Bank of America Sends You 64 Identical Letters [Redundancy]

Reader Ted writes:

Love your website. I've been a fan for quite a while. I finally have a story of my own to add. A couple of weeks ago I called BofA to cancel the Automatic Payment Plan on my BofA Visa. I was taking advantage of a 0% balance transfer offer. The autopay plan would have paid off the entire balance in full at the end of the month. Today I received 64 individual and identical letters from BofA confirming the change to my account.

Mblockquote>How thoughtful! They must've realized I'm slightly ADD so they didn't want me to forget what I had done. They were kind enough to include my full account number on each letter which means I'll be sending all 64 pieces of mail into my undersized shredder (I knew I should have bought the Binford 2000 model).

I was thinking of raising a stink but the damage done (so far) is only a slight inconvenience. I hope they don't send me another 64 letters tomorrow. I guess I could always try and get them to pay for my electric bill and a new shredder. This is gonna take a while.

Thanks,
Ted This is what would happen if my Mom owned a bank. She's very helpful with the reminders. Very.

10 Confessions Of A Ritz Camera Salesperson [Insiders]

A Ritz camera salesperson writes in to give you the skinny on scanning, digital prints, and which memory cards are just a ripoff.

I have been working for Ritz Camera/Proex for about three years now and it's really starting to get on my nerves, but I thought I'd share some of the ways they screw you over as a customer and potential employee.

1. The E.S.P. or Extended Service Plan- This plan is alright. You pay quite a bit for security. The only good thing about it is if you do drop your camera they will cover your negligence. Only problem is, is that depending on where you bring the camera in the U.S. most likely for any repair out of Ritz/Proex it will take about 2 months to get your camera back and thats the quickest.

2. Prices- We have price matching, but it has to be the exact same product, the other store must have it in stock, and we have to call the other store to make sure that the customer isn't lying. Then we call a district manager and half the time they don't answer so you stand there and stare at the customer until they leave and go buy it at the other store. Not to mention cameras are a much better deal online all the time, any time.

3. Memory Cards- They try and make us sell you "Ritz" memory cards before Sandisk or Panasonic. They are all the same. Ritz claims theirs are "faster," but they are the EXACT SAME CARD. You're already dishing out 300$ for a camera, get the cheapest card that will hold the most.

4. Products- As employees we are required to push at least 4 products on you. While I refuse to do it and stick close to the finishing lab, everyone else has to. Most of the time they will tell you that they are a certain price only to find when you get to the register that the price is higher. This is because you must have our Image Rewards Card.

5. Image Rewards Card- Claims it uses a system that collects "money back," but I have yet to see that come up from frequent customers. For 16$ this lovely little piece of plastic can be yours. Unless you are doing actual 35mm film this card isn't worth it. It literally takes pennies off digital prints. You have to do tons of digital prints in order to get your monies worth.

6. Prints- We have what is called Big Print You which is the "New Digital Standard!" It's a bunch of crap. You are paying ten extra cents for half an inch of paper. It's not worth it. Take the time and make 4x6's. 4x6's still fit in albums and frames. Big Print You fits in some, but you have a small selection.

7. Scanning- Scanning is 2.50$ per print. Ridiculous! Most of the time I don't charge it and just say I forgot. Everyone else normally does it. 2.50 a scan, and you can only scan one at a time with a maximum of ten then the software makes to start another ten. It takes forever. By a cheap scanner and you'll save a ton of money if you think you need to scan a bunch of photos.

8. Demo Cameras- We sell them to you and you don't even know it. Everyone's grubby hands have probably been on your camera. It's probably been dropped at some point, not to mention the boxes we get shipments in from UPS look like they've been kicked all the way from the home office to our store. We sell demo cameras at no discount, we just clean them up and put them in a box. Then we are told to lie to you and tell you it's brand new.

9. Employees- Be prepared for a job that offers no movements in pay. They have a company policy that allows you to take quizzes that your manager and service manager have to sign off on then give to your district manager that then gets you a small raise. Most of our employees have finished these, got them signed, and turned them in. We all still get 8$/hr. The district manager claims he "never got them." I've heard this same excuse has been used with other stores too with different district managers. Also there are "Sales Incentives" that are supposed to be your commission. These are pennies and on like 5 things in the store. Most of the time it's all taken away in taxes.

10. One Hour Photo- Yeah right. Half the time our machines break down because they are about as old as I am and the company is too cheap to fix them. So with the new "One Hour or It's Free" deal we have now, we can just say that the machine is broke and that voids the deal. I'll just give you your prints free. If there is a chance that our machine is working alright, in reality we can probably get your prints done in about 15-30 minutes unless you have a ton of them. Also ordering your prints online saves you time in a mall and the smell of fish that the printer gives off. So do that.

(AP Photo/Reed Saxon)

Helpdesk Support Engineer (Crawley)

A well established It Company in the Copthorne Crawley area is seeking to recruit a Helpdesk Support Engineer. You should have hands on practical experience in a support helpdesk role supporting and configuring Windows Xp Vista 2000 2003 Servers Exchange Small Business Servers along with the associated technologies and a good understanding of Outlook Ms Office. Your responsibilities will include the provision of hardware software network and Ip telephony support to users as well as ongoing support of client connectivity and technical problem resolution. You will provide first line support to end users taking ownership of Help Desk matters and installing configuring and administering various issues including connecting to a Microsoft Windows network domain. Experience with wireless technologies such as Pda s would be an advantage. If you are a good problem solver have a driving license with your own transport have confidence in working within a busy and sometimes stressful environment then please do not hesitate to apply for this position. Salary £13000p a to £17000p a negotiable depending on experience and qualifications and the position is available immediately. Please send your Cv (Maximum 3 pages) to hr nml-net.com or fax it to 0844 477 8421 for the attention of Bronwen.

Morning Deals [Shopping]

• AT&T: 8GB refurbished Apple iPhone for $249.00
• Woot: La Crosse Technology Window Thermometer - 2 Pack for $9.99
• Threadless: Shirt sale, starting at $9.

Highlights From Dealhack


• Converse: Hundreds of Shoe Styles up to 50% off
• Buy.com: Linksys 5-Port Gigabit Switch $25 & Free Shipping
• Amazon: Archos 605 Wi-Fi 80GB Portable Media Player $298 Shipped

Highlights From Bargainist


• Borders: 40% off any single-disc music CD
• Buy.com: Casio Exilim 7MP Digital Camera $110 AR
• PetFoodDirect.com: 20% off purchases coupon

Apple patents a clamshell device. iPhone 2.0 in the works?

Just when you thought the iPhone was reaching the end of its tether (why would you think that!), Unwired View uncovers an Apple patent filed on 6 September 2006 that describes a handheld device with a clamshell form factor, two multitouch surfaces and, among other things, an FM radio.

When closed, the device would be your usual iPhone, a tad shorter and sans the buttons—because, clearly, it has way too many of those. On flipping it open, the top half would lose the multitouch goodness but the translucent bottom half will retain it, presumably to enable you to have an overlay of a regular phone keypad on it.

In my opinion, however, the whole concept is inherently flawed because it does not solve one major problem with the current iPhone—tactile feedback. Unless it facilitates having more buttons for the SMS-junkies, I'm not sure there's much of a point in having a clamshell iPhone.

Of course, it is just a patent so there's about as much chance of Apple releasing this exact device as my becoming a guitarist one day (and I'm not even trying)—take it with a huge chunk of salt. Our improbability meter went off as soon as we heard the words "radio" and "tablet" mentioned in the Unwired View story.

Look at the diagrams and let us know whether any of it makes any sense to you. Would you buy the iPhone shown in that patent application, assuming that it was released?

Primary category: iPhone

Read - Comments (4)

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McCain's World

McCAIN'S WORLD....It's one thing to be clueless about whether or not thimerosal causes autism, but apparently, even after five years of war in Iraq, John McCain is also clueless about who's supporting whom in the Middle East:

He said several times that Iran, a predominately Shiite country, was supplying the mostly Sunni militant group, al-Qaeda. In fact, officials have said they believe Iran is helping Shiite extremists in Iraq.

Speaking to reporters in Amman, the Jordanian capital, McCain said he and two Senate colleagues traveling with him continue to be concerned about Iranian operatives "taking al-Qaeda into Iran, training them and sending them back."

....A few moments later, Sen. Joseph Lieberman, standing just behind McCain, stepped forward and whispered in the presidential candidate's ear. McCain then said: "I'm sorry, the Iranians are training extremists, not al-Qaeda."

This is hardly some trivial mistake. It's like accusing Pat Robertson of supporting NARAL. It shows a complete disconnect with what's going on in Iraq.

Of course, even McCain's corrected version doesn't tell the whole story either. What he should have said is that the Iranians are training many of the same extremists that we're allied with too. But that might have provoked a whole different set of questions that McCain would just as soon not answer.

Via Matt.

Trump's new Jones Beach try: No basement, but taller

Donald Trump is floating a new plan for his troubled Jones Beach catering hall and restaurant that eliminates its much-debated basement but also makes the building 15 feet taller.

Man stabbed at Hempstead High School

An 18-year-old man was stabbed Tuesday night at Hempstead High School, Nassau police said.

LEAKS: Best Buy's Internal Customer Profiling Document [Insiders]

Attention Profiled Shoppers: Consumerist is now in possession of an internal training document that teaches Best Buy blue shirts how to stereotype customers. While Best Buy's use of personas has been known for several years, our exclusively obtained document contains several brand-new Best Buy personas, including "Maria Middle America" and "Empty Nesters" Helen and Charlie.

Why do customers need to be stereotyped, you ask? Because some customers are good, and others are bad, and Best Buy employees need to know which ones are which.

Back in 2004, the Wall Street Journal announced that Best Buy had a new customer service strategy. The meat and potatoes of the new strategy was this: Best Buy would concentrate on outwitting pesky bargain-hunters (now known as "demons")and cater only to its most profitable customers, or "angels." This new philosophy was based on the work of Larry Selden, a professor at Columbia University's Graduate School of Business, and consultant to Best Buy.

Larry is all about the customer. He hates products, "...the obsessive focus on products needs to be replaced by an even more obsessive focus on the customer," he says.

One might assume that with this customer-obsessed guy directing Best Buy's strategy, there'd be an emphasis on customer service. Not so.

In fact, the first thing Best Buy did after adopting Selden's method was amend their return policy to include a 15% restocking fee. Too many "demon" customers were returning things.

The most important part this new world order is the "persona." Personas are essentially stereotypes that Best Buy's salespeople study in order to sell their most profitable services to different "types" of customers. Young urban males are called "Buzz." Upper middle class women are known as "Jill."

Each persona comes with a customized sales approach. Jill wants Best Buy to "help me find and fuel my new passions so I can remain true to myself," whereas upscale suburban Barry wants "premium brands presented as a total solution."

And what happens to those bargain-hunting demons? Best Buy CEO Brad Anderson told the Wall Street Journal in 2004 "that Best Buy will first try to turn its bad customers into profitable ones by inducing them to buy warranties or more profitable services."

"In most cases, customers wouldn't recognize the options we've tried so far," he said. Maybe this new document (which adds several new categories to the known Best Buy persona universe) can help.

NEW PERSONAS:
Meet Carrie (Young Urban Female), Maria (Middle American Female), and (Empty Nesters) Helen and Charlie!

Click on the pictures below to bring up the slides. navigate using arrows that appear (when moused over) at the left, top and right of the slide, or using the "previous" "next" and "gallery" links at the bottom.

PREVIOUSLY: Best Buy Profiles Customers

Crest Pro-Health Mouthwash Stain Your Teeth Brown? Crest Pays For Your Cleaning [Health]

Here's relief for users of Crest Pro-Health Mouthwash finding that the product stains their teeth brown and destroys their sense of taste. Jeremy writes:

I had that happen to me and I went to my dentist to have them cleaned. Since I had gone only a month after my last cleaning (1 free per 6 months) I had to pay. I emailed Crest about it and they said they would pay for it.

So if Crest makes your mouth look like you've been chewing tobacco sine you were 13, and your insurance won't cover the cleaning, email them via this webform or call 1-800-285-9139 and see if Crest will pay for your teeth cleaning. No word on whether they'll be helping customers recover their ability to taste anything.

Bad Credit Car Loans Helping You to Own a Car in Spite of Your Poor Credit History

Tip! Here are some things that will help you to find the bad credit help that you need.

A Car Loan is the loan you borrow from the lender to get yourself the car you have been longing to drive and make your own. Now with bad credit becoming a common phenomenon you can go ahead and fulfill your dream in spite of your adverse credit record. These days there are a plenty of bad credit car loans available in the market.

Tip! Visit Bad Credit Help for more resources and help with your credit.

Bad credit car loans are loans that are particularly designed to cater to the needs of people having poor credit records. Your credit record gets negatively affected if you have faced the problems of county court judgments, defaults, arrears, missed payments, bankruptcy etc. in the past.

Essentially, there are two types of bad credit car loans - a secured bad credit car loan and an unsecured bad credit car loan.

Bad Credit Help We finance any vehicle - any credit. When others say no, we say yes.

For a secured bad credit car loan you have to offer collateral and you can enjoy:

? Lower interest rate
? Higher loan amount
? Small monthly payment
? Payment stretching over a long period

An unsecured bad credit car loan does not require collateral and provides:

? No risk on your property
? Quicker delivery of money
? Less paper work

Internet is the most viable option for a borrower availing a bad credit car loans. Shopping around or requesting for quotes online is often considered as the best way to get a bad credit car loan. So go online and avail the most competitive, fast and cheap car loan.

The author is a business writer specializing in finance and credit products and has written authoritative articles on the finance industry. He has done his masters in Business Administration and is currently assisting Shakespeare Finance as a finance specialist.

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Tags: money, credit report

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Bad Credit Car Loan: Don’t Let It Go

Tip! Visit Bad Credit Help for more resources and help with your credit.

Bad credit car loans help you to purchase your car and further improve your credit rating. It’s popular among the masses because lots of people are now demanding for their own cars. Bad credit car loan does not create any issue with bad credit.

As a human nature we always wish for different things from life. Car is one of those and it’s no more a commodity to flaunt about, in fact a basic need for all of us. However our poor credit and soaring prices of cars often become obstacles on our way. We simply give up and pretend to compromise with life. But bad credit car loans have removed all those obstacles from our way.

Tip! Here are some things that will help you to find the bad credit help that you need.

Affording a car with bad credit has become very simple and suitable for all people with bad credit background. So, while you are shopping for the car make sure it comes in your budget and you can afford for its maintenance and other expenses from your pocket.

Earlier people with bad credit were turned down by the creditors. Lenders were not eager to help them out and they were left hopeless. But now everything has changed, lenders show no hassle offering bad credit car loans because bad credit is no more an unusual and new thing.

Availing a bad credit car loan is a smart option to buy a car. Saving will not be sufficient to get you a car. A thorough search of the websites of lenders can avail you lot of options. It’s advisable that you consider all the procedures and details of bad credit car loans carefully.

Get Free Credit Help - Act Now Free consultation from the nations oldest credit counseling agency. Consolidate all of your bills, not just your credit cards. More then just a temporary solution, stay out of debt for good.

The author is a business writer specializing in finance and credit products and has written authoritative articles on the finance industry. He has done his masters in Business Administration and is currently assisting Shakespeare Finance as a finance specialist. for more information visit us at
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Tags: debt, consolidation

Tags: bad credit help, bad credit, credit repair, credit help

Support Worker Required Ref: Da Jb1 (Highbury)

I am an intelligent lady with physical disabilities living in the Highbury area who requires (x2) support workers to help me with my daily tasks and all aspects of daily living. I would need assistance with personal care domestic support including preparing meals help with my beautiful cat and accompanying and assisting me socially when necessary. The successful applicant should have some care experience and be mindful of the principles of independant living. The succesful applicant should also be motivated enthusiastic trustworthy and reliable with good written and oral skills. A love of cats and a good sense of humour is desirable. A long term applicant is desirable. I am currently looking to fill two 24 hour shifts 10 am Saturday 10am Sunday 10am Sunday 10 am Monday (16 hours hourly rate Sleep-over £40 for 8 hours) Work Permit and References essential to this post. This job is subject to Crb disclosure. Not Cash in Hand. Pay Hourly rate 8.80 per hour Sleep-over 40 Bank Holidays 11.33 per hour If you are interested in applying for this post please contact direct payments Islington quoting Ref Da Jb1 By telephone on 020 7527 8164 Or by e-mail at directpayments islington.gov.uk Please note the successful applicant will be employed directly by the client not by Islington council.