Blatant Discrimination.
Nov. 25th, 2009 03:32 pmIt being the end of the month, I tried to contact my health insurer and pay the monthly fees needed to keep the service running. It wouldn't let me log in, saying that my password had "expired."
So I called and spoke to someone named "Frank," with a deep Mumbai accent, who told me that if I let the account go more than thirty days then it gets shut down. Since I only need to review it once a month, that means that eventually, without fail, a month will pass whereby 31 days have passed and my password will be expired.
Strike #1.
Then he tells me that he isn't empowered to re-open the account. There's no mechanism for changing the password on an existing account. Instead, I have to register as a new user to access the existing internal account (which is associated to the new web user via my taxpayer ID number). The other accounts will live forever, cluttering up his system, lifeless.
Strike #2.
After three tries at this rigmarole, he reads to me from the script. It's absolutely bonkers: "The first letter of your first name must be capitalized, and all the other letters lowercase. The first letter of your last name must be capitalized, and all the other letters lower-cased. Are you using Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 or up?"
I tell him I'm using Firefox.
"I am sorry, sir, but we only allow users of Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 or up on our site. It will not work with anything else."
Now, understand, this is a service for individual purchasers, mostly living at home. And yet his company supports only Internet Explorer 5.5 "or better." I asked him if he was aware that many households are Apple-only, and they will not be able to use his service. He can't leave the script: "Oh, I'm sorry sir, I don't know what to tell you."
Strike #3.
Fortunately-- in the way that a third nipple can be considered "fortunate"-- IE 6 runs on Linux. I fire it up and get into the system. Omaha puts the charge on her card. But Jumpin' Jesus, it's insane, it's corporate suicide, to be supporting only IE-- and IE 5.5! no less-- in 2009.
So I called and spoke to someone named "Frank," with a deep Mumbai accent, who told me that if I let the account go more than thirty days then it gets shut down. Since I only need to review it once a month, that means that eventually, without fail, a month will pass whereby 31 days have passed and my password will be expired.
Strike #1.
Then he tells me that he isn't empowered to re-open the account. There's no mechanism for changing the password on an existing account. Instead, I have to register as a new user to access the existing internal account (which is associated to the new web user via my taxpayer ID number). The other accounts will live forever, cluttering up his system, lifeless.
Strike #2.
After three tries at this rigmarole, he reads to me from the script. It's absolutely bonkers: "The first letter of your first name must be capitalized, and all the other letters lowercase. The first letter of your last name must be capitalized, and all the other letters lower-cased. Are you using Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 or up?"
I tell him I'm using Firefox.
"I am sorry, sir, but we only allow users of Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 or up on our site. It will not work with anything else."
Now, understand, this is a service for individual purchasers, mostly living at home. And yet his company supports only Internet Explorer 5.5 "or better." I asked him if he was aware that many households are Apple-only, and they will not be able to use his service. He can't leave the script: "Oh, I'm sorry sir, I don't know what to tell you."
Strike #3.
Fortunately-- in the way that a third nipple can be considered "fortunate"-- IE 6 runs on Linux. I fire it up and get into the system. Omaha puts the charge on her card. But Jumpin' Jesus, it's insane, it's corporate suicide, to be supporting only IE-- and IE 5.5! no less-- in 2009.
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