digital cameras
Brandy's Kodak digital camera comes with several pre-set modes, one of which is "beach." However, when her camera stopped working after a trip to the beach, she reports that Kodak's mystifying response to her service request was that just because a digital camera has a setting for taking photos at the beach, that doesn't mean that you should actually
take it to the beach.
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facebook
A depressed woman has lost her benefits because her
insurance agent found Facebook photos where she appears to be having fun.
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smoke gets in your imac
Unless you've just arrived in 2009 on a time machine, you know that smoking isn't good for you. Did you know, that smoking isn't good for your computer, either? It's true, at least according to
Apple. Two readers in different parts of the country claim that their Applecare warranties were voided due to secondhand smoke. Both readers appealed their cases up to the office of
God Steve Jobs himself. Both lost.
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I've Seen Better Buys Actually
Reader David wrote in describing the level of customer service he got while spending $1,300 at
Best Buy. It's about what you'd expect. But... shouldn't it be better? According to David, the salesperson didn't know basic information, like how many inputs the TV had, tried to harass him into buying a $150 Monster Cable, and then made up some nonsense about the percentage of
that particular model TV that came back for repair.
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Be a F%&ing Person
After the death of a relative, Mike put together a photo tribute for the funeral, in order to "remember the good times," he says. Only a
Walmart cashier put a stop to his purchase. Here's what happened. Do you think Walmart was in the right?
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webloyalty
88 websites, a good number of them pretty big name sites, earned millions, some in excess of $10 million, as partners in the infamous Webloyalty consumer ripoff. Pizza Hut? Say it ain't so.
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american airlines
Dustin Curtis complained to
American Airlines about its poor website
user interface. A designer within the company reached out to him to apologize, say how it was hard sometime to design well at a large company, but that better designs were coming down the pike. American Airlines then fired the designer. Authenticity can be a hazard to your job health.
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assault
Robby didn't feel like showing his receipt to the
Walmart receipt checker, and when the guy came after him, Robby ignored him. That's when other shoppers started closing in on him, and why he started running.
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line jumpers
Here's a strange story from southeast Missouri. Three years ago a college student was waiting in line at Walmart. Her cousin was waiting in another line that was moving faster. The college student, now a teacher who lives in Louisiana, joined her cousin in the "faster" line. This apparently started a confrontation with other customers (and eventually the police) that may cause the woman to spend 15 years in prison.
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health care mosh pit
A lobbyist for one of the world's largest biotech firms ghostwrote in whole or in part the official statements made by different Congresspersons in the Congressional Record regarding a provision of the House
health care bill, a Times investigation found.
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pixar
Imagine you're deaf or hard of hearing, and put off watching Pixar's "Up" until the DVD release. You rent the DVD from Netflix, Redbox, or Blockbuster, and the box or Web listing promises captions. But when you settle in to watch the movie, you discover that there are no captions to be found. Not in any language.
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travel
An Arizona mom says she was flying to Billings, Montana for her birthday — but never got off the ground because the airline kicked her — and her unruly
kids off the flight. They were told they could take another flight — if they paid for it. The airline says it's their policy not to offer refunds.
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verizon
If you have a Verizon phone, you've probably at one point accidentally hit a button that connects you to "
Get It Now" or "
Mobile Web." Arg. And it's double-arg when it turns out that even if you cancel right away, you still get hit with a $1.99 1MB data charge. According to a tipster, this is totally on purpose.
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