On CNN today, Ali Velshi did a bit on the 30th anniversary of AOL. He interviewed Steve Case, former CEO and discussed AOL's meteoric rise in the early and mid-90's how and how their membership numbered in the millions, and howby purchasing Time Warner it became the world's largest media conglomerate.
Then, predictably, he asked what happened? Why did people suddenly leave AOL in droves?
As a former AOL tech support rep, I think I can answer that. AOL is fine for people with no clue. However, as they become more sophisticated, they begin to see the many ways in which AOL is lacking. They begin to get tired of the inherent limitations of AOL's proprietary software. They tire of the advertising slapped onto every damn bit of virtual real estate available. They become annoyed that AOL doesn't play nice with other software.
For me personally, the cutting point was calling America Online for support with a password issue and getting a rep with an obvious Indian accent who called himself "Sean." I called back with a follow up question and got a girl with an obvious Indian accent calling herself "Betty." Glad to see that AOL's Albuquerque call center, which employed 1200 people when I worked there, is no longer there -- and AOL is a primary out-sourcer of jobs to India.
Jesus. At least when I answered the phone, it was with my real name.
Great going.
Ink Paper Words' Profile
- ~j~
- Pacific Northwest, United States
- In elementary school, I desperately wanted my mother to order books for me from those flyers Scholastic hands out to kids. She refused, citing the "perfectly good library down the street." I exacted revenge by becoming a card-carrying ALA accredited reference librarian. Ha! Take that!
Monday, May 24, 2010
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Victorian Literature and the "Beautiful Lunatic"
Women in the Victorian era must have been fragile creatures indeed. Look at the novel Jane Eyre. The most memorable character in it is Rochester's wife, whom he keeps tidily tucked away in an unfrequented wing of his estate.She escaped one night and tried to set fire to someone's room (offhand I don't remember whether it was Jane's or Rochester's). It all seemed to have been prompted by her jealousy over Jane marrying Rochester -- especially since she was still married to him
The other night Wide Sargasso Sea, a prequel to Jane Eyre, was on Dish Network. Since I am generally a fan, as my son Chris would say, of movies where there are "people speaking English," I thought I'd give it a whirl Sure enough, there was mention of Antoinette, the protagonist's, mother becoming a lunatic. The husband, Edward Rochester, is accosted by Antoinette's black half brother and informed of a family history of lunacy. He then begins to look for signs of it in Antoinette and is not disappointed.
However, as Antoinette explains to Rochester, her mother was locked away and labeled a "lunatic" shortly after her husband cheated on her. Rochester then proceeds to cheat on Antoinette with one of her servants. Antoinette is betrayed and justifiably upset.
I have come to the conclusion that "lunatic" was simply an appellation given to women who were unhappy over their husbands' infidelity. Lunatic was a convenient method of getting these women out of the way so that men could do whatever they wanted without having to hear their wives' pain.
The other night Wide Sargasso Sea, a prequel to Jane Eyre, was on Dish Network. Since I am generally a fan, as my son Chris would say, of movies where there are "people speaking English," I thought I'd give it a whirl Sure enough, there was mention of Antoinette, the protagonist's, mother becoming a lunatic. The husband, Edward Rochester, is accosted by Antoinette's black half brother and informed of a family history of lunacy. He then begins to look for signs of it in Antoinette and is not disappointed.
However, as Antoinette explains to Rochester, her mother was locked away and labeled a "lunatic" shortly after her husband cheated on her. Rochester then proceeds to cheat on Antoinette with one of her servants. Antoinette is betrayed and justifiably upset.
I have come to the conclusion that "lunatic" was simply an appellation given to women who were unhappy over their husbands' infidelity. Lunatic was a convenient method of getting these women out of the way so that men could do whatever they wanted without having to hear their wives' pain.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Oprah's Unauthorized Bio and Hipocrisy
Wow. I can't believe that TPTB are so lined up against Kitty Kelley about this, her what, 20, 30th un-authorized biography brings.
Come on, if the British royal family can't stop her from publishing (although they apparently were successful in having the book not published or sold in the UK) what makes Oprah think she can? I realize that she is the Queen of all Media – perhaps she should ditch Steadman and go with Howard Stern).
Oprah, honey, this just makes you look like one big censor and hypocrite. You wouldn't have the slightest problem having any other authors on, you've had KK on before – at least when the subject was someone else.
BTW I would never have bought this book. But the media backlash itself creates a demand. Sort of like when the Vatican came out against The Da Vinci Code and guaranteed a readership of millions. I won't buy the book but now I probably will check it out of the library.
Furthermore, I hear that while threats are made, no one has actually sued Kitty Kelley. Perhaps the basis for this is that the defense for slander/libel is that you are telling the truth.
There has always been a dichotomy between what an "unauthorized" biographer and the subject would say. Obviously, the authorized biographer has been told not to disclose certain things. That alone makes an authorized bio suspect. In this case, as with her other bios that rankled the subject, I think it's in all probability right on.
Regardless what anyone thinks of Kitty Kelley in general (and again, it should be pointed out that Oprah has no problem with exposes of OTHER people) truth is the standard defense again libel/slander.
Come on, if the British royal family can't stop her from publishing (although they apparently were successful in having the book not published or sold in the UK) what makes Oprah think she can? I realize that she is the Queen of all Media – perhaps she should ditch Steadman and go with Howard Stern).
Oprah, honey, this just makes you look like one big censor and hypocrite. You wouldn't have the slightest problem having any other authors on, you've had KK on before – at least when the subject was someone else.
BTW I would never have bought this book. But the media backlash itself creates a demand. Sort of like when the Vatican came out against The Da Vinci Code and guaranteed a readership of millions. I won't buy the book but now I probably will check it out of the library.
Furthermore, I hear that while threats are made, no one has actually sued Kitty Kelley. Perhaps the basis for this is that the defense for slander/libel is that you are telling the truth.
There has always been a dichotomy between what an "unauthorized" biographer and the subject would say. Obviously, the authorized biographer has been told not to disclose certain things. That alone makes an authorized bio suspect. In this case, as with her other bios that rankled the subject, I think it's in all probability right on.
Regardless what anyone thinks of Kitty Kelley in general (and again, it should be pointed out that Oprah has no problem with exposes of OTHER people) truth is the standard defense again libel/slander.
Thursday, April 1, 2010
DNA and Identity, Part II
Comedian Moz Jobrani shocked to learn he's white.
Sorry pal, but as Indo-Europeans, Persians are in fact white. Where do you think Hitler got the term Aryan in the first place? Although really, Iran has been invaded so many times that they are quite mixed.
However, that being said, where is it written that a person has to be something other than white to be made fun of by ignorant people? You could also be white, overweight, somewhat less than whatever the local norm considers beautiful and be mocked for no other reason than you were a convenient target.
At the last census my fiance entered "Other" and then wrote in "Italicus."
Frankly, I think that those who feel the need to represent themselves as something other than what they are deserve some scorn, but not the kind they get for being different. They deserve my scorn because fitting in is so important to them that they are okay with pretending to be something they are not. Hah. Be yourself and if Americans need to learn how to pronounce a name they aren't used to, they will only be enriched by it.
Sorry pal, but as Indo-Europeans, Persians are in fact white. Where do you think Hitler got the term Aryan in the first place? Although really, Iran has been invaded so many times that they are quite mixed.
However, that being said, where is it written that a person has to be something other than white to be made fun of by ignorant people? You could also be white, overweight, somewhat less than whatever the local norm considers beautiful and be mocked for no other reason than you were a convenient target.
At the last census my fiance entered "Other" and then wrote in "Italicus."
Frankly, I think that those who feel the need to represent themselves as something other than what they are deserve some scorn, but not the kind they get for being different. They deserve my scorn because fitting in is so important to them that they are okay with pretending to be something they are not. Hah. Be yourself and if Americans need to learn how to pronounce a name they aren't used to, they will only be enriched by it.
Monday, March 29, 2010
What Are Libraries For?
I ran across this thought-provoking article on Open Salon.
Personally, as long as people need information, I see a need for librarians to connect the two. Just because an infoseeker has heard of Google, that does not mean that they also have any sense of how to evaluate content or formulate an effective search strategy.
And one thing I learned from the tech support trenches at AOL is that no matter how simple you make something, there will be lots of people too dense to figure it out.
Personally, as long as people need information, I see a need for librarians to connect the two. Just because an infoseeker has heard of Google, that does not mean that they also have any sense of how to evaluate content or formulate an effective search strategy.
And one thing I learned from the tech support trenches at AOL is that no matter how simple you make something, there will be lots of people too dense to figure it out.
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