Of course, I won't mention any names but here are a few of my roaring successes and outright stuff ups with online shopping...
Friday, July 14, 2006
I saw a Current Affairs type program about a man who bought a car on ebay that never showed up. Now I get annoyed at things like that because it doesn't have to happen - there are two reasons it happened:
1. There are some unscrupulous people out there who will take what they can get.
And:
2. People get fooled.
I can't say it enough. Don't use Western Union to transfer money to people you don't know. It is not traceable!! Also, don't think you know someone because you have exchanged a number of emails. It is so easy to build up a false rapport and generate a sense of security very quickly. Remember, often these scammers do what they do because they are good at it. It's important that more people don't get fooled. If just 1 scammer gets put out of business from this information, I will be a very happy person.
Buying a car on an internet auction is like going to inspect a car in the dark with a blindfold on.
1. There are some unscrupulous people out there who will take what they can get.
And:
2. People get fooled.
I can't say it enough. Don't use Western Union to transfer money to people you don't know. It is not traceable!! Also, don't think you know someone because you have exchanged a number of emails. It is so easy to build up a false rapport and generate a sense of security very quickly. Remember, often these scammers do what they do because they are good at it. It's important that more people don't get fooled. If just 1 scammer gets put out of business from this information, I will be a very happy person.
Buying a car on an internet auction is like going to inspect a car in the dark with a blindfold on.
Sounds simple doesn't it?
I admit it. I get caught up in buying stuff. It's fun. I put a bid on for a Nokia 7000 and something model - a fancy flip shell phone with a camera. Then I regretted it. Then I prayed for someone to outbid me, and finally they did. (Hooray!)
I realised how wrong it was for me in so many ways:
1. The flip thing would annoy me after about 5 hours of using it. I don't care if you're Elle MacPherson - NOBODY looks good in a 1 megapixel camera/phone photo!! I'm better off buying a digital camera if I decide I want one.
2. I don't care if I can send videos and stuff - when I use a phone I usually send a text like "I'll be at the station at 6:30pm see you soon"? - I am unlikely to send that person a video of myself on the train, waving.
3. 'Fashion'? phones are just that. And they go out of fashion. And then you look like a dork.
I realised I needed a phone that didn't flip, open up into a keyboard and pretend to be a computer, swivel, attach to my head like the Borg (see photo!), or wash my clothes.
Has anyone else noticed this? Am I the only one? These things look like the Borg!! People have been assimilated!!! It has begun!!!
I needed a phone that made phone calls. And sent text messages.
And that's it.
Sometimes simple is better.
I admit it. I get caught up in buying stuff. It's fun. I put a bid on for a Nokia 7000 and something model - a fancy flip shell phone with a camera. Then I regretted it. Then I prayed for someone to outbid me, and finally they did. (Hooray!)
I realised how wrong it was for me in so many ways:
1. The flip thing would annoy me after about 5 hours of using it. I don't care if you're Elle MacPherson - NOBODY looks good in a 1 megapixel camera/phone photo!! I'm better off buying a digital camera if I decide I want one.
2. I don't care if I can send videos and stuff - when I use a phone I usually send a text like "I'll be at the station at 6:30pm see you soon"? - I am unlikely to send that person a video of myself on the train, waving.
3. 'Fashion'? phones are just that. And they go out of fashion. And then you look like a dork.
I realised I needed a phone that didn't flip, open up into a keyboard and pretend to be a computer, swivel, attach to my head like the Borg (see photo!), or wash my clothes.
Has anyone else noticed this? Am I the only one? These things look like the Borg!! People have been assimilated!!! It has begun!!!
I needed a phone that made phone calls. And sent text messages.
And that's it.
Sometimes simple is better.
