What I think frustrates many of us still waiting

[Goatview]

Yay Microwiz! I hope the saga of the lost XO is resolving itself in your favor.

What really got me in the whole XO shipping snafu was that there wasn't a real person (even a phony name is better than nothing) to contact for real information. The more bull I was fed, the angrier I became. The more time that the purchase gobbled up, the more resentful I felt. It was definitely the most exasperating complaint process I've gone through in recent history made worse by the fact that the XO was something that was supposed to make me happy, not more stressed!

Regarding the $25,000 donation: Pecisk, I don't know how it works in your country, but here people don't ever call anyone who is in a position to give away hundreds of thousands of dollars a "jerk" just for wanting the donation to be acknowledged. Large donors usually have their own staff person at the organization getting the donation. This staff person has the honor (and it IS an honor) of bending over backward to make that donor feel special and important (which the donor IS). Large donors get parties, lunches out, cards, calls, and personal letters. They know who to phone if they should suddenly find themselves in the throes of another generous impulse. If this sounds like kissing someone's feet for money, it isn't. It's cultivating the large donor base and the people who get into that work are good at it and sincere; they love the donors with the same fervor they display for their organization since the two are inseparable.

[Infamy]

Microwiz,

Try installing the speak activity, all the kids I've seen use it go nuts

-Infamy

[mattd]

Really, Infamy? You guys don't berate? What about your comments about me here:

http://blog.hostgator.com/2008/01/31/on ... will-fail/

You and Steve have berated others plenty of times. You have a selective memory at best. At worst? You figure it out.

Thanks for the link, Goatview. Steve's post was comedy gold.

Congrats, microwiz. I'm glad your debacle is at an end and I can't wait to play with my XO when it shows up.

[leoyw]

Oh, I think I am being helpful. Others will be less afraid of requesting a full refund knowing that someone else did it successfully (and guiltlessly) before them.

This is being typed and sent on my new eee, which arrived at my house the very day they said it would after my having watched its progress on the UPS tracking page all along its uneventful journey.

Incidentally, my first comment on that gator page was written prior to receiving my refund so your comments were still being directed at a donor, reluctant as I was by that time.

Microwiz, I figured out how to connect to my wireless!

What is the process of getting a refund ? I never seen it anywhere in the website ?

[pgf]

regarding refunds, my most recent email said:

Additional XO laptops are being built now and will be delivered in 45 to 60
days. Your laptop is in the queue for delivery at that time. If you wish to
reconsider your contribution in the face of this delay, we will issue a refund
to you. We have set up a dedicated phone line for these requests. The number
is 1-800-883-8102.

[leoyw]

regarding refunds, my most recent email said:

Additional XO laptops are being built now and will be delivered in 45 to 60
days. Your laptop is in the queue for delivery at that time. If you wish to
reconsider your contribution in the face of this delay, we will issue a refund
to you. We have set up a dedicated phone line for these requests. The number
is 1-800-883-8102.

thanks, sorry I missed that, I did not get the letter with that number, though i got email from help
that if i did not get it by this week or next (slim chance it said) i will be scheduled for march delivery

I think i am going to wait a week and then redirect that money to my local charity, they are always very prompt with their acknowledgement/receipt and as far as I am concerned obviously do much better job educating the poor in our Washington DC area. Yes there are lots of poor people in Inner city USA

Leo

[Goatview]

Regarding getting a refund, they were fast issuing mine but at first sent me an email "confirming" that I was to get HALF my donation back (just the value of the two laptops), so I had to call again to make sure I was getting ALL of it. Two days after that, the money was in my PayPal account and now it has been credited back to my bank account (through my debit card).

The number I called was 1-800-883-8102 and there was no wait the first time and very little wait the second time. The operators at that number were the best I talked with at OLPC, too.

[tsdguy]

I'm not sure what people want from OLPC. Everyone know that they didn't take the orders, make the laptops, or ship the laptops. They invented the idea, designed them but got other folks (companies) on board to buy into the idea to help them out.

Just like any good manager, if your subordinates screw up, YOU take the blame and you don't pass it down to them. If your order taking company screws up the order taking, it's not their fault, it's YOURS. If the manufacturer screws up, it's YOUR fault.

The trouble here is that normally companies could blame the subcontractors - ie, battery recalls. But here, the subs are donating their services so what's the point in OLPC throwing them to the lions. What are they going to do - tell them to take their toys and go home? Of course not - they have to work with them in private and diplomatically to resolve the issues.

And unfortunately some donors are left with no information. How many - well, no body knows. OLPC is not going to release this information (obviously) so it may be a few loud folks or it may be a few loud folks a more quiet folks. Calling guys like Infamy lairs is crazy - what possible reason would a volunteer have to lie to nameless person on the Internet. Do you think OLPC recruits volunteers to lie about shipping trouble?

They do their best to spin the problems in a positive way give out what information they have. I'm sure OLPC is having as much trouble with their partners as donors are having with OLPC. What possible reason would OLPC have of withholding information from vendors?

I hope folks think about this. Help out some newbies - it will make you feel better while you wait. If you are really outraged, get a refund.

[leoyw]

I'm not sure what people want from OLPC. Everyone know that they didn't take the orders, make the laptops, or ship the laptops. They invented the idea, designed them but got other folks (companies) on board to buy into the idea to help them out.

Just like any good manager, if your subordinates screw up, YOU take the blame and you don't pass it down to them. If your order taking company screws up the order taking, it's not their fault, it's YOURS. If the manufacturer screws up, it's YOUR fault.

The trouble here is that normally companies could blame the subcontractors - ie, battery recalls. But here, the subs are donating their services so what's the point in OLPC throwing them to the lions. What are they going to do - tell them to take their toys and go home? Of course not - they have to work with them in private and diplomatically to resolve the issues.

And unfortunately some donors are left with no information. How many - well, no body knows. OLPC is not going to release this information (obviously) so it may be a few loud folks or it may be a few loud folks a more quiet folks. Calling guys like Infamy lairs is crazy - what possible reason would a volunteer have to lie to nameless person on the Internet. Do you think OLPC recruits volunteers to lie about shipping trouble?

They do their best to spin the problems in a positive way give out what information they have. I'm sure OLPC is having as much trouble with their partners as donors are having with OLPC. What possible reason would OLPC have of withholding information from vendors?

I hope folks think about this. Help out some newbies - it will make you feel better while you wait. If you are really outraged, get a refund.

I am not really blaming OLPC for anything, I always believe and still agree with the first poster that the problem is still lack of communications, this and the way some ( i meant some not all and by noway implying infamy or somebody that has been helpful with feeding us information on this board) of the volunteers who answer the phone after you wait for more than 30+ minutes are rude--maybe they are tired but that still not a good excuse. I am actually not mad at them at all, my problem is i began to loose faith in the organization, when the promise of delivery keep sliding, I got emails that apologize for missing christmas (good email btw) then jan 24, 31, then an endless 7-9 days 3 to 4 days
and end of february (phone) then today maybe march (it said scheduled for march so no deadline either). so if I am getting a refund, it's not because I am really outraged. but because i am being selfish and don't believe olpc can fix their problems anymore. Yes -- I do feel guilty of donating and expecting something back -- but that's my problem

[tsdguy]

I positively agree. My issue is only with the folks that attach some nefarious agenda to the various delays rather than the simple fact of a bunch of volunteer groups that bit off a bit more than they could chew and are working as best as they can to deliver.

Everyone should be annoyed they don't have their XO (I know I was when I didn't get it before Dec 24th) but it's coming. Listen to the folks that are telling you - read between the lines and you'll hear what you need to know. Ignore the nasties that are saying that OLPC is a ripoff and a scam - we all know it's not true.

No other group is going to put this effort into improving the literacy of developing countries. You can't forget that OLPC is not just a bunch of computers - there's a whole world of other stuff going on to provide support - programming, server development, wireless development, translations, local logistics.

If all you want is a laptop for cheap, get an EEE. If you want to be a part of a grander program, donate to OLPC and join in.

[Goatview]

A FedEx truck just pulled up and tried to deliver one of the XO's for which I have been credited. I almost couldn't believe it.

Guess what? You don't have to sign to get it but you DO have to sign to refuse it. I suppose I could have kept it for a while just to see if anyone ever noticed what they did, but I'm just selfish, not dishonest.

[microwiz]

A FedEx truck just pulled up and tried to deliver one of the XO's for which I have been credited. I almost couldn't believe it.

There is only one possible response to that:

Ha ha ha, oh wow. THAT is comedy gold.

Reminds me of the guy here who said he threatened to have his credit card dispute the charge, and his XO-1 showed up almost immediately. I know it's a bad case of post hoc ergo propter hoc ("it came before so it must have caused", in short), but it seems like a good strategy for getting your XO-1 is to start to take the steps that indicate you have no hope it will ever arrive.

[Sarah Elkins]

They've found the issues that arose, and are pushing their vendors to do their best from here on out. I think you'll find that OLPC hasn't quite had time to breathe, and when this wraps up, this will be a pretty warm and cozy place to be.

I know that a lot of people having been working hard to resolve problems. Nonetheless, OLPC found time last week to give away SEVENTY of their laptops at an Australian Linux conference, at random or pretty near to it. 70! http://lwn.net/Articles/267113/

I'm a first-day G1G1 donor twice over, I got my laptops before Christmas and I love them, I've been helping out a bit on the forums and (just a little so far) on the wiki, and I just co-presented on the XO to a local Linux group this weekend. I do understand the value of involving more Linux lovers with OLPC, but I find this giveaway -- before resolving all outstanding G1G1 donor issues -- shocking and totally unacceptable. Whoever made that decision at OLPC ought to apologize individually to every person still waiting for their G1G1 laptop.

Seriously. I hope you pass this message on and we get some kind of substantive response. I don't care if only 70 wouldn't have fixed everyone's G1G0 problem; the giveaway added insult to injury. I don't care if someone at OLPC believed that the people who took the initiative to sign up and pay for G1G1 would be "casual" users and therefore less important, or whatever made them think the giveaway was more important than the prior commitment to G1G1 donors. I'm glad the random people walking by the giveaway table said they'd do something with their shiny new laptops or give them to someone who would, at least. I'm sorry the OLPC decision-makers agonized over the decision, and I think they were wrong, wrong, wrong.

Nonetheless, having made that decision, someone in authority from OLPC should have said something upfront, instead of letting folks still waiting for their G1G1 laptops find out after the fact and by accident.

[Goatview]

If the second one shows up here, I won't send it right back. I'll play with it for a week or two and THEN send it back. Provided they can give me a street address to send it to (NO PO BOXES) AND won't hold me accountable if the package should be lost, stolen, or strayed somewhere between here and there, AND will allow about 6-8 weeks for the package to leave shipping AND....

but they have my PayPal account number.

yeah but that can be changed easily enough.

get thee behind me, satan...

[Hobart]

get thee behind me, satan...

He who fights with monsters should look to it that he himself does not become a monster. And when you gaze long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.