Several states have consumer protection boards set up for just this sort of thing. I know because I filed a complaint in CT against a contractor who did faulty work.
My complaint along with a few others were compiled, leading to a hearing where his license was revoked. Additionally, the state had a fund set aside for people who lose money on shoddy work (up to 15K). We were one of the lucky ones, as he only cost us $3K (which we got back). Others lost 10-20K.
Bringing it around to the topic at hand, a code inspector for 'code' is an interesting idea. That said, I'm okay with devs/agencies being held accountable for their coding work -- as long as clients are likewise held accountable for paying on time, proper briefs, etc.
The minor design tweaks I’d make aside, it‘s creative and I love it, but having tried the creative cv route before, headhunters and/or HR always come back with “Can you send us something formatted for Word?”
At the risk of complaining about a free service, the most frustrating/humorous part is their voice to text translation service. While about the only thing that comes out accurate is the number the call came from, the rest of the conversation translates to phrases that are worse than any drunk dial line. Again, good for a laugh but not dependable enough to build a solid business model on if you’re trying for a large piece of the cell market.
Except, Google would then be in the customer service business. I’m not saying they couldn’t throw resources against that endeavor, but think of the time waste of being on the phone vs. having automated responses based on the keywords in someone’s complaint. Cuts down on time/cost from their POV. Not justifying what Google did, just sayin.
It's maddening though in a time when people -- one would hope -- would have access to better customer service, yet, it feels things are as bad as ever. It’s hard enough to reach someone on an e-commerce site, forget social networks (1-800-FACEBOOK ain’t happening anytime soon). Little different scenario in this case, but you get the gist.
The only time they seem to make it easy to reach out to a real person is when you need/want to buy something.
Don’t know if others experience this, but I can’t listen to anything with lyrics while figuring things out because it distracts me, so movie scores work best. (Currently, that’s James Horner, Thomas Newman etc.) When I’m banging work out in the production phase though where I don’t need to think, then metalcore/metal/hard rock.
Tone of voice is just as important. I have an in-law who’s a cop, and most times if you're a jerk, he says you get the ticket you might otherwise not have. It’s very much an issue of power because someone needs to control the situation—you or them. Not to mention, being argumentative gives them a reason to suspect something else might be going on, and in turn, mess with you. Why give them that chance?
I wonder if he would try another experiment where he actually answers the questions as asked, but instead makes his tone sarcastic, etc. I bet he's pulled out of line just as quickly for cooling down, even though legally he’d have complied.
Which is another American use of sir in that, when someone cuts you off in line, rather than let loose, a firm but loud “Sir” tends to let them know you’re angry and that perhaps they did something wrong. Of course, if “Sir” ends up failing, then comes more interesting dialog. :-)
I should clarify. It's more that the old newspaper/publication opt-ed mindset where a columnist writes a piece that goes out to readers in a one-way form of communicating that doesn’t facilitate responses easily, has given way to a more open exchange of thoughts between reader and/or author. It’s his blog and his rules of course, but I don't see the value in discouraging a full-on discussion that may arise out of something compelling which someone wrote. I’d like to think that’s one of the great things about blogging, in that it democratizes the development and sharing of ideas.
Times are different. I walked to school since kindergarten, but no way I let mine when it came time. (Certain years we drove just because we lived where there were no bus routes, and making a small kid walk that far with heavy backpacks just never made sense from a time POV.) Imagine that though, they actually survived my paranoia.
But now? No way unless they were a few years older. NYC needs to watch more of that news they dismiss: Attempted kidnappings happen a lot in the burbs. All paranoia is local though.
My complaint along with a few others were compiled, leading to a hearing where his license was revoked. Additionally, the state had a fund set aside for people who lose money on shoddy work (up to 15K). We were one of the lucky ones, as he only cost us $3K (which we got back). Others lost 10-20K.
Bringing it around to the topic at hand, a code inspector for 'code' is an interesting idea. That said, I'm okay with devs/agencies being held accountable for their coding work -- as long as clients are likewise held accountable for paying on time, proper briefs, etc.