Streetwise, an Apple Authorised Service Centre, and its policy of holding onto computers while they wait days for replacement parts to arrive so that they can maintain a high Apple Service Rating.

   
   That original post came about when I had to get the palm rest of my MacBook replaced under warranty, and in the past week another shocking outcome of that repair has come to light: when the Streetwise technician replaced my palm rest, he did not transfer my MacBook’s serial number sticker (which is attached to the underside of the palm rest—inside the battery compartment). When I contacted Streetwise about this last week, service manager Jedda Wignall was appropriately contrite. “It is incredibly unfortunate that you have been hit with this inconvenience, as could have been put in a precarious situation as a result,” he wrote (sic.). “The technician who performed the work is no longer with the company, and I would like to think that this situation would not arise again.”

2. Feb 2, 2008 Apple Service Rating Update

   For those who’ve asked, here’s an update on the situation with Streetwise and the Apple Service Rating that I wrote about in my last post. Streetwise replied almost immediately to my email complaint:

   Hi Kevin, I'm not sure why the technician on Saturday would have told you that - perhaps there was some sort of misunderstanding.
   I do apologise if you felt that was inappropriate in anyway.
   I can confirm that the part to be fitted would not be an issue and you can use your machine normally while we wait for the part.
   As the technician is not in today - I will discuss the matter with him when I see him and to see if we can resolve this one way or another.
   We will attempt to call or leave a message when the part actually comes in. Do you wish me to order the part for you? Best Wishes,
   Gary Chee
   Service & Returns Manager

   Quite the reversal. I asked Streetwise to go ahead and order the part. Two days later:

   Hi Kevin, The top case has arrived today. Could you please drop off your Macbook so we can install it for you?
   Please allow us at least half a day turn around time to sort it out for you. Thanks,
   Gary

   Still no explanation for the original incident, you’ll note. I queried this in my reply:

   Thanks. Will do! Has any explanation for the original mixup been forthcoming? --
   Kevin Yank
   http://kevinyank.com/

   Streetwise’s reply was about as vague as can be, but reading between the lines I believe my complaint was taken to heart:

   No worries Kevin - I've spoken to the tech and he said there was a small mixup - but I hope that's been cleared up. Cheers,
   Gary

   The repair was completed the same day I dropped off the computer. In total, I was without my MacBook for about four hours. Not bad at all! The next day, I received an automated email from Apple requesting my feedback on the support experience I had had with Streetwise. As you can imagine, I was very forthcoming, and ticked the box that said ‘You may contact me for more information about my experience’. Two months later, I have not heard from Apple on the matter.

3. Nov 17, 2007 Apple Service Rating Harms Customer Service

   Streetwise is my local Apple retailer. It's where I bought my MacBook laptop and my Epson printer, and it's where I was planning to buy a lot of other computery things in the near future. Unfortunately, my MacBook is in need of a little in-warranty TLC (a crack has a developed in the casing, a common defect). So today I dropped by Streetwise, an Authorised Apple Service Centre, to get it looked after. I discovered that, in an effort to gain the highest possible "service rating" from Apple, Streetwise has decided to make it really inconvenient to get a minor problem with your MacBook fixed. I therefore walked right back out with my cracked MacBook in hand.

4. Oct 6, 2007 Photos: Rubicon Valley Horse Riding
   
   For the main event for our three-day getaway in and around Marysville, Jess and I went horse riding in Rubicon Valley on a perfect morning. We lucked out and got a guide all to ourselves, so we got to learn a lot more about riding than we had done on our previous ride. Jess’s horse Bounty must have been having an off day, because she made several attempts to bite my horse, Apache (Yes geeks, Apache. Believe me, I was geeking out about it all the way!). Otherwise, the ride went smoothly, with lots of high-speed cantering that had Jess calling me “the geekiest cowboy around”. View ‘Rubicon Valley Horse Riding’ set on Flickr

5. Mar 31, 2007 Lame Mac User

   I bought my first Mac yesterday—a spiffy, black MacBook. I've spent the first 24 hours with my new computer setting up various means of running Windows on it (Remote Desktop, Boot Camp, and Parallels). In the Mac world, I'm pretty sure that makes me very lame.