Internet Extremes

About a year ago the handle for the back hatch on my truck broke. I don't think the locking mechanism itself is an issue but when you pull on it, it just feels as though the handle is no longer connected to anything. I've had to let it linger because I just haven't had the cash to get it fixed, plus it's not all that inconvenient because I can still load and unload through the back window, which works just fine. However, I had a free Saturday and I decided that I didn't want to live with it anymore (being able to open the door does make loading and unloading golf clubs a lot easier). I went online and started looking around to see if anyone else had a similar issue. While not very common, it had happened to enough other people that it was discussed online and those sites were nice enough to detail how they tried to fix it. What I noticed, however, was the way that a lot of people described the repair process. Everyone who commented said it was either the hardest thing ever or a such a simple job their children could have done it. While I ended up leaning more towards the "difficult" end of the spectrum (my latch still isn't fixed), I think the way people were only at the extremes summed up the Internet very nicely.

It seems like people who are willing to comment on the Internet are never lukewarm on subjects. Everything was either the best ever, or the worst invention ever. You can really see it if you ever want a product review. I was looking for a new webcam and none of the reviews were ever along the lines of, "not bad for what you pay." Everything was either, "best webcam ever" or "giant waste of time and money." My father has recently come to this same conclusion in his quest for the perfect swingset for the nieces, because all the reviews he can find are either that the set went up without a hitch or that it came crashing down soon after construction was completed. The old saying I learned from my days in retail was called the 7-11 ratio, in that if people had good customer service they would tell 7 people at the absolute most, but if one thing was wrong they would tell 11 people to tell 11 more people. I guess with the Internet the need to tell people directly is all gone. It was effective though, because I'm still on the hunt for a new webcam.

-I have to say that my least-favorite part about the NBA playoffs (other than the time off between games) is that the celebrity 'fans' who have a movie to sell come out of the woodwork and take the good seats away from the fans who have been there all season long. For example, I have no doubt that we are one Celtic win away from Matt Damon being courtside, even though he hasn't been seen at a game since the last time the Celtics were in the Finals two years ago. At yesterday's Celtic game Jake Gyllenhaal was sitting courtside, in what I do not doubt were seats he did not have to pay for. He predicted a Celtic/Lakers final with the Lakers winning. I feel like we should all listen to him. After all, this was the guy who read the script for Prince of Persia and said "This movie must be made!" Who are we to question a guy with that kind of decision making skills?