Posts by Andrew 3 publicly visible posts • joined 9 Feb 2009
Back in 1979 Douglas Hofstadter in "Gödel, Escher, Bach: an Eternal Golden Braid" noted that for every record player there potentially could exist a record it can't play - because the vibrations from that particular record will vibrate that particular model of record player to bits.
He was using it, incidentally, as an analogy for a virus destroying a host cell.
Never thought it would happen in the real world though...
I think there's little doubt that Parcelforce staff stole the palmtop I referred to before it left the UK. They (falsely) took my refusal of the parcel to be a lack of interest in its contents, and decided that they could help themselves.
The thing that sticks out in my mind is the shock in the voice of the electronics company representative in Auckland when I spoke to him on the phone. To explain; in New Zealand, a courier is what you use when you want a really professional, premier service. Up until that time, it was unimaginable to me that a courier would ever steal anything!
Good thing it was insured by the sender...
… they diverted the repaired palmtop that was being sent back to me (from New Zealand) through their VAT/duty collection procedures. The device was being returned to me after warranty repair, and was obviously not a new device that should be subject to these taxes. However, it is worth noting that Parcel Force themselves receive a hefty “administration fee” for VAT/duty items, and so obviously there is an incentive for them sending as many items as possible through this procedure.
No way was I going to pay about £50 for a device I already owned. I told them to send it back to New Zealand, as I would be back there a couple of months later, and could pick it up.
Two days after that, I was informed an empty box had arrived back in Auckland…
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