In my last entry, I reported some lingering and persistent trouble with "tiling" with my new Verizon FiOS TV service. Well, I'm happy to report the trouble has been resolved.
I began to have intermittent trouble with the DVR/set-top box. Once, maybe twice a day, the box would "lock up." The only way around these spells was to physically detach the power cord from the Motorola box, then re-attach the cord and wait out the power cycle. Needless to say this was annoying behavior, and a call to Verizon FiOS Tech Support ensued.
Tech Support sent a hard reset command to the box remotely, but instead of completing the boot process, the box died with an error code (not translated, unfortunately). The tech on the phone scheduled a service call for the first day I was available, and saved me from total TV boredom by explaining I could get basic cable channels by moving the coax from the set-top box directly to the antenna/cable input on my TV.
The Experienced Technician
On the designated date and time, the technician arrived, supposedly to swap the set-top box. I scratched my head a bit when he started buckling on his tool belt. After all, I thought, how many tools would he need to exchange a defective set-top box? My inquiry on the subject drew a satisfying answer.
"I don't take anything for granted," he replied. "The problem may be your set-top box, but it may be something else."
I described the previous tech's exercise with attenuators, which drew a scoff from the tech. A few minutes with the meter, and the tech pronounced my signal to be at the ideal strength without the attenuators (which he handily removed). He then replaced the set-top box as planned, re-initialized and activated it, and waited for it to boot.
It failed to boot properly, stopping on a very permanently tiled display.
The tech eyed the cable from the wall. The very yellowed cable. The cable that had been installed by the home's previous owners, more than 15 years before. The cable used by the FiOS installer, apparently to avoid having to re-cable my home.
The tech then traced that suspicious length of cable to where it joined with the new cable that had been installed when FiOS was installed. Muttering something under his breath, likely about the installer I'm guessing, the tech went to his truck. Out came the spool of coax and his stepladder. In a few short minutes, the old, yellowed cable was gone, and shiny, white cable completed the run from the line splitter to the set-top box.
The set-top box was rebooted, and the TV's normal picture returned.
We haven't seen the tiling since!
Epilogue
Since writing about my Verizon FiOS installation, that story has become one of the heaviest read pieces in this series. I'd like to answer questions, but I actually need to determine what the questions are before I can answer them. Please post your comments and questions to the blog, so I can share your questions and their answers with my readers. I'll continue to share some of the more interesting aspects of my Verizon FiOS installation in future blogs.
And for those who are wondering, I did manage to get a job, though oddly enough it wasn't in the technology field. I'm in a retail management position, now, and may talk more about it in the future. And I'm still encouraging visits to Your World News, as you might expect.
Now I'm off to see what Bocona has recorded on the DVR these days ...
Tuesday, January 16, 2007
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
Verizon FiOS
A couple months ago, I switched to Verizon FiOS. Today, I'll talk about why I switched, what I got, and how things have been since I switched.
FiOS is Verizon's new network, offering phone, TV, and Internet service on a single set of lines, competing directly with traditional cable providers, such as Bright House or Comcast, for those same services.
Manatee County, Florida, and more specifically the southern part of the county, where I live, was "wired" for FiOS early in 2006. I use the term "wired" loosely, as FiOS is based on fiber optic technology, burying miles of fiber throughout the affected neighborhoods. I was somewhat annoyed at the time, as Manatee County had just finished burying new water lines in my neighborhood, laying fresh sod over the digging, and it seemed that sod had just gotten a good hold on the land when the crews came by and buried the fiber. Alas, the crews did not do as nice a job covering up behind them, leaving my yard somewhat less attractive when they left.
I said the neighborhoods were affected, and in that I wasn't just referring to the buried lines. FiOS is intended to replace the copper lines in the area, although it will be pretty gradual about the process. Any new phone service installed in the area would be done as part of FiOS. If a household subscribes to Verizon's FiOS TV, Verizon will automatically convert the phone service to FiOS as well. I do not know if one can get FiOS without phone service, but I find it unlikely. Purely speculating, I think the phone service is not actually necessary for FiOS to function, and the service itself could very likely be disabled at Verizon's end, leaving other services intact.
FiOS Phone
Unlike Bright House's phone offering, Verizon FiOS does not use VoIP for phone service. The phone service rides the common fiber through the neighborhood, and fiber is run from the main fiber line to an Optical Network Terminal (ONT), where it is separated from the other services. Your standard phone lines are connected to the ONT, and when the ONT is powered up, the standard phone line to the copper network is severed, and phone service is switched to the fiber line.
The up side of this is that many older neighborhoods have the copper lines running above ground, sharing poles with the power grid. Since the fiber is buried in my neighborhood, it is not subject to the service problems that came with the elevated lines. I used to be plagued with static, particularly after rain, that would occasionally make the phone line nearly unusable. this should never be a problem again.
The down side of the phone service is that the phones are no longer powered by the network. The ONT must be powered by the subscriber's power. The drain is small, equal to leaving a small light on 24/7, but when the power is interrupted, there is a risk that the phone will die as well. To reduce this risk, the ONT is attached to a battery backup, powered by a small, rechargeable, motorcycle-class battery, warranted for two years. Eventually the battery will need replacing, and I will be responsible for doing that, but the battery is fairly common, so I won't worry about it. The battery will support the ONT for at least four hours, after which you no longer have any service until power is restored. We had two hurricanes take out power for 12 hours each last year, pre-FiOS; I suggest you keep a charged cell phone battery handy if you anticipate a lengthy power outage and want the security of a phone beyond the life of the battery backup.
The battery backup is dedicated to the ONT. This is worth knowing as we discuss the other services.
FiOS Internet
For most of the rest of the country, FiOS Internet makes up your remaining service, as TV is only available where arrangements have been made with local authorities for Verizon to offer TV service. FiOS Internet is about on par with cable modem, although service offerings do allow you to purchase speeds in excess of that provided by coax-based cable.
Prior to FiOS, readers may recall I was using Verizon DSL. The most common DSL subscriber has a maximum download speed of 768 kbps and a maximum upload speed of 128 kbps, significantly slower than cable modem's advertised 5 mbps (typical cable modem speeds are closer to 1 mbps). DSL can be pumped up to as much as 3 mbps, but actual throughput will be less than that. For the purpose of comparison, we'll stick with the advertised values.
So, cable modem is typically faster than DSL, but FiOS starts at 5 mbps down and 2 mpbs up, or roughly twice the speed of cable modem, and seriously faster than my DSL. If I'm willing to pay for it, I can get my FiOS pumped up to 50 mbps! Not that I'd need that kind of speed to maintain Your World News.
Reason to switch, for sure, but that wasn't what made me do it. Switching didn't become an issue to me until I had a second technical snafu with my DSL subscription. I found that, because I live in a FiOS neighborhood, Verizon doesn't want to install DSL here any longer. Sure, I could push them to do it, but support calls would become a pain, as they would keep trying to pawn me off on FiOS.
Why was I hesitant? The system requirements. Verizon says FiOS Internet is supported on Windows 2000 and up, or on Macs. Not my older Windows 98 machines, not Linux, and not NetWare (I have an old NetWare 5.1 server on my network). A phone conversation with FiOS Tech Support straightened me out on that. The problem is two-fold, and not actually a problem at all. See, FiOS Tech Support doesn't promise to have assistance available for the other OSes, and besides, Windows 98 isn't going to notice the speed improvements. Ha! The system requirements aren't as stingy as I thought it might be. What I do on my private LAN side is essentially my problem, just like with DSL.
So, since my budget was tight, I went with the basic Internet package, and turned my attention to FiOS TV.
FiOS TV
TV service is something I wasn't quite ready for, but any other choices were simply impractical. We we not cable subscribers. I haven't been fond of Bright House since when they used to be part of Time Warner. I had my reasons for disliking Time Warner, but can only profess to stubbornness about Bright House. I had DSL, so I had no desire for cable modem, and no desire for TV cable if I didn't need it. We had DirecTV satellite, but were spending way too much for what we used, and FiOS TV offered digital signal quality coming over fiber (no rain fade, a big issue in Florida). So, giving up DirecTV for 180 basic channels of FiOS TV wasn't that difficult.
I ponied up for two set-top boxes: a master box with DVR capabilities for the living room, where we do most of our TV viewing, and a basic box for the small TV in the master bedroom. We didn't have DVR with our early-adopter satellite TV system, so I couldn't pass on the novelty of it. It sure beats VHS!
Choosing Internet and TV at the same time dictates a hardware change in the FiOS configuration. FiOS Internet comes with a rather conventional router, but the combined service calls for something on the unusual side.
Remember, phone service was split off from the fiber at the ONT. The TV and Internet signals are sent from the ONT to a Cat 5 twisted pair wire that ends at a special, Actiontec router. This router (which includes a fairly configurable firewall, satisfying my technical whims) splits the TV signal from the Internet traffic, sending the TV traffic through the house's pre-wired coax network (along with IP-based controls for the set-top boxes). The remaining Internet traffic is placed on a separate segment, offered through four conventional ports and a built-in 802.11b/g wireless transceiver.
The Difficulties
Now that I've had the service for a couple of months, I'm seeing a few issues, none of which so far make me regret the move. The first issue has yet to be solved, mostly because I haven't devoted serious time to tackling it. The TVs have been suffering from intermittent "tiling", where little squares of the picture seem to fall briefly out-of-sync with the rest of the picture. As this is intermittent, they are a devil to catch, and the first round of troubleshooting (changing out attenuators that regulate the signal level) seemed to do little good. I'm preparing to call them back on it.
The second issue occurred when I found I was getting hit with a series of port scans that drove my incoming traffic much higher than normal. I found that I was having trouble changing my dynamic IP address. The commands would execute on the router, but it kept getting the same address back. I called Verizon Tech Support for assistance, and they discovered they were also unable to get the address to change. I wouldn't go as far as to say I had a static address for the price of a dynamic one, but it sure felt like it.
The router has some other minor annoyances, particularly in trying to stop the reporting of specific firewall rule violations, requiring me to filter those reports with a third-party tool. I don't think they planned for many subscribers to pay attention to the firewall as much as I do. I get questionable traffic generated by the router, itself, but the documentation for the router is difficult to obtain, and fairly weak when it is found.
The most recent issue is fairly predictable, but one needs to keep it in mind in any case. The battery backup only works for the ONT. A power problem does impact the rest of the system. Make sure you have at least one conventional, line powered phone, if you want to use the phone line during a power outage (true in any phone system, of course). While you won't be watching TV during an outage (in most cases), the set-top boxes lose their menuing system when the power goes off. When the power comes back, the boxes connect to Verizon over the Internet to download fresh menus, including those used to access the DVR. This means you may have an extended period after power comes back when you can't watch a DVR recording or do more than flip through the TV channels one at a time. A recent extended outage left us waiting an extra 15 minutes or so after the power came back before we could resume a recorded movie, and that still left us having to fast forward through the recording to find where we left off.
Putting these devices on UPSes might help. Certainly keeping the router powered would allow you to use the Internet via independently powered computers (probably at a loss of ONT operating time), but putting the set-top boxes on UPSes might also prevent the annoying delay of service resumption I just described. That is entirely up to you.
Conclusion
Verizon FiOS wasn't something I anticipated getting right now, but it hasn't been a very painful investment, and I think my overall quality of life has improved by having done so. The gains clearly beat the drawbacks, and I'd suggest anyone eligible to subscribe should give it serious consideration.
FiOS is Verizon's new network, offering phone, TV, and Internet service on a single set of lines, competing directly with traditional cable providers, such as Bright House or Comcast, for those same services.
Manatee County, Florida, and more specifically the southern part of the county, where I live, was "wired" for FiOS early in 2006. I use the term "wired" loosely, as FiOS is based on fiber optic technology, burying miles of fiber throughout the affected neighborhoods. I was somewhat annoyed at the time, as Manatee County had just finished burying new water lines in my neighborhood, laying fresh sod over the digging, and it seemed that sod had just gotten a good hold on the land when the crews came by and buried the fiber. Alas, the crews did not do as nice a job covering up behind them, leaving my yard somewhat less attractive when they left.
I said the neighborhoods were affected, and in that I wasn't just referring to the buried lines. FiOS is intended to replace the copper lines in the area, although it will be pretty gradual about the process. Any new phone service installed in the area would be done as part of FiOS. If a household subscribes to Verizon's FiOS TV, Verizon will automatically convert the phone service to FiOS as well. I do not know if one can get FiOS without phone service, but I find it unlikely. Purely speculating, I think the phone service is not actually necessary for FiOS to function, and the service itself could very likely be disabled at Verizon's end, leaving other services intact.
FiOS Phone
Unlike Bright House's phone offering, Verizon FiOS does not use VoIP for phone service. The phone service rides the common fiber through the neighborhood, and fiber is run from the main fiber line to an Optical Network Terminal (ONT), where it is separated from the other services. Your standard phone lines are connected to the ONT, and when the ONT is powered up, the standard phone line to the copper network is severed, and phone service is switched to the fiber line.
The up side of this is that many older neighborhoods have the copper lines running above ground, sharing poles with the power grid. Since the fiber is buried in my neighborhood, it is not subject to the service problems that came with the elevated lines. I used to be plagued with static, particularly after rain, that would occasionally make the phone line nearly unusable. this should never be a problem again.
The down side of the phone service is that the phones are no longer powered by the network. The ONT must be powered by the subscriber's power. The drain is small, equal to leaving a small light on 24/7, but when the power is interrupted, there is a risk that the phone will die as well. To reduce this risk, the ONT is attached to a battery backup, powered by a small, rechargeable, motorcycle-class battery, warranted for two years. Eventually the battery will need replacing, and I will be responsible for doing that, but the battery is fairly common, so I won't worry about it. The battery will support the ONT for at least four hours, after which you no longer have any service until power is restored. We had two hurricanes take out power for 12 hours each last year, pre-FiOS; I suggest you keep a charged cell phone battery handy if you anticipate a lengthy power outage and want the security of a phone beyond the life of the battery backup.
The battery backup is dedicated to the ONT. This is worth knowing as we discuss the other services.
FiOS Internet
For most of the rest of the country, FiOS Internet makes up your remaining service, as TV is only available where arrangements have been made with local authorities for Verizon to offer TV service. FiOS Internet is about on par with cable modem, although service offerings do allow you to purchase speeds in excess of that provided by coax-based cable.
Prior to FiOS, readers may recall I was using Verizon DSL. The most common DSL subscriber has a maximum download speed of 768 kbps and a maximum upload speed of 128 kbps, significantly slower than cable modem's advertised 5 mbps (typical cable modem speeds are closer to 1 mbps). DSL can be pumped up to as much as 3 mbps, but actual throughput will be less than that. For the purpose of comparison, we'll stick with the advertised values.
So, cable modem is typically faster than DSL, but FiOS starts at 5 mbps down and 2 mpbs up, or roughly twice the speed of cable modem, and seriously faster than my DSL. If I'm willing to pay for it, I can get my FiOS pumped up to 50 mbps! Not that I'd need that kind of speed to maintain Your World News.
Reason to switch, for sure, but that wasn't what made me do it. Switching didn't become an issue to me until I had a second technical snafu with my DSL subscription. I found that, because I live in a FiOS neighborhood, Verizon doesn't want to install DSL here any longer. Sure, I could push them to do it, but support calls would become a pain, as they would keep trying to pawn me off on FiOS.
Why was I hesitant? The system requirements. Verizon says FiOS Internet is supported on Windows 2000 and up, or on Macs. Not my older Windows 98 machines, not Linux, and not NetWare (I have an old NetWare 5.1 server on my network). A phone conversation with FiOS Tech Support straightened me out on that. The problem is two-fold, and not actually a problem at all. See, FiOS Tech Support doesn't promise to have assistance available for the other OSes, and besides, Windows 98 isn't going to notice the speed improvements. Ha! The system requirements aren't as stingy as I thought it might be. What I do on my private LAN side is essentially my problem, just like with DSL.
So, since my budget was tight, I went with the basic Internet package, and turned my attention to FiOS TV.
FiOS TV
TV service is something I wasn't quite ready for, but any other choices were simply impractical. We we not cable subscribers. I haven't been fond of Bright House since when they used to be part of Time Warner. I had my reasons for disliking Time Warner, but can only profess to stubbornness about Bright House. I had DSL, so I had no desire for cable modem, and no desire for TV cable if I didn't need it. We had DirecTV satellite, but were spending way too much for what we used, and FiOS TV offered digital signal quality coming over fiber (no rain fade, a big issue in Florida). So, giving up DirecTV for 180 basic channels of FiOS TV wasn't that difficult.
I ponied up for two set-top boxes: a master box with DVR capabilities for the living room, where we do most of our TV viewing, and a basic box for the small TV in the master bedroom. We didn't have DVR with our early-adopter satellite TV system, so I couldn't pass on the novelty of it. It sure beats VHS!
Choosing Internet and TV at the same time dictates a hardware change in the FiOS configuration. FiOS Internet comes with a rather conventional router, but the combined service calls for something on the unusual side.
Remember, phone service was split off from the fiber at the ONT. The TV and Internet signals are sent from the ONT to a Cat 5 twisted pair wire that ends at a special, Actiontec router. This router (which includes a fairly configurable firewall, satisfying my technical whims) splits the TV signal from the Internet traffic, sending the TV traffic through the house's pre-wired coax network (along with IP-based controls for the set-top boxes). The remaining Internet traffic is placed on a separate segment, offered through four conventional ports and a built-in 802.11b/g wireless transceiver.
The Difficulties
Now that I've had the service for a couple of months, I'm seeing a few issues, none of which so far make me regret the move. The first issue has yet to be solved, mostly because I haven't devoted serious time to tackling it. The TVs have been suffering from intermittent "tiling", where little squares of the picture seem to fall briefly out-of-sync with the rest of the picture. As this is intermittent, they are a devil to catch, and the first round of troubleshooting (changing out attenuators that regulate the signal level) seemed to do little good. I'm preparing to call them back on it.
The second issue occurred when I found I was getting hit with a series of port scans that drove my incoming traffic much higher than normal. I found that I was having trouble changing my dynamic IP address. The commands would execute on the router, but it kept getting the same address back. I called Verizon Tech Support for assistance, and they discovered they were also unable to get the address to change. I wouldn't go as far as to say I had a static address for the price of a dynamic one, but it sure felt like it.
The router has some other minor annoyances, particularly in trying to stop the reporting of specific firewall rule violations, requiring me to filter those reports with a third-party tool. I don't think they planned for many subscribers to pay attention to the firewall as much as I do. I get questionable traffic generated by the router, itself, but the documentation for the router is difficult to obtain, and fairly weak when it is found.
The most recent issue is fairly predictable, but one needs to keep it in mind in any case. The battery backup only works for the ONT. A power problem does impact the rest of the system. Make sure you have at least one conventional, line powered phone, if you want to use the phone line during a power outage (true in any phone system, of course). While you won't be watching TV during an outage (in most cases), the set-top boxes lose their menuing system when the power goes off. When the power comes back, the boxes connect to Verizon over the Internet to download fresh menus, including those used to access the DVR. This means you may have an extended period after power comes back when you can't watch a DVR recording or do more than flip through the TV channels one at a time. A recent extended outage left us waiting an extra 15 minutes or so after the power came back before we could resume a recorded movie, and that still left us having to fast forward through the recording to find where we left off.
Putting these devices on UPSes might help. Certainly keeping the router powered would allow you to use the Internet via independently powered computers (probably at a loss of ONT operating time), but putting the set-top boxes on UPSes might also prevent the annoying delay of service resumption I just described. That is entirely up to you.
Conclusion
Verizon FiOS wasn't something I anticipated getting right now, but it hasn't been a very painful investment, and I think my overall quality of life has improved by having done so. The gains clearly beat the drawbacks, and I'd suggest anyone eligible to subscribe should give it serious consideration.
Friday, December 01, 2006
Promises, Promises
When interviewing for a job, it's good to keep in mind that any promises you get may not last through the process.
I recently interviewed for a network administration position with a major manufacturer. The interview went splendidly. For nearly an hour and a half, I had a pleasant conversation with the incumbent, who was being promoted to a position supervising the administrators at multiple plants. We spoke of the old days, the state of the industry, and the kind of work that was being performed in the position (work that well exceeded the tradition of basic network administration). The interview only ended because the principal was summoned to a conference call.
Hasty "good-byes" were exchanged. He gave me his card, and told me I would be called for a second interview. Had I not received a call by the end of the week, I was to call him, as he was leaving for a business trip the following week, and he wanted to be sure things progressed.
I left, jubilant. I felt this was a job I could excel at, and looked forward to the subsequent call. But I made two mistakes:
If I had been one of the last interviewed, I would have had better feedback during the interview as to how I stood against my competitors. Maybe he wouldn't have said anything directly, but I could have read the comparison in his behavior, and might have noticed where I needed to put more emphasis. At the least, I would not have been as likely to invoke the strong positive vibes that led me to think I had a future. Had the interview then ended with a promise of a second interview, I would be more justified in believing the promise, since he would have been less likely to make such a promise after doing a mental comparison to the other candidates, unless I did indeed stand out.
Also, being at the tail end would allow me to remain more clearly in his mind when the actual choices were made.
So, given the opportunity, I believe I will opt for an interview at the tail-end of the process, and will only count on getting that second chance when that second chance is actually arranged.
Interviewers will lie to you. They may not do so knowingly or willingly, but that makes it no less true. You can only count on what you know to be true, and take the rest with a grain of salt.
The resumes will continue to fly, and in the meantime, I continue to work on Your World News. I can still use some volunteers there. Drop by the site and drop me a line if you're interested in helping.
I recently interviewed for a network administration position with a major manufacturer. The interview went splendidly. For nearly an hour and a half, I had a pleasant conversation with the incumbent, who was being promoted to a position supervising the administrators at multiple plants. We spoke of the old days, the state of the industry, and the kind of work that was being performed in the position (work that well exceeded the tradition of basic network administration). The interview only ended because the principal was summoned to a conference call.
Hasty "good-byes" were exchanged. He gave me his card, and told me I would be called for a second interview. Had I not received a call by the end of the week, I was to call him, as he was leaving for a business trip the following week, and he wanted to be sure things progressed.
I left, jubilant. I felt this was a job I could excel at, and looked forward to the subsequent call. But I made two mistakes:
- I was the first person interviewed. Others would follow, and I knew nothing of them. Of course, I never do know anything of other candidates, and make my best effort in the first interview, but one should never leave a first interview confident of the future.
- I believed his promise that there would be a second interview.
If I had been one of the last interviewed, I would have had better feedback during the interview as to how I stood against my competitors. Maybe he wouldn't have said anything directly, but I could have read the comparison in his behavior, and might have noticed where I needed to put more emphasis. At the least, I would not have been as likely to invoke the strong positive vibes that led me to think I had a future. Had the interview then ended with a promise of a second interview, I would be more justified in believing the promise, since he would have been less likely to make such a promise after doing a mental comparison to the other candidates, unless I did indeed stand out.
Also, being at the tail end would allow me to remain more clearly in his mind when the actual choices were made.
So, given the opportunity, I believe I will opt for an interview at the tail-end of the process, and will only count on getting that second chance when that second chance is actually arranged.
Interviewers will lie to you. They may not do so knowingly or willingly, but that makes it no less true. You can only count on what you know to be true, and take the rest with a grain of salt.
The resumes will continue to fly, and in the meantime, I continue to work on Your World News. I can still use some volunteers there. Drop by the site and drop me a line if you're interested in helping.
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Why put off 'til tomorrow... oh, never mind.
Have you ever talked with someone who was thinking of buying a new computer, but every time he or she was about to make the plunge, he or she heard about some new feature coming out soon and decided to wait until that new thing was available?
Has that person purchased a computer yet?
Usually one of two things gets a person with this problem to change his or her mind. Either he or she gets tired of waiting for a promise that will never be fulfilled, or someone finally gets through to him or her that waiting for the next big thing often does little but deprive one of the benefits the current model has available now.
By now you might be thinking I'm about to lecture on the evils of FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt) as a marketing tool, but remember, I seem to be perpetually in the job hunt, so my point is really related to finding work.
And I'm not going to use this as an excuse to talk about birds in hand versus birds in bushes, though, of course, I could. The lesson is the same.
No, oddly enough, it isn't me who can't make a decision, here. I've had the misfortune of interviewing with an employer who has fallen into this very trap. You see, this employer has a vacancy, but they also have a workaround for the vacancy, and the workaround is working fine for them. They know they should hire someone for the position, but they aren't in a hurry to do so. As a result, the instructions given to HR is to find the perfect department manager.
Alas, no one has convinced HR (or possibly worse, the President of the company, whom the position in question would answer to) that such a person does not exist. Rather than pick from the ample supply of applicants, they simply run a fresh ad occasionally, and HR has to spend her time screening resumes and attending interviews. She told me herself she was hired four months ago and hasn't had time to do real HR stuff because she has to find the perfect department manager.
Meanwhile, the department's staff makes due with self-management, supplemented with doses of supervision from the President and the Production Manager. Before long, they will forget what it was like to have a department manager, and the small problems that have been festering for months will become big problems that the eventual hire will curse, unable to cleanly solve.
They told me they'd call me if they decide I'm the person they're looking for. As time passes, I'm starting to wonder if I really do want them to call. I won't envy the person who is picked for the position.
So, I'm still shopping, and spending my spare time at Your World News. See ya there!
Has that person purchased a computer yet?
Usually one of two things gets a person with this problem to change his or her mind. Either he or she gets tired of waiting for a promise that will never be fulfilled, or someone finally gets through to him or her that waiting for the next big thing often does little but deprive one of the benefits the current model has available now.
By now you might be thinking I'm about to lecture on the evils of FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt) as a marketing tool, but remember, I seem to be perpetually in the job hunt, so my point is really related to finding work.
And I'm not going to use this as an excuse to talk about birds in hand versus birds in bushes, though, of course, I could. The lesson is the same.
No, oddly enough, it isn't me who can't make a decision, here. I've had the misfortune of interviewing with an employer who has fallen into this very trap. You see, this employer has a vacancy, but they also have a workaround for the vacancy, and the workaround is working fine for them. They know they should hire someone for the position, but they aren't in a hurry to do so. As a result, the instructions given to HR is to find the perfect department manager.
Alas, no one has convinced HR (or possibly worse, the President of the company, whom the position in question would answer to) that such a person does not exist. Rather than pick from the ample supply of applicants, they simply run a fresh ad occasionally, and HR has to spend her time screening resumes and attending interviews. She told me herself she was hired four months ago and hasn't had time to do real HR stuff because she has to find the perfect department manager.
Meanwhile, the department's staff makes due with self-management, supplemented with doses of supervision from the President and the Production Manager. Before long, they will forget what it was like to have a department manager, and the small problems that have been festering for months will become big problems that the eventual hire will curse, unable to cleanly solve.
They told me they'd call me if they decide I'm the person they're looking for. As time passes, I'm starting to wonder if I really do want them to call. I won't envy the person who is picked for the position.
So, I'm still shopping, and spending my spare time at Your World News. See ya there!
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Innovation isn't all it's cracked up to be
Someone reminded me I hadn't written to the blog for a while, being so caught up in the seemingly never-ending job search. Until I think of something better to say, this will have to do...
I was browsing through Your World News and came across an article that I found somewhat interesting. You might remember the blog I wrote on HD-DVD vs Blu-Ray. Well, two engineers at Warner have developed a means by which a single disc can support HD-DVD, Blu-Ray, and standard DVD, all at the same time.
If Warner makes licensing the technology affordable, the new disc could make the entire issue of which format is better moot. It would also dramatically reduce inventory costs for wholesalers, retailers, and especially rental companies.
Warner was the first studio to release a film, Lake House, in both HD formats. This new solution is a win-win for everyone involved, and I look forward to learning what happens with it, if anything.
After all, good ideas often don't survive competition. One of my favorite innovations was a cassette tape that had re-usable record protection. Where conventional cassette tapes have punch-out holes that prevent the record mechanisms from engaging (leaving us to apply adhesive tape over the holes to record over a protected tape), the cassette I speak of had a cover that could be easily rotated away from the hole with a screwdriver or fingernail. The cassette was sold by Loran and is no longer in production.
With this in mind, I look at Warner's development with interest, but am resigned to take what I can get.
Which is a little like my job search, I'm afraid...
I was browsing through Your World News and came across an article that I found somewhat interesting. You might remember the blog I wrote on HD-DVD vs Blu-Ray. Well, two engineers at Warner have developed a means by which a single disc can support HD-DVD, Blu-Ray, and standard DVD, all at the same time.
If Warner makes licensing the technology affordable, the new disc could make the entire issue of which format is better moot. It would also dramatically reduce inventory costs for wholesalers, retailers, and especially rental companies.
Warner was the first studio to release a film, Lake House, in both HD formats. This new solution is a win-win for everyone involved, and I look forward to learning what happens with it, if anything.
After all, good ideas often don't survive competition. One of my favorite innovations was a cassette tape that had re-usable record protection. Where conventional cassette tapes have punch-out holes that prevent the record mechanisms from engaging (leaving us to apply adhesive tape over the holes to record over a protected tape), the cassette I speak of had a cover that could be easily rotated away from the hole with a screwdriver or fingernail. The cassette was sold by Loran and is no longer in production.
With this in mind, I look at Warner's development with interest, but am resigned to take what I can get.
Which is a little like my job search, I'm afraid...
Tuesday, October 03, 2006
Florida: The Right to Not Work?
They call Florida a "Right to Work" state. I never knew what that was supposed to mean to the worker, but to the employer it means he has the right to fire an employee without having to go to extremes to justify it. The law gives the employer the ability to terminate an employee for practically any reason.
For example, let's say a company hires someone who happens to have some writing ability, and that someone is asked to write anonymously for the company's blog. If the blog later appears elsewhere as written by the CEO of the company, it might not behoove the employee to ask any questions. In Florida, an employer can terminate an employee for questioning the actions of an employer. The employer may still be held liable for the actions, themselves, but simply questioning those actions would be legitimate grounds for dismissal.
Go figure.
By the way, while I'm out there looking for work, you could be at Your World News checking out what else is happening... and maybe even sharing your own point of view. Do drop by, won't you?
For example, let's say a company hires someone who happens to have some writing ability, and that someone is asked to write anonymously for the company's blog. If the blog later appears elsewhere as written by the CEO of the company, it might not behoove the employee to ask any questions. In Florida, an employer can terminate an employee for questioning the actions of an employer. The employer may still be held liable for the actions, themselves, but simply questioning those actions would be legitimate grounds for dismissal.
Go figure.
By the way, while I'm out there looking for work, you could be at Your World News checking out what else is happening... and maybe even sharing your own point of view. Do drop by, won't you?
Saturday, August 26, 2006
About that Trial ...
I promised when last I wrote to write about my jury duty experience, but I'll warn you now, it isn't very dramatic. At best, I can offer that it was a criminal trial, but it was a lowly misdemeanor, albeit one that falls in the pet peeves department. It's a long story, which I'll trim to the important parts.
This Story is About Taking Responsibility
The accused was charged with leaving the scene of an accident, and I was one of seven jurors chosen to hear the case. The trial started at about 9 AM Wednesday morning, and the opening statements from both sides left me about neutral, a good place to be as a juror.
The first witness for the prosecution was the victim, a young black man who just happened to be an auto body mechanic. Bad luck for the defendant, there. The witness first advised us he was there because he was ordered to be there; he had no particular animosity against the defendant. The reason for this came clear a little while later.
The victim had been stopped in traffic at a traffic light, and felt his car rear-ended. He looked in his mirror, saw the defendant, stepped out of his car and, looking the defendant in the eye, he signaled for the defendant to pull into a neighboring parking lot. The victim then returned to his car and pulled into the parking lot. Rather than follow, the defendant proceeded down the road.
The victim quickly re-entered traffic behind the defendant, called 911, and described the offending vehicle and the tag number. He was then told to return to the scene of the accident. The victim returned to meet with a state trooper.
Technology Makes the Job Easier
The trooper used his onboard computer to look up the car, and from that, the owner of the car. The computer displayed the driver's license picture of the owner, whom the victim identified as the driver of the car.
Of course, the defense had to have their say, and they went after the physical proof of damage: which was nonexistent. The victim had called the defendant's insurance company (number provided by the trooper), and an insurance adjuster came out to check the damage. The adjuster offered the victim $48 for the repair - about an hour's labor. As I mentioned, the victim was an auto body mechanic and knew the damage would cost more to repair, so he asked a co-worker to prepare an estimate. The estimate from his co-worker came to over $1,000... but he'd lost the estimate when he later left the employ of that company (he thought he might have thrown it out with other papers from the company).
Further, the victim had been in the process of trying to trade-in the vehicle for another, and succeeded to do so roughly a week after the accident. So, the victim did not have the car, or proof the accident had occurred - except for the testimony of the trooper, who came up next.
He Should Know, He Sees It Everyday
The trooper indicated he saw the damage, believed it to be new damage (no dirt or rust), then went on to describe how he apprehended the defendant. It appears the defendant wasn't home, but a neighbor indicated the defendant frequented a local bar, where the trooper caught up with him. The trooper brought the defendant outside and asked about the accident. He said the defendant denied being in an accident, and showed the trooper where no damage had existed on the car. The defendant persisted in denying involvement, claimed he'd been there a couple of hours (the accident had occurred maybe 1 and 3/4 hours earlier), and the trooper arrested him.
A third witness, a bartender at the bar, recognized the defendant as a regular patron who had been in the bar maybe an hour and a half before the trooper arrived.
Bad Move for the Defense
Next came the defense's turn, and they had only one witness: the defendant. He took the stand on his own behalf, and described the events of the day. What we found most important was that the defendant was very detailed about everything except his interview with the trooper, when he suddenly could not recall the specific events of the discussion. We also noticed that his activities would have put him at the scene of the accident at nearly the right time, if you allowed fudging with the timeline (and no one except the trooper had an accurate timeline of their events). Finally, the defense offered into evidence photos of the defendant's car, as the defendant boasted of its pristine condition (a nicely kept 15+ year old car).
After closing arguments, six of us were allowed to go to the jury room; the seventh was our mystery alternate, who was visibly disappointed at not getting to deliberate.
A Nice Way to Top Off a Nice Trial
Through fate, and maybe a little excitement, the jury decided to let me be the foreperson. Before we took our first vote, we passed around the pictures of the defendant's car. Then came the first ballot:
"All who believe the defendant's guilty, raise your hand!" No wimpy secret ballot for THIS jury. Five hands went in the air - and I was the lone holdout. "Convince me," I said.
They did. I had a crazy theory that it was possible the victim had setup the defendant, and without physical evidence, we couldn't convict. They saw it another way. My theory, while possible, wasn't plausible. The two had never met; there was no reason to believe the defendant had any money, or even insurance, at the time; and the rest of the story fit the victim's claim. I again looked at the pictures... and you know, that front bumper DID look out of alignment with the rest of the body. You couldn't tell at a casual glance, but that car HAD been in an accident at some point.
I gave in, and signed the paper. My first jury had convicted its first criminal.
We never did find out what the sentence was, but I wouldn't have passed on the experience for anything. Lunch time!
An Aside
By the way, a couple of notes: first, I have found a new job, which I'll write about a little later, and yes, I'm still collecting news at Your World News. I hope you'll come visiting.
This Story is About Taking Responsibility
The accused was charged with leaving the scene of an accident, and I was one of seven jurors chosen to hear the case. The trial started at about 9 AM Wednesday morning, and the opening statements from both sides left me about neutral, a good place to be as a juror.
The first witness for the prosecution was the victim, a young black man who just happened to be an auto body mechanic. Bad luck for the defendant, there. The witness first advised us he was there because he was ordered to be there; he had no particular animosity against the defendant. The reason for this came clear a little while later.
The victim had been stopped in traffic at a traffic light, and felt his car rear-ended. He looked in his mirror, saw the defendant, stepped out of his car and, looking the defendant in the eye, he signaled for the defendant to pull into a neighboring parking lot. The victim then returned to his car and pulled into the parking lot. Rather than follow, the defendant proceeded down the road.
The victim quickly re-entered traffic behind the defendant, called 911, and described the offending vehicle and the tag number. He was then told to return to the scene of the accident. The victim returned to meet with a state trooper.
Technology Makes the Job Easier
The trooper used his onboard computer to look up the car, and from that, the owner of the car. The computer displayed the driver's license picture of the owner, whom the victim identified as the driver of the car.
Of course, the defense had to have their say, and they went after the physical proof of damage: which was nonexistent. The victim had called the defendant's insurance company (number provided by the trooper), and an insurance adjuster came out to check the damage. The adjuster offered the victim $48 for the repair - about an hour's labor. As I mentioned, the victim was an auto body mechanic and knew the damage would cost more to repair, so he asked a co-worker to prepare an estimate. The estimate from his co-worker came to over $1,000... but he'd lost the estimate when he later left the employ of that company (he thought he might have thrown it out with other papers from the company).
Further, the victim had been in the process of trying to trade-in the vehicle for another, and succeeded to do so roughly a week after the accident. So, the victim did not have the car, or proof the accident had occurred - except for the testimony of the trooper, who came up next.
He Should Know, He Sees It Everyday
The trooper indicated he saw the damage, believed it to be new damage (no dirt or rust), then went on to describe how he apprehended the defendant. It appears the defendant wasn't home, but a neighbor indicated the defendant frequented a local bar, where the trooper caught up with him. The trooper brought the defendant outside and asked about the accident. He said the defendant denied being in an accident, and showed the trooper where no damage had existed on the car. The defendant persisted in denying involvement, claimed he'd been there a couple of hours (the accident had occurred maybe 1 and 3/4 hours earlier), and the trooper arrested him.
A third witness, a bartender at the bar, recognized the defendant as a regular patron who had been in the bar maybe an hour and a half before the trooper arrived.
Bad Move for the Defense
Next came the defense's turn, and they had only one witness: the defendant. He took the stand on his own behalf, and described the events of the day. What we found most important was that the defendant was very detailed about everything except his interview with the trooper, when he suddenly could not recall the specific events of the discussion. We also noticed that his activities would have put him at the scene of the accident at nearly the right time, if you allowed fudging with the timeline (and no one except the trooper had an accurate timeline of their events). Finally, the defense offered into evidence photos of the defendant's car, as the defendant boasted of its pristine condition (a nicely kept 15+ year old car).
After closing arguments, six of us were allowed to go to the jury room; the seventh was our mystery alternate, who was visibly disappointed at not getting to deliberate.
A Nice Way to Top Off a Nice Trial
Through fate, and maybe a little excitement, the jury decided to let me be the foreperson. Before we took our first vote, we passed around the pictures of the defendant's car. Then came the first ballot:
"All who believe the defendant's guilty, raise your hand!" No wimpy secret ballot for THIS jury. Five hands went in the air - and I was the lone holdout. "Convince me," I said.
They did. I had a crazy theory that it was possible the victim had setup the defendant, and without physical evidence, we couldn't convict. They saw it another way. My theory, while possible, wasn't plausible. The two had never met; there was no reason to believe the defendant had any money, or even insurance, at the time; and the rest of the story fit the victim's claim. I again looked at the pictures... and you know, that front bumper DID look out of alignment with the rest of the body. You couldn't tell at a casual glance, but that car HAD been in an accident at some point.
I gave in, and signed the paper. My first jury had convicted its first criminal.
We never did find out what the sentence was, but I wouldn't have passed on the experience for anything. Lunch time!
An Aside
By the way, a couple of notes: first, I have found a new job, which I'll write about a little later, and yes, I'm still collecting news at Your World News. I hope you'll come visiting.
Monday, August 21, 2006
They call it Jury DUTY for a reason
I take my civic responsibilities seriously, so when I was summoned for jury duty the thought of avoiding it never crossed my mind. I understand there are circumstances why one might need to defer jury duty; it even happened to me, once before. But when called, U.S. citizens have an obligation to respond, and it surprised me to learn that a sizeable number of people summoned simply don't appear.
If you want the benefits that come from being a U.S. citizen, then you should be willing to satisfy the obligations of one. And it isn't like the obligations are strenuous: remember, the draft doesn't exist in the U.S. any longer (for now). Where's the pain in voting? Yes, it takes time from our busy lives, but with the extra steps our various federal, state, and local governments have taken to make voting convenient (such as absentee and early voting), is there really an excuse not to register and vote?
This is usually when some moron says something about registering to vote just gets him on the list for jury duty. I call him a moron since he's another of those abusive citizens who want to take, take, take, without giving any more than his tax dollars. Like all you need to do to be a U.S. citizen is buy an annual membership!
Well, just for that moron's information, many localities no longer use the voter roles as the pool for potential jurors. In Manatee County, Florida, potential jurors are selected from driver's license registrations. If you're so afraid to be called for jury duty, give up your driving privileges!
Jury Duty in my community
Jury duty is handled differently for different locales. Manatee County calls all of the week's potential jurors together on Mondays, and each judge collects his or her pool of potential jurors from that larger pool. Those selected are told when to report for service, and those not selected are returned to the big pool. If you aren't chosen by the end of Monday, you're dismissed from duty for another year.
I was selected from my first pool, and found myself on a jury for a criminal case. I'll talk a little more on this next time.
Still room for editors
Your World News is now up to 1,000 links and growing. We still have room for more volunteer editors. Visit the site, then write me for details.
If you want the benefits that come from being a U.S. citizen, then you should be willing to satisfy the obligations of one. And it isn't like the obligations are strenuous: remember, the draft doesn't exist in the U.S. any longer (for now). Where's the pain in voting? Yes, it takes time from our busy lives, but with the extra steps our various federal, state, and local governments have taken to make voting convenient (such as absentee and early voting), is there really an excuse not to register and vote?
This is usually when some moron says something about registering to vote just gets him on the list for jury duty. I call him a moron since he's another of those abusive citizens who want to take, take, take, without giving any more than his tax dollars. Like all you need to do to be a U.S. citizen is buy an annual membership!
Well, just for that moron's information, many localities no longer use the voter roles as the pool for potential jurors. In Manatee County, Florida, potential jurors are selected from driver's license registrations. If you're so afraid to be called for jury duty, give up your driving privileges!
Jury Duty in my community
Jury duty is handled differently for different locales. Manatee County calls all of the week's potential jurors together on Mondays, and each judge collects his or her pool of potential jurors from that larger pool. Those selected are told when to report for service, and those not selected are returned to the big pool. If you aren't chosen by the end of Monday, you're dismissed from duty for another year.
I was selected from my first pool, and found myself on a jury for a criminal case. I'll talk a little more on this next time.
Still room for editors
Your World News is now up to 1,000 links and growing. We still have room for more volunteer editors. Visit the site, then write me for details.
Monday, August 07, 2006
Good job interviews can get creative
Job interviews come in many forms. I was reminded of this with a recent application, for a position related to website development and management.
In this particular case, it appears I skipped the traditional face-to-face Q&A or the similar yet common phone interview. Instead, the employer jumped straight to evaluating my skills, providing a situation requiring me to evaluate a site and offer my recommendations.
This particular interview reminded me to a small degree of the second interview I had for the ICA position. In that case, the first interview was in group form. ICA extended an invitation to 30 some individuals to attend a meeting where the organizers explained the organization's purpose and what they sought. Then they gave each of us a few minutes to ask questions and formulate our ideas as to where we might fit in. After this, we were tasked to go home and, if we were still interested in the position, we were to write an essay explaining how we would approach the position, and why we thought we were the ones to do the job.
For the ICA job, the essays determined who would be invited to the third interview (the essay counted as interview #2): dinner with the executive director and his senior staff. What was surprising about this whole thing was that, even though I ended up being cut after the third interview, my ideas were sound enough that the executive director paid me for the right to use parts of my essay in the final plan, then later called me back when he decided I did have a role in implementing that plan, after all.
This time it's different
In the current situation, the site I was tasked to evaluate was a live site having issues, and the principal offered to pay me to do my evaluation. What he got for his investment was both a solution to the problem at hand, and an example of how I performed the work. Clearly, the work came first, as I expected it would, but I found it odd, and maybe a little refreshing, that they wanted to see me in action before they took the time to learn about me.
As a bonus to this, the company again offered to pay me for my effort, but I took the tact of offering the employer to pay me only what he thought the results were worth. This was risky, since I might find myself essentially uncompensated for my fair effort, but I was confident that I could produce something of at least some value. I pointed out to him that, if I nailed the problem, a decision to hire me would be far more valuable to me than any one-time fee would be worth.
The task was done. I found the problem and made my recommendations. In fact, I made more recommendations than the scope of the task required. As a result, I now have an appointment for the long-overdue personal interview.
Things are looking up.
Lest you've forgotten
Still haven't visited Your World News yet? What are you waiting for? At a minimum, you might find a link to some otherwise missed interesting news. And who knows, you might actually find the site stimulating enough to participate in the news sharing concept.
I look forward to seeing you there!
In this particular case, it appears I skipped the traditional face-to-face Q&A or the similar yet common phone interview. Instead, the employer jumped straight to evaluating my skills, providing a situation requiring me to evaluate a site and offer my recommendations.
This particular interview reminded me to a small degree of the second interview I had for the ICA position. In that case, the first interview was in group form. ICA extended an invitation to 30 some individuals to attend a meeting where the organizers explained the organization's purpose and what they sought. Then they gave each of us a few minutes to ask questions and formulate our ideas as to where we might fit in. After this, we were tasked to go home and, if we were still interested in the position, we were to write an essay explaining how we would approach the position, and why we thought we were the ones to do the job.
For the ICA job, the essays determined who would be invited to the third interview (the essay counted as interview #2): dinner with the executive director and his senior staff. What was surprising about this whole thing was that, even though I ended up being cut after the third interview, my ideas were sound enough that the executive director paid me for the right to use parts of my essay in the final plan, then later called me back when he decided I did have a role in implementing that plan, after all.
This time it's different
In the current situation, the site I was tasked to evaluate was a live site having issues, and the principal offered to pay me to do my evaluation. What he got for his investment was both a solution to the problem at hand, and an example of how I performed the work. Clearly, the work came first, as I expected it would, but I found it odd, and maybe a little refreshing, that they wanted to see me in action before they took the time to learn about me.
As a bonus to this, the company again offered to pay me for my effort, but I took the tact of offering the employer to pay me only what he thought the results were worth. This was risky, since I might find myself essentially uncompensated for my fair effort, but I was confident that I could produce something of at least some value. I pointed out to him that, if I nailed the problem, a decision to hire me would be far more valuable to me than any one-time fee would be worth.
The task was done. I found the problem and made my recommendations. In fact, I made more recommendations than the scope of the task required. As a result, I now have an appointment for the long-overdue personal interview.
Things are looking up.
Lest you've forgotten
Still haven't visited Your World News yet? What are you waiting for? At a minimum, you might find a link to some otherwise missed interesting news. And who knows, you might actually find the site stimulating enough to participate in the news sharing concept.
I look forward to seeing you there!
Thursday, August 03, 2006
The IT Job Dance
Fresh from another interview, some thoughts come to mind that might make the whole process easier for both parties.
See, one of the most annoying things about seeking an IT job is that no matter how many positions there are, and there seems to be quite a few positions in the Tampa Bay area, there are always more applicants than the employer (or recruiter) really needs. In fact, I think a lot of employers turn to recruiters because they can't handle the flood of applicants on their own.
But there is another side to this coin: employers are publishing dreams when they list their required qualifications. One pundit observed that employers are trying to save a buck by advertising for a relatively lower-paying position, but asking for skills belonging to a rightfully higher-paying position. The thought is that the "network administrator" they hire with Java coding skills could actually fill the need for the "Java developer" they really want but can't afford.
I think of it another way. The employers list the skills an ideal employee would have, but fully expect to have to settle for something less. Maybe there is a "network administrator" with Java, ASP, and Oracle skills in addition to his CISSP and CCNA, but you'd stand a better chance of finding three people with those skills combined. Still, there's no harm in asking, right? So, the company that really needs an Oracle administrator asks for everything else, just in case.
Now, what happens?
At first, the company that asks for the moon gets nothing, but then it occurs to the IT workers growing desperate for work that the employer has published a wish list, not a true requirements list, so in their desperation they submit their resumes, matching maybe only 10% of the requirements. The employers get 100+ apps for every job advertised, can't handle the volume, and end up turning to recruiters, who probably end up manipulating the deal into something that cost the employers far more than if they'd kept it to themselves. The next ad is lighter on the wish list, maybe even accurate in the needs, but the workers are already used to applying to anything, and so the overall problem doesn't get better. Every job opportunity is met with 100+ applicants, few of whom are actually qualified, and many of the qualified are "round filed" due to the sheer volume of applications.
How do we fix this problem?
We'll start with the employer: only advertise what you need as requirements, and list the bonuses separately. Be realistic in your needs. A network administrator shouldn't be expected to know Java; either you need an administrator or you need a programmer, but don't ask for both as requirements. And does the administrator really need a Bachelor's degree? Or is that just something to try to reduce the volume. If the latter, it isn't working. Finally, list your salary expectations. You'll get a whole lot fewer applications once people see what you plan to pay, especially if you're hiring for an entry-level position.
And for the job hunters, stop applying for everything in sight. You're only making things worse. Only apply if you truly believe you have a shot at the position. If the ad seems genuinely written toward a specific skill set, only apply if you have that skill set. This reduces the number of applications HR has to screen, and increases the odds for the truly qualified. Essentially a win-win situation. And, of course, don't claim a skill if the skill doesn't exist. Not only does it hurt your reputation, but it makes it harder on everyone else who has to follow you.
I recently applied for a job I probably shouldn't have. The position was advertised way below my skill set, but in a moment of weakness, I went ahead and applied.
I was amazed to find myself granted an interview... which lasted a whole 10 minutes. Just long enough for the IT Director to look me in the eye and ask me why I applied for a position clearly beneath me. It then occurred to me why he granted the interview. I was simply a break from the norm, a chance to put his feet up. But I did point out that if he'd published his salary expectations, I wouldn't have responded. Hopefully, we both walked away from that interview a little more prepared for the next time.
Now, I need to teach Bocona to be a little more patient.
As for other things...
Don't forget, if you haven't been there lately, you need to visit Your World News, where you not only keep current on the news, but tell others what news is important to you.
See, one of the most annoying things about seeking an IT job is that no matter how many positions there are, and there seems to be quite a few positions in the Tampa Bay area, there are always more applicants than the employer (or recruiter) really needs. In fact, I think a lot of employers turn to recruiters because they can't handle the flood of applicants on their own.
But there is another side to this coin: employers are publishing dreams when they list their required qualifications. One pundit observed that employers are trying to save a buck by advertising for a relatively lower-paying position, but asking for skills belonging to a rightfully higher-paying position. The thought is that the "network administrator" they hire with Java coding skills could actually fill the need for the "Java developer" they really want but can't afford.
I think of it another way. The employers list the skills an ideal employee would have, but fully expect to have to settle for something less. Maybe there is a "network administrator" with Java, ASP, and Oracle skills in addition to his CISSP and CCNA, but you'd stand a better chance of finding three people with those skills combined. Still, there's no harm in asking, right? So, the company that really needs an Oracle administrator asks for everything else, just in case.
Now, what happens?
At first, the company that asks for the moon gets nothing, but then it occurs to the IT workers growing desperate for work that the employer has published a wish list, not a true requirements list, so in their desperation they submit their resumes, matching maybe only 10% of the requirements. The employers get 100+ apps for every job advertised, can't handle the volume, and end up turning to recruiters, who probably end up manipulating the deal into something that cost the employers far more than if they'd kept it to themselves. The next ad is lighter on the wish list, maybe even accurate in the needs, but the workers are already used to applying to anything, and so the overall problem doesn't get better. Every job opportunity is met with 100+ applicants, few of whom are actually qualified, and many of the qualified are "round filed" due to the sheer volume of applications.
How do we fix this problem?
We'll start with the employer: only advertise what you need as requirements, and list the bonuses separately. Be realistic in your needs. A network administrator shouldn't be expected to know Java; either you need an administrator or you need a programmer, but don't ask for both as requirements. And does the administrator really need a Bachelor's degree? Or is that just something to try to reduce the volume. If the latter, it isn't working. Finally, list your salary expectations. You'll get a whole lot fewer applications once people see what you plan to pay, especially if you're hiring for an entry-level position.
And for the job hunters, stop applying for everything in sight. You're only making things worse. Only apply if you truly believe you have a shot at the position. If the ad seems genuinely written toward a specific skill set, only apply if you have that skill set. This reduces the number of applications HR has to screen, and increases the odds for the truly qualified. Essentially a win-win situation. And, of course, don't claim a skill if the skill doesn't exist. Not only does it hurt your reputation, but it makes it harder on everyone else who has to follow you.
I recently applied for a job I probably shouldn't have. The position was advertised way below my skill set, but in a moment of weakness, I went ahead and applied.
I was amazed to find myself granted an interview... which lasted a whole 10 minutes. Just long enough for the IT Director to look me in the eye and ask me why I applied for a position clearly beneath me. It then occurred to me why he granted the interview. I was simply a break from the norm, a chance to put his feet up. But I did point out that if he'd published his salary expectations, I wouldn't have responded. Hopefully, we both walked away from that interview a little more prepared for the next time.
Now, I need to teach Bocona to be a little more patient.
As for other things...
Don't forget, if you haven't been there lately, you need to visit Your World News, where you not only keep current on the news, but tell others what news is important to you.
Sunday, July 30, 2006
Google is NOT the answer to passing the Florida Accredited Claims Adjuster exam
To the person who found my blog googling "florida accredited claims adjuster exam answers", I would like to suggest you first google "florida accedited claims adjuster".
By definition, you can't become a Florida Accredited Claims Adjuster without taking a class. If you take the class, you'll have the answers to the exam. It's that simple. What you are probably seeking are the answers to the standard Florida Claims Adjuster exam. That's the exam you can take if you don't take the class. And it's much harder. If you really want to be a claims adjuster in Florida, take my advice and take the class.
Now, that said, I'd also suggest you think about what motivates you to become a claims adjuster. Bocona, seeing dollar signs flashing before her eyes after two years of horrible hurricanes, made me get my license, but without any practical experience in auto repair or construction, it was truly a waste of money.
For what it's worth, I'm still looking for an IT job.
While I have your attention
If you haven't done so, please take the opportunity to visit Your World News, where you have the chance to not only read the news - you can make the news!
By definition, you can't become a Florida Accredited Claims Adjuster without taking a class. If you take the class, you'll have the answers to the exam. It's that simple. What you are probably seeking are the answers to the standard Florida Claims Adjuster exam. That's the exam you can take if you don't take the class. And it's much harder. If you really want to be a claims adjuster in Florida, take my advice and take the class.
Now, that said, I'd also suggest you think about what motivates you to become a claims adjuster. Bocona, seeing dollar signs flashing before her eyes after two years of horrible hurricanes, made me get my license, but without any practical experience in auto repair or construction, it was truly a waste of money.
For what it's worth, I'm still looking for an IT job.
While I have your attention
If you haven't done so, please take the opportunity to visit Your World News, where you have the chance to not only read the news - you can make the news!
Sunday, July 23, 2006
Volunteer editors wanted at Your World News
Last time, I wrote about a social networking project I started. The site, yourworldnews.frayernet.com, is shaping up nicely, but I could use some volunteer help getting more links into the database.
I'm now looking for volunteer editors who might find it entertaining to seek fresh articles on all kinds of subjects. These volunteers will take responsibility for single categories, locating articles and publishing links and descriptions to the database. Categories will be assigned on a first come, first served basis.
You might be surprised at what you find, when you actually go looking for published material on various subjects.
If you think you're in the know, and this sounds like a fun hobby, drop by the site, look it over, then drop us an e-mail at adjuster [at] frayernet.com and make your pitch for a category.
Who knows? You might be getting in early on something big.
I'm now looking for volunteer editors who might find it entertaining to seek fresh articles on all kinds of subjects. These volunteers will take responsibility for single categories, locating articles and publishing links and descriptions to the database. Categories will be assigned on a first come, first served basis.
You might be surprised at what you find, when you actually go looking for published material on various subjects.
If you think you're in the know, and this sounds like a fun hobby, drop by the site, look it over, then drop us an e-mail at adjuster [at] frayernet.com and make your pitch for a category.
Who knows? You might be getting in early on something big.
Thursday, July 20, 2006
"Your World News": My Spare-Time Project
With a little time on my lands, due to my recent layoff, I dusted off some software I had used at ICA, upgraded it, and tossed together an experiment in social networking.
Social networking is all the rage, these days. Blogs, wikis, they're all part of this trend to build a society out of the Internet. I'll save the discussion of the Internet as a society for another blog. Today, I'll spend some time discussing my spare-time project.
I call it "Your World News" and it can be found at http://yourworldnews.frayernet.com. I think of it as a news gathering site... kind of a digital newspaper where I don't actually publish the articles. Instead, I link to articles from all kinds of sources, on all kinds of subjects. I'm adding categories on the fly, so I built an "Other" category for people to put links that don't yet have categories.
Oh, right, I forgot to mention, I'm not the only one collecting these links. Visitors are encouraged to register and contribute links to their favorite articles. Further, registered users can bookmark their favorite links, and can create public bookmark folders where other registered users can check out their selections. The links are moderated by myself or an editor before they go online, so they can be kept reasonably clean. To help pay for the site (remember, I've returned to the ranks of the unemployed), the site sells classified advertising links, and I'll negotiate banner ads/sponsorships if anyone is interested.
So, check out my news gathering site, and let us know what you think.
Meanwhile, I'll get another batch of resumes ready to go out!
Social networking is all the rage, these days. Blogs, wikis, they're all part of this trend to build a society out of the Internet. I'll save the discussion of the Internet as a society for another blog. Today, I'll spend some time discussing my spare-time project.
I call it "Your World News" and it can be found at http://yourworldnews.frayernet.com. I think of it as a news gathering site... kind of a digital newspaper where I don't actually publish the articles. Instead, I link to articles from all kinds of sources, on all kinds of subjects. I'm adding categories on the fly, so I built an "Other" category for people to put links that don't yet have categories.
Oh, right, I forgot to mention, I'm not the only one collecting these links. Visitors are encouraged to register and contribute links to their favorite articles. Further, registered users can bookmark their favorite links, and can create public bookmark folders where other registered users can check out their selections. The links are moderated by myself or an editor before they go online, so they can be kept reasonably clean. To help pay for the site (remember, I've returned to the ranks of the unemployed), the site sells classified advertising links, and I'll negotiate banner ads/sponsorships if anyone is interested.
So, check out my news gathering site, and let us know what you think.
Meanwhile, I'll get another batch of resumes ready to go out!
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
I think I was here before
What an interesting ride...
The idea behind my.com was to market website design services to small, local businesses. These are businesses that have a very limited geographical market, such as family-owned pizza shops or auto repair shops. Such businesses have no use for the global market (or even the national market) traditionally served by the Web, and because of this, they've given very little thought to building a website.
Pressure is on local companies to establish a web presence, however. Their traditional marketing channel, the phone book, is losing market share, as people become even more comfortable doing their pre-sale shopping online. Shoppers have been turning to search engines to find the products they seek, even when they plan to make the purchase at brick-and-mortar locations. The losers in this picture are those small, local businesses without an effective web presence. Those that do catch on often pay hobbyists for low-price, ineffective sites, or they go to boutiques that charge high design fees as well as high hosting fees for better sites. Even those well-designed sites tend to get little traffic, as they are lost in searches to the national chains.
Small local businesses have a few unique needs typically not addressed by traditional website design. These companies rarely need true e-commerce capabilities, yet they still need to be designed to inspire action by the visitor. Just as importantly, these sites need to be search-engine optimized (the right way) for local results. It isn't important for a pizza shop to rank high on a search for "pizza" but it is important that the shop ranks high on a search for "pizza [town-name]". Most designers seem to miss that point.
Run with the idea
my.com didn't miss that point. They knew what needed to be done locally, but to be very successful at it, they needed local, physical presence in those communities. They needed right-minded people to guide the local businesses in getting the job done right.
They didn't want to be a boutique. They wanted to be thousands of boutiques, scattered across the U.S., with the advantage of a central development team and the economy of centralized hosting. So the plan was to franchise the concept. And they thought they had all the pieces to do just that.
They started with the domain. Their domain name, my.com, was perhaps the only two-letter domain name that had never actually been put in use. It cost them dearly to acquire, but it held a potential gold mine; without actually providing any content, the domain was ranked well inside Alexa's top 100,000 sites in the world. So exposure shouldn't have been a problem.
Next, they acquired a boutique that had already demonstrated an understanding of the local business' needs, and supplemented that by hiring one of the top names in Cold Fusion development, Hal Helms, to head their programming efforts. Because the hosting operation was going to do some serious growth, they pulled together a team of serious systems administrators, and hired a couple guys (including yours truly) to head up the technical support department (no outsourcing for this company!). Their SEO squad was trained by one of the best in the business: Bruce Clay. They even hired a crack team of franchise marketers to sell the concept.
Did anyone get the license number of that truck?
Ducks in a row, they launched their website mid-June. The visitor count soared.
And one month later, my.com went out of business. The one thing they didn't count on was that no one was interested in learning more about how to become a my.com franchisee.
Now, until they closed their doors, I was restricted from talking about them... trade secrets and all. I was released from that restriction when they released me from their payroll. If anyone cares, I can offer up my more detailed opinions on what went wrong, but for now I'll say this.
Any true entrepreneur should know that you can't expect any start-up to turn a profit during the first 2-3 years. These guys didn't give the business the time it required. They expected too much, too fast. And now a good idea is left for someone else to capitalize on.
And I'm back where I was four months ago.
Anyone in Tampa Bay need an experienced IT manager?
The idea behind my.com was to market website design services to small, local businesses. These are businesses that have a very limited geographical market, such as family-owned pizza shops or auto repair shops. Such businesses have no use for the global market (or even the national market) traditionally served by the Web, and because of this, they've given very little thought to building a website.
Pressure is on local companies to establish a web presence, however. Their traditional marketing channel, the phone book, is losing market share, as people become even more comfortable doing their pre-sale shopping online. Shoppers have been turning to search engines to find the products they seek, even when they plan to make the purchase at brick-and-mortar locations. The losers in this picture are those small, local businesses without an effective web presence. Those that do catch on often pay hobbyists for low-price, ineffective sites, or they go to boutiques that charge high design fees as well as high hosting fees for better sites. Even those well-designed sites tend to get little traffic, as they are lost in searches to the national chains.
Small local businesses have a few unique needs typically not addressed by traditional website design. These companies rarely need true e-commerce capabilities, yet they still need to be designed to inspire action by the visitor. Just as importantly, these sites need to be search-engine optimized (the right way) for local results. It isn't important for a pizza shop to rank high on a search for "pizza" but it is important that the shop ranks high on a search for "pizza [town-name]". Most designers seem to miss that point.
Run with the idea
my.com didn't miss that point. They knew what needed to be done locally, but to be very successful at it, they needed local, physical presence in those communities. They needed right-minded people to guide the local businesses in getting the job done right.
They didn't want to be a boutique. They wanted to be thousands of boutiques, scattered across the U.S., with the advantage of a central development team and the economy of centralized hosting. So the plan was to franchise the concept. And they thought they had all the pieces to do just that.
They started with the domain. Their domain name, my.com, was perhaps the only two-letter domain name that had never actually been put in use. It cost them dearly to acquire, but it held a potential gold mine; without actually providing any content, the domain was ranked well inside Alexa's top 100,000 sites in the world. So exposure shouldn't have been a problem.
Next, they acquired a boutique that had already demonstrated an understanding of the local business' needs, and supplemented that by hiring one of the top names in Cold Fusion development, Hal Helms, to head their programming efforts. Because the hosting operation was going to do some serious growth, they pulled together a team of serious systems administrators, and hired a couple guys (including yours truly) to head up the technical support department (no outsourcing for this company!). Their SEO squad was trained by one of the best in the business: Bruce Clay. They even hired a crack team of franchise marketers to sell the concept.
Did anyone get the license number of that truck?
Ducks in a row, they launched their website mid-June. The visitor count soared.
And one month later, my.com went out of business. The one thing they didn't count on was that no one was interested in learning more about how to become a my.com franchisee.
Now, until they closed their doors, I was restricted from talking about them... trade secrets and all. I was released from that restriction when they released me from their payroll. If anyone cares, I can offer up my more detailed opinions on what went wrong, but for now I'll say this.
Any true entrepreneur should know that you can't expect any start-up to turn a profit during the first 2-3 years. These guys didn't give the business the time it required. They expected too much, too fast. And now a good idea is left for someone else to capitalize on.
And I'm back where I was four months ago.
Anyone in Tampa Bay need an experienced IT manager?
Sunday, June 18, 2006
Problems are opportunities to learn valuable lessons
Anyone can make a mistake - even Verizon. But protocol must be followed.
An accounting error caused my phone line to be disconnected. Now, my phone line exists for only one real reason: to host my DSL line. For those not savvy in such things, DSL is technology that allows high-bandwidth data traffic to be carried over the plain copper lines used for phone traffic, and to have that service, a phone line must exist at the subscriber's site. The benefit, to me, is that the line is dedicated to me; cable modem provides high-bandwidth traffic as well, but subscribers share a network segment, so a densely populated area carries your traffic as well as that of your neighbors. This permits the speed on a cable modem to vary based on the number of users on the segment, while DSL provides less speed fluctuation. Also, since no one else is on my line, DSL is somewhat more secure than cable modem, which offers the chance for a neighbor (who technically sits on the same network you use) to "share" your PC without your knowledge.
But back to the story
When the phone line was disconnected, DSL was not interrupted. An intercept was placed on the voice line, but since we don't use the voice line, we never caught on. Now, I compounded the error by never using the e-mail box Verizon provided for the service. Verizon probably sent me an e-mail about my impending disaster, but I never saw it. Eventually, the intercept turned into a disconnect, and that was when everything fell apart.
When the DSL was disconnected, I sent Bocona to the local Verizon store to get things straightened out. After some undetermined period of discussion between Verizon and Bocona (and I'd hate to have been the Verizon rep facing Bocona), the voice line was restored with the same number, but since the line had been disconnected, the service was restored with a different circuit. That wasn't discovered until the following weekend; when I came home, I found the DSL still down, and placed a call to technical support.
Why I don't like outsourced Tier I support
I spent two hours on the phone with Tier I technical support (from the voice, the TSR was probably located somewhere in the Orient), who was unable to discover the problem, and who referred the problem to a lineman. Two days later, the line people called to say they were still working on the problem. On Saturday (nearly a week after the problem started), I called again.
Another hour with Tier I TSR, then I was transferred to Tier II, where I learned the circuit had changed and the line could not be re-established with the old circuit. I needed a new DSL order, and to get that I had to disconnect the old DSL (even though it was already physically disconnected), and order a new one. Tier II could enter a disconnect order on the old line; I couldn't order a new one until the disconnect order had been acted on, and even then, I'd have to order the new line through sales.
Sales wouldn't be open until Monday.
Bureaucracy strikes again
On Monday, the disconnect order was still pending. It wasn't until Friday that Bocona could actually request the new service with sales. And when she did, they told her the new service wouldn't be ready until the following Friday at 6 PM. There was no way to speed the process.
Friday at 6 PM, I was sitting in front of my trusty PC, reconnecting to the Internet. Connecting a single PC to the world was no problem, but connecting my Linksys router was another story. That, I saved for Saturday morning.
Hey, Verizon! Accuracy counts!
Verizon Online has a website with a nice collection of troubleshooting pages. I soon found instructions for connecting my router, which required changing the configuration of the DSL modem. I followed the instructions, but the router was still without a connection, so, with great reluctance, I called technical support again. I probably could have solved this on my own, but I didn't want to cause any further damage, so I played the sheep and let the shepherds do their job.
Another hour with Tier I, who was convinced the problem was in my modem. He was right, but for the wrong reasons. Tier I thought the modem was broken. Tier II went straight to the heart of the matter. The documentation on the Verizon site was inaccurate, expecting my router to get its connection via point-to-point protocol over Ethernet (PPPoE). The fact is, Verizon doesn't use PPPoE, and so all I needed to do was make the required changes to the modem and ignore the instructions for setting the router for PPPoE. In five minutes, I was online.
Lessons learned
These are valuable lessons, and I'm in a position to take good advantage of them, but I'm afraid I can't tell you about that... for now.
An accounting error caused my phone line to be disconnected. Now, my phone line exists for only one real reason: to host my DSL line. For those not savvy in such things, DSL is technology that allows high-bandwidth data traffic to be carried over the plain copper lines used for phone traffic, and to have that service, a phone line must exist at the subscriber's site. The benefit, to me, is that the line is dedicated to me; cable modem provides high-bandwidth traffic as well, but subscribers share a network segment, so a densely populated area carries your traffic as well as that of your neighbors. This permits the speed on a cable modem to vary based on the number of users on the segment, while DSL provides less speed fluctuation. Also, since no one else is on my line, DSL is somewhat more secure than cable modem, which offers the chance for a neighbor (who technically sits on the same network you use) to "share" your PC without your knowledge.
But back to the story
When the phone line was disconnected, DSL was not interrupted. An intercept was placed on the voice line, but since we don't use the voice line, we never caught on. Now, I compounded the error by never using the e-mail box Verizon provided for the service. Verizon probably sent me an e-mail about my impending disaster, but I never saw it. Eventually, the intercept turned into a disconnect, and that was when everything fell apart.
When the DSL was disconnected, I sent Bocona to the local Verizon store to get things straightened out. After some undetermined period of discussion between Verizon and Bocona (and I'd hate to have been the Verizon rep facing Bocona), the voice line was restored with the same number, but since the line had been disconnected, the service was restored with a different circuit. That wasn't discovered until the following weekend; when I came home, I found the DSL still down, and placed a call to technical support.
Why I don't like outsourced Tier I support
I spent two hours on the phone with Tier I technical support (from the voice, the TSR was probably located somewhere in the Orient), who was unable to discover the problem, and who referred the problem to a lineman. Two days later, the line people called to say they were still working on the problem. On Saturday (nearly a week after the problem started), I called again.
Another hour with Tier I TSR, then I was transferred to Tier II, where I learned the circuit had changed and the line could not be re-established with the old circuit. I needed a new DSL order, and to get that I had to disconnect the old DSL (even though it was already physically disconnected), and order a new one. Tier II could enter a disconnect order on the old line; I couldn't order a new one until the disconnect order had been acted on, and even then, I'd have to order the new line through sales.
Sales wouldn't be open until Monday.
Bureaucracy strikes again
On Monday, the disconnect order was still pending. It wasn't until Friday that Bocona could actually request the new service with sales. And when she did, they told her the new service wouldn't be ready until the following Friday at 6 PM. There was no way to speed the process.
Friday at 6 PM, I was sitting in front of my trusty PC, reconnecting to the Internet. Connecting a single PC to the world was no problem, but connecting my Linksys router was another story. That, I saved for Saturday morning.
Hey, Verizon! Accuracy counts!
Verizon Online has a website with a nice collection of troubleshooting pages. I soon found instructions for connecting my router, which required changing the configuration of the DSL modem. I followed the instructions, but the router was still without a connection, so, with great reluctance, I called technical support again. I probably could have solved this on my own, but I didn't want to cause any further damage, so I played the sheep and let the shepherds do their job.
Another hour with Tier I, who was convinced the problem was in my modem. He was right, but for the wrong reasons. Tier I thought the modem was broken. Tier II went straight to the heart of the matter. The documentation on the Verizon site was inaccurate, expecting my router to get its connection via point-to-point protocol over Ethernet (PPPoE). The fact is, Verizon doesn't use PPPoE, and so all I needed to do was make the required changes to the modem and ignore the instructions for setting the router for PPPoE. In five minutes, I was online.
Lessons learned
- Pay closer attention to accounting issues.
- Use the voice line occasionally.
- Check the Verizon e-mails occasionally, even if I don't use it for anything else.
- And, unfortunately, no matter how frustrating it is, there is no way to get to Tier II without putting up with the shenanigans of the outsourced Tier I.
These are valuable lessons, and I'm in a position to take good advantage of them, but I'm afraid I can't tell you about that... for now.
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
New, Improved Traffic School?
When last I wrote, I was trying to choose an online traffic school after getting a speeding ticket. I must admit my feedback, both public and private, was weak. Bocona wanted me to stop the nonsense and simply take the classroom program. I didn't see that as a worthwhile use of my time, however, and so I made my choice.
First, a trip to the Florida DMV website for a list of authorized schools, since the potential for scamming me was pretty high. It turns out that there is more than one list at the DMV, and they don't match. They don't offer URLs, either. I did find "Improv Comedy Traffic Schools of Florida" on one list, and called the provided phone number to get their URL. A good call on my part; their URL did not match the Improv school from my postcard collection.
A Little Background Data
The Improv I was referred to by the state is at www.4trafficschoolbyimprov.com. This URL belongs to the American Institute for Public Safety, but I didn't stay at that URL for long. Before I knew it, I was handed off to the aipsawaredriveronline.com domain, owned by the same company.
I was beginning to suspect all of these solicitations ultimately end at the same place, a suspicion that only grew as I took the course. Without taking another class, which I don't intend to do without serious compensation, I can't prove my suspicion that all of these companies are selling the same class... but it seemed pretty likely.
More Than Just Comedy
The principal selling point for the school I chose was comedy, but it did have other redeeming values. For my $23.95 fee, I would have my choice of having my certificate mailed to me, e-mail to me, or both. No extra charge. I pay more for rush service, such as FedEx, but that's to be expected. Of course, e-mailing my certificate required me to give them my e-mail address, which I declined to do, so I selected the snail mail route.
I was also instructed to provide the answers to about a dozen security questions. It wasn't important that the answers were correct - just reproducible. I would be asked these questions at random times, to insure I was still in front of the computer. I would have two minutes to answer a security question correctly before getting kicked out of school. And no, I couldn't print the list - I'd have to hand write the list if I were thinking of cheating.
As For the Course
The course was arranged in a series of chapters, each with its own two-question quiz, and each timed so that I would spend a minimum of four hours in front of the computer. Speed reading wouldn't help; I could not move on until the time was up. I could retake each chapter if I chose, but could not take the final exam until I took each chapter.
But that wasn't so bad, right? At least I would have four hours of comedy... and then I remembered that comedy is loosely defined as the opposite of tragedy. My columns have more humor than those chapters did! I only had one LOL (laugh-out-loud, for the uninformed) moment. I only rarely got beyond a smile. It was the content that built the suspicion that every school used the same class.
Finally, the Test
The test was not difficult. Multiple-choice. I think 80% was passing, but I admit I've forgotten that detail. I missed two questions. Had I failed, I could have taken it again. I could review the chapters between tests, but the test itself was "closed book".
When I finished, I was told I could look forward to receiving my certificate in 5 to 10 business days.
And Waiting
10 business days later I was still missing my certificate. I began to wish I had traded by e-mail address for my certificate.
I found the postcard for Improv and called the number on the card. They had no record of me (not all Improvs are the same). I had bookmarked the website, so I returned there and found the contact number.
They found me, and they said they mailed the certificate, but couldn't tell me the date.
Riiight!
"Mail it again," I told them. When I asked, they told me it would mail from Miami. Okay, I'd give them four days, and if I didn't get it then, they could look forward to another call.
Four days later, the certificate arrived (and the original mailing is still missing). It was mailed by "Aware Driver" in North Miami.
Big sigh of relief!
Would I Do It Again?
Were I unlucky enough to get another ticket, the online school was better than the classroom, but curiosity might make me pick another school, to see if there really is a difference. But yes, online was the right choice for me, and this school was a fairly safe choice. Maybe next time I'd use a disposable e-mail address.
Better still, I'll simply try to avoid getting another ticket.
First, a trip to the Florida DMV website for a list of authorized schools, since the potential for scamming me was pretty high. It turns out that there is more than one list at the DMV, and they don't match. They don't offer URLs, either. I did find "Improv Comedy Traffic Schools of Florida" on one list, and called the provided phone number to get their URL. A good call on my part; their URL did not match the Improv school from my postcard collection.
A Little Background Data
The Improv I was referred to by the state is at www.4trafficschoolbyimprov.com. This URL belongs to the American Institute for Public Safety, but I didn't stay at that URL for long. Before I knew it, I was handed off to the aipsawaredriveronline.com domain, owned by the same company.
I was beginning to suspect all of these solicitations ultimately end at the same place, a suspicion that only grew as I took the course. Without taking another class, which I don't intend to do without serious compensation, I can't prove my suspicion that all of these companies are selling the same class... but it seemed pretty likely.
More Than Just Comedy
The principal selling point for the school I chose was comedy, but it did have other redeeming values. For my $23.95 fee, I would have my choice of having my certificate mailed to me, e-mail to me, or both. No extra charge. I pay more for rush service, such as FedEx, but that's to be expected. Of course, e-mailing my certificate required me to give them my e-mail address, which I declined to do, so I selected the snail mail route.
I was also instructed to provide the answers to about a dozen security questions. It wasn't important that the answers were correct - just reproducible. I would be asked these questions at random times, to insure I was still in front of the computer. I would have two minutes to answer a security question correctly before getting kicked out of school. And no, I couldn't print the list - I'd have to hand write the list if I were thinking of cheating.
As For the Course
The course was arranged in a series of chapters, each with its own two-question quiz, and each timed so that I would spend a minimum of four hours in front of the computer. Speed reading wouldn't help; I could not move on until the time was up. I could retake each chapter if I chose, but could not take the final exam until I took each chapter.
But that wasn't so bad, right? At least I would have four hours of comedy... and then I remembered that comedy is loosely defined as the opposite of tragedy. My columns have more humor than those chapters did! I only had one LOL (laugh-out-loud, for the uninformed) moment. I only rarely got beyond a smile. It was the content that built the suspicion that every school used the same class.
Finally, the Test
The test was not difficult. Multiple-choice. I think 80% was passing, but I admit I've forgotten that detail. I missed two questions. Had I failed, I could have taken it again. I could review the chapters between tests, but the test itself was "closed book".
When I finished, I was told I could look forward to receiving my certificate in 5 to 10 business days.
And Waiting
10 business days later I was still missing my certificate. I began to wish I had traded by e-mail address for my certificate.
I found the postcard for Improv and called the number on the card. They had no record of me (not all Improvs are the same). I had bookmarked the website, so I returned there and found the contact number.
They found me, and they said they mailed the certificate, but couldn't tell me the date.
Riiight!
"Mail it again," I told them. When I asked, they told me it would mail from Miami. Okay, I'd give them four days, and if I didn't get it then, they could look forward to another call.
Four days later, the certificate arrived (and the original mailing is still missing). It was mailed by "Aware Driver" in North Miami.
Big sigh of relief!
Would I Do It Again?
Were I unlucky enough to get another ticket, the online school was better than the classroom, but curiosity might make me pick another school, to see if there really is a difference. But yes, online was the right choice for me, and this school was a fairly safe choice. Maybe next time I'd use a disposable e-mail address.
Better still, I'll simply try to avoid getting another ticket.
Thursday, April 20, 2006
Traffic School not what it used to be
I was a bad boy. 56 MPH in a 40 MPH zone.
Not that I believe I was as bad as that, but I'm not about to risk $500 on the possibility that I can convince the judge the officer had bumped the speed up a notch to make it more painful. I drive a fast looking car. I passed a slow-moving vehicle (which was in the left lane of a four-lane highway). And I can make all the excuses in the world.
I got caught. I got a ticket. And to avoid the biggest penalties in Florida, I have traffic school.
Quite a few years ago, I got nailed for 72 in a 55 zone. It was a righteous bust; I was remarkably stupid on some things, even when I was on top of my game as a pundit. I chose the traffic school route then as well. As the Internet had not yet come into its own, traffic school was a Saturday morning class at the only game in town - and boring. So boring, I'm sure someone had to make a B-movie about it, because it was so easy to parody.
Times have changed. Within days that had become obvious to me. I've received no fewer than a dozen invitations to enroll in a traffic school, and most offer options: classroom, of course, but also videotape, DVD, and even the Internet. Traffic school from the comfort of my living room or office.
And some of them even promise to be funny.
I'll drop names, but not links, because every one of them most certainly contribute to the spam problem in the blogosphere. I know this, because I went looking. I wanted to know what bloggers thought about each of these schools, and instead of well-composed opinions, I found countless ad blogs with no redeeming value. I wouldn't spend money on any of them, except that I do want the services of one of them. The only question is which?
These are only a few of my choices. With the clock running, I turn to you, my readers, and ask for feedback on these courses. Let me know your thoughts on who's legit, who isn't. Please help me from getting burned.
Not that I believe I was as bad as that, but I'm not about to risk $500 on the possibility that I can convince the judge the officer had bumped the speed up a notch to make it more painful. I drive a fast looking car. I passed a slow-moving vehicle (which was in the left lane of a four-lane highway). And I can make all the excuses in the world.
I got caught. I got a ticket. And to avoid the biggest penalties in Florida, I have traffic school.
Quite a few years ago, I got nailed for 72 in a 55 zone. It was a righteous bust; I was remarkably stupid on some things, even when I was on top of my game as a pundit. I chose the traffic school route then as well. As the Internet had not yet come into its own, traffic school was a Saturday morning class at the only game in town - and boring. So boring, I'm sure someone had to make a B-movie about it, because it was so easy to parody.
Times have changed. Within days that had become obvious to me. I've received no fewer than a dozen invitations to enroll in a traffic school, and most offer options: classroom, of course, but also videotape, DVD, and even the Internet. Traffic school from the comfort of my living room or office.
And some of them even promise to be funny.
I'll drop names, but not links, because every one of them most certainly contribute to the spam problem in the blogosphere. I know this, because I went looking. I wanted to know what bloggers thought about each of these schools, and instead of well-composed opinions, I found countless ad blogs with no redeeming value. I wouldn't spend money on any of them, except that I do want the services of one of them. The only question is which?
- American Safety Council offers "the lowest price without hidden fees" ($18.88) and tells me of "fees" charged by others (ranging from $2.50 to $7.50) that they suggest are not legit fees. I believe them on the fees issue, just as car dealers charge fees that aren't anything more than efforts to boost profit. But that doesn't mean I have to buy from them.
- Sarasota County Technical Institute, an entity run by a local school board, will charge me $25 to go to school, or $32 to attend on the web. I know they're legit, but they're likely to be as boring as my first time at traffic school.
- CheaperinFlorida, a dot com, doesn't give me a physical or mailing address (unless I visit their site to find a classroom), and starts their price at $13.95, plus a "state fee surcharge" that American Safety Council says might be as much as $2.50. And who knows about other fees applied at the point of purchase. But they say they have comedy classes.
- Improv Traffic School certainly implies comedy, but doesn't come out and say so in their postcard. They claim they will beat any accredited traffic school by $2.00... probably before tacking on those fees.
- FunnyinFlorida is definitely comedy-oriented, with classroom sessions costing $25, video and DVD for $29.95, and Internet for $24.95. No mention of "fees" and they "guarantee" the lowest price.
These are only a few of my choices. With the clock running, I turn to you, my readers, and ask for feedback on these courses. Let me know your thoughts on who's legit, who isn't. Please help me from getting burned.
Thursday, April 13, 2006
Google is only doing what Google knows best
Lately, I've been reading criticism of what some call Google's two-faced
attitude towards censorship. These critics can't understand how Google
can justify cooperating with the Chinese government in censoring search
results to Chinese IPs, and at the same time refusing to cooperate with
the United States government in their efforts to fight Internet pornography.
Some pundits aren't surprised by the behavior. When Google cooperates
with the Chinese government, it makes sure it can have access to the
Chinese populace - something Google has to find desirable - and Google
never promised to be a political champion. Meanwhile, Google's fight
against the U.S. government's request for search results appears to be
anti-censorship, pro-privacy, and a little pro-pornography, but to these
pundits it's really a matter of looking good to its customers.
I don't see this to be so complex. I agree with the pundits who look at
Google's decision to filter the Chinese market as a business decision.
As a public corporation, this really shouldn't be a surprise; Google has
to do what's best for Google. As for their struggle with the U.S.
government, Google must also continue to do what's best for Google. This
means resisting requests for information that exceeds the government's
legitimate need. If the U.S. government is trying to build a case
against Internet pornography, it doesn't need Google to provide a list
of every request for pornography that it received. Statistics should be
sufficient, as no court is going to want to review individual requests.
The government should be more interested in where the porn exists, and
for that, they should have to perform a search, just like everyone else
(a search would also tell them a lot more about how easy it is or isn't
to find the content they wish to find). So, fighting the request
protects the privacy of their users, prevents confidential information
from becoming public record, and protects the business interests of
Google... which is, of course, what Google is mandated to do by virtue
of its public status.
So, don't blame Google for its seemingly inconsistent policies. Google
is simply being Google. It isn't politics. It's business.
Tuesday, April 04, 2006
Pinch me - - Please!
It was one of those dreams.
You know the one. The one where you're in a video rental store, trying to rent The Ten Commandments and the clerk asks, "What format would you like it in?"
"BetaMax," you reply, thinking this kid is way too young to be renting videos.
"We don't rent betas of anything. What format do you want?"
And it keeps going like that. Then you realize the kid probably hasn't been keeping up, so the next time you add, "... You know, the format Sony is backing for movies?"
"Oh, you mean Blu-Ray! Let me check... Oh, I'm sorry, but the studio hasn't released your title in that format, yet."
Then you wake in a cold sweat.
You've had that dream, haven't you?
It started for me when I heard there were two standards for high-definition DVDs under development. The first, supporting between 25 and 50 gigs of content, is called Blu-Ray, and is supported by the likes of Philips, Panasonic, Pioneer, Apple, Dell, various studios and... Sony.
The second, called HD-DVD, supports only 15 to 30 gigs of content, but it's supported by Toshiba, NEC, Intel, and... Microsoft.
So, we have two standards. The superior standard is backed by Sony. The inferior standard is backed by just about everyone else (where just about everyone else = Microsoft). Now, who's likely to win out?
Hint: in the First Video War, Sony backed the superior BetaMax against the inferior VHS. And that was before Microsoft ever entered the picture.
Sometimes this punditing job is just too easy.
Saturday, March 18, 2006
I Could Tell You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You
In my last blog, I promised to tell you what I could about my new employers. Well, here we go...
I can tell you -- nothing!
My new employers are very tight-lipped about what we do. I can't even tell you what I do when I work there. Hopefully, some day they will lighten up and give me some room to talk (and maybe I can even score an interview with the CEO for a future blog), but for now I wouldn't hold my breath.
Just be happy someone is willing to pay me to do something on a regular basis.
Now, on other fronts...
About a week ago, I picked up a rumor that Google and Sun were talking acquisition. There were plenty of naysayers to that idea, yet the rumor persists. Rather than discuss how likely the event would be, I'd rather talk about what it might mean as a result.
Sun's biggest revenue generator is still its hardware. I was about to suggest that Google might spin off the Sparc business when it struck me that there was a reason for Google to want some hardware -- you might recall some loose talk about a Google PC? I'm not saying that SPARCstations would be ideal for the purpose, but if you wanted the software arm of Sun and was stuck with the hardware arm, there are worse ways to get to where you want to be.
But, as I said, it's the software arm that would be appealing to Google. Before anyone forgets, Google's top dog was a honcho at Sun once-upon-a-time, and big on Java. It might be that Google has some Java-driven projects that might be more practical if they didn't have to pay license fees on its use.
Then there's this thing called OpenOffice.org (and the less-open relative, StarOffice). Sun and Google had already entered into a cooperation pact that left quite a few people speculating about a web-based version of OpenOffice.org. Some recent, related, acquisitions suggest to me that Google has already bought the people needed to build a web-office suite; would Google apply that knowledge to a fork of OpenOffice.org? Might Google kill the StarOffice product, and force OpenOffice.org to go independent, giving its own web-office suite a chance to catch up?
Google clearly doesn't like Microsoft, so I'm inclined to think such a merger would be good for OpenOffice.org. I'd look for Google to offer more developers to the project, but I also think StarOffice might go away, as Google wouldn't have a practical use for it. I also think Google would then use it's new leverage to put serious development effort into a web-hosted fork of the popular open source office suite.
Of course, I have no inside knowledge of any of this. It's just speculation. Don't make any investments without making your routine investigations.
Oh, and have a nice day!
I can tell you -- nothing!
My new employers are very tight-lipped about what we do. I can't even tell you what I do when I work there. Hopefully, some day they will lighten up and give me some room to talk (and maybe I can even score an interview with the CEO for a future blog), but for now I wouldn't hold my breath.
Just be happy someone is willing to pay me to do something on a regular basis.
Now, on other fronts...
About a week ago, I picked up a rumor that Google and Sun were talking acquisition. There were plenty of naysayers to that idea, yet the rumor persists. Rather than discuss how likely the event would be, I'd rather talk about what it might mean as a result.
Sun's biggest revenue generator is still its hardware. I was about to suggest that Google might spin off the Sparc business when it struck me that there was a reason for Google to want some hardware -- you might recall some loose talk about a Google PC? I'm not saying that SPARCstations would be ideal for the purpose, but if you wanted the software arm of Sun and was stuck with the hardware arm, there are worse ways to get to where you want to be.
But, as I said, it's the software arm that would be appealing to Google. Before anyone forgets, Google's top dog was a honcho at Sun once-upon-a-time, and big on Java. It might be that Google has some Java-driven projects that might be more practical if they didn't have to pay license fees on its use.
Then there's this thing called OpenOffice.org (and the less-open relative, StarOffice). Sun and Google had already entered into a cooperation pact that left quite a few people speculating about a web-based version of OpenOffice.org. Some recent, related, acquisitions suggest to me that Google has already bought the people needed to build a web-office suite; would Google apply that knowledge to a fork of OpenOffice.org? Might Google kill the StarOffice product, and force OpenOffice.org to go independent, giving its own web-office suite a chance to catch up?
Google clearly doesn't like Microsoft, so I'm inclined to think such a merger would be good for OpenOffice.org. I'd look for Google to offer more developers to the project, but I also think StarOffice might go away, as Google wouldn't have a practical use for it. I also think Google would then use it's new leverage to put serious development effort into a web-hosted fork of the popular open source office suite.
Of course, I have no inside knowledge of any of this. It's just speculation. Don't make any investments without making your routine investigations.
Oh, and have a nice day!
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