03.23
The alpha-geeks of the internet, some of whom I count as friends, have all been bashing on and on about Make Magazine so much in recent months that I thought I’d go ahead and buy a sub.
Which I did, on the 7th of March.
I went down the pub last night with some of the local digirati and one of them, Mat Walker, produced his copy of the magazine which he had ordered from Amazon some ‘days’ ago. It struck me as strange that you could get it from Amazon so quickly, but if you ordered directly from the publishers it took so long… So I emailed them this morning to ask where it was. This is the response:
Dear Pete,
Thank you for your message, your first issue of Make is preparing to ship, please allow 2-3 additional weeks for delivery. When ordering a subscription, your shipment takes slightly longer to be processed, as opposed to ordering just the first issue. Rest assured that your copy will soon be on its way.
Thank you,
Make
make@espcomp.com
Another two to three weeks! WTF? So I asked for a refund and a cancellation as per their ‘no quibbles’ guarantee… And was then told that as the first issue has shipped already they’d only refund the remainder of the sub fee.
Hang on. Spot the deliberate mistake there? One minute it hasn’t shipped and the next, after a refund request, it has:
Dear Pete,
The first issue has shipped, however you will not receive it for at least another 2-3 weeks. You have been refunded for the remainder of your account balance, totaling $37.47. The cost of the first issue ($12.48) has been subtracted since this issue is now on its way to you.
Thank you,
Make
make@espcomp.com
These two messages came in three hours apart. But the delivery estimate of another two to three weeks hasn’t changed. They must be rowing it over the Atlantic to me because I don’t know of any other way they’d be able to make such a slow delivery…
So, the crux of this is, if you order the magazine from Amazon it will take DAYS. If you order from Make directly it will take 6 WEEKS – a slice of time they describe as ‘slightly longer’.
They took payment straight away mind you…
It is *very* good though.
I read mine cover to cover. I bought it from Amazon, since I don’t know any internet alpha-geeks as friends and therefore wasn’t going to risk a subscription sight unseen.
Sometimes, there’s an advantage to being one of the little people.
it was hardly sight unseen – there is plently of content from the magazine available online, and as I say, people have been talking about it a fair amount.
it isn’t the magazine I’m complaining about here – it’s their delivery policy and as for i’m surprised you think I’m somehow different because I choose to buy a sub straight off.
basing my decision on the content I’d seen, the opinions of my friends and the general high quality we expect from o’reilly has nothing to do with little OR big people… wtf is that about anyway!?
and, I might add, they have chosen to not answer my last emails about their ‘it’s shipped’, ‘it hasn’t shipped’ communication…
Sorry, not trying to pick a fight here. I was trying to say that your problem was down to you taking the leap of faith of taking out a subscription, and getting shafted by the fulfilment process, whereas I got my bundle of Make-y goodness *because* _I_ wasn’t prepared to risk taking out a subscription without seeing what my money bought. I thought I’d like it, that’s why a bought it. I just didn’t know if ‘d like it enough to sign up.
Cos you have alpha-geek mates, you trusted enough to pay up front, whereas I, without such trustworthy opinion, didn’t. It’s ironic. And doubly so given that like you, I’d expect someone like O’Reilly to do this thing way better than your experiences indicate.
There is another possibility: They are being very literal with their use of the word ‘ship’, and it *is* on a boat on it’s way to you.
Anyway, sorry for not communicating the above well enough in the first comment – I was trying to be too snappy, I guess.
and me being a little sensitive about the whole subject maybe… :!
The latest: Now there are two copies on their way to me. From none, to one, to two – and you’re right – i think they might be on a ship somewhere ‘cos they’re still quoting ‘weeks’ for them to arrive.
now, taunt me no more about how good the bloody thing is!
(but feel free to share what you’ve mucked about with in it…)
Hi Pete,
sorry this is off topic – I can’t find a direct mail for you. I’m a designer and publisher interested in flash-lite application development and am looking for collaborators. Mail me to discuss further. Cheers.