Brandon's Personal Blog

Dish Network Woes

Thu, 26 Jan 2012 13:15:00 -0600

We recently moved from Texas to Colorado, and my parents drove in to help us with the move and see some of the sights in Colorado. My parents had never been to Colorado before, and they had a very limited amount of time for us to show them around because they needed to head back to Texas soon. We scheduled the Dish Network installation for Jan 16th from 12pm to 5pm, and got ready to drive into Denver with my family as soon as the installation was done.

We got a call confirming the window the day before, and we were assured that the installer would call us to give us a more specific time on the morning of the 16th. We waited around all day, but received no phone call and the installer never came. Finally, I called the customer service line to make sure that the installer was on his way. I spoke with Dan Cortes, who told me that the installer would not be here during the installation window. He wouldn’t be there until 6:30pm. I explained to Dan that I had family in, and that we couldn’t wait that long because we needed to leave. I asked him to reschedule the appointment with a specific time, and not a window. He agreed, and told me that the installer would be there at 8am on Jan 18th. I confirmed with him that this would be a specific time, not a window, and I asked him for a reference number for our conversation. He provided the number “wk5”.

On Jan 17th, I received a call from the installation company. The representative indicated that the appointment tomorrow was a window, not a specific time, and that the installer would be there anywhere between 8am to noon. I relayed the conversation with Dan, but the representative said that there was nothing she could do - there was no way to make the appointment occur specifically at 8.

I was already frustrated about the situation on the 16th, and decided that I could not continue to do business with a company that was untrustworhy and provided such misinformation. I called the Dish Network customer service line and spoke with Joanna. I explained the situation, and told her I would like to cancel my service. She processed the cancellation, and quoted me a final balance on the account. She said that if I returned the receiver, the final balance would be a credit of $45.06, which would be refunded to us. I confirmed the final balance, and then ended the call. On the 18th, I got a call from the installer, who was still planning on showing up. I explained that I’d cancelled my service the night before.

On Jan 23rd, I received a letter indicating that I owed an early termination fee of $105. I called in to the customer service line and spoke with Steve. He said that Joanna’s information was incorrect. She failed to disclose the termination fee, and her final balance was inaccurate. I explained to him that this kind of misinformation was the reason I was leaving Dish Network. I would not have made the decision to cancel my account were it not for the consistently inaccurate information and poor service that Dish Network provided. I asked that the $105 fee be waived because of Dish Network’s pattern of incorrect information and mistreatment. He refused, so escalated to Bella, a customer service supervisor.

Bella said that her ID number was #8SN. She said that there was no way that they would refund the fee, regardless of the history of poor service and misinformation. I explained to her that I was paying Dish Network in part for their service, and the repeated, egregious failures in customer service made it impossible to trust Dish Network and continue a business relationship with them. She told me that poor customer service does not void the contract. She said that Dish Network is providing TV service, and that “it’s not about customer service”. She said that if I have a problem with the customer service, then the only thing that she can do to rectify it is provide feedback to the phone representatives I spoke with previously.

It was shocking to hear a supervisor say that customer service was irrelevent, and had no bearing on the TV service that Dish Network provides. I would have thought that a supervisor would understand the important role that customer service plays in the vitality of a company, especially one with which there is such fierce competition. This callous response served not only to confirm my dissatisfaction with the customer service division, but it left me with a very bad impression of Dish Network as a whole. It’s much more expensive to gain a new customer than it is to keep an existing one, but if a company projects a reputation of being uncaring and cavalier about customer service it becomes increasingly difficult to do either.

I just finished this week’s new #1 issues from Marvel -...

Wed, 26 Oct 2011 20:54:34 -0500

I just finished this week’s new #1 issues from Marvel - Wolverine & The X-Men, and The Incredible Hulk. Both were very pleasantly surprising. I’ve been pretty solidly in DC world the last couple of months, but these issues are definitely reeling me back into Marvel’s universe.

Wolverine & The X-Men was awesome! It moves the X-Men back towards fun and humor again, bringing a wonderful Hogwarts-like feeling with it. I wasn’t expecting to like this, but I’m pretty much hooked now. I think it’s a perfect counterbalance to the dark, brooding, philosophical storylines that I’ve enjoyed form X-Men in the past and hope to continue enjoying in the Uncanny X-Men relaunch next month.

The only reason I picked up Hulk is because it was on sale for $1 at More Fun Comics on the Denton Square (shameless plug for my favorite comic shop). The issue really surprised me with how enjoyable it is, and it closed with a fantastic curveball. I’m seriously considering adding the series to my pull list.

Next up, I’ll be enjoying Green Lantern: New Lanterns, Flash, and All Star Western. Comics rock!

"Over the past year, competition for IT skills has become increasingly fierce, and many companies are..."

Tue, 18 Oct 2011 14:19:18 -0500

“Over the past year, competition for IT skills has become increasingly fierce, and many companies are realizing that IT isn’t just a support service—it’s core to their business’ future.”

- Now hiring: companies move away from outsourcing to control their IT destiny

"It wasn’t this busy during the dot-com boom. The demand now is at the point where the..."

Tue, 18 Oct 2011 14:18:40 -0500

“It wasn’t this busy during the dot-com boom. The demand now is at the point where the candidates are more in command of the process than they know. They hear that the economy is about to tank, and assume there are hundreds available for their position, when it’s exactly the opposite.”

- Now hiring: companies move away from outsourcing to control their IT destiny

Swamp Thing #2 was amazing! I never imagined that this character could be so interesting! Scott...

Thu, 06 Oct 2011 23:31:19 -0500

Swamp Thing #2 was amazing! I never imagined that this character could be so interesting! Scott Snyder is an incredible writer!

So I just finished the Green Lantern movie, and I’m quite disappointed. The first 2/3rd of...

Sun, 25 Sep 2011 22:58:57 -0500

So I just finished the Green Lantern movie, and I’m quite disappointed. The first 2/3rd of the movie was actually really good! The changes to the storyline were understandable, and the plot was still enjoyable. Then, all of the sudden it was like the filmmakers said “Oh crap, we’ve got to end this thing” and kicked it into “high gear”, throwing storyline and plausibility out the window. There was a distinct turning point where the movie cast aside all prior characterization, inserted a “rousing” call to arms speech that came out of nowhere, and instantly abandoned all pretense of credibility. The tension that had been building through the movie was resolved in mere minutes, with an altogether lackluster effort by the hero. The movie was closed with a summarizing cliche, and a sequel was set up without any attempt at showing motivation for the actions of the villain-to-be. The potential of the movie was hopelessly squandered, most likely leaving a bad taste in the mouth of would-be Green Lantern fans. *sigh* Maybe the inevitable “reboot” 5 years from now will be better…

DC takes the comic world by storm!

Wed, 21 Sep 2011 22:33:00 -0500

So far, I’m really enjoying the DC “new 52” that has been emerging this month. I’ve only really been into comics for about a year now, but for most of that time I was pretty squarely in the Marvel camp. I started out on X-Men, Wolverine, and Iron Man. Slowly but surely, though, I felt DC drawing me in. I began reading Batman and Green Lantern, and learned more about the other characters in their “multiverse”.

With the coming of the Flashpoint storyline and the relaunch of all of DC’s comics, though, the gentle tug was amplified a hundredfold. I am hooked, and now definitely consider myself a DC devotee. The new creative teams have been, for the most part, fantastic! The art has never been better, and the story arcs that are being teased with these first issues appear to be quite grand and exciting. The subtle (and not so subtle) changes to the comic universe have been overwhelmingly good, and I love the steps that have been taken to modernize the characters’ appearance.

Read on to find out what I enjoyed most so far.

Batman

Scott Snyder is my favorite comic author, so I was expecting this title to be high on my list. It delivered in a big way and is definitely my favorite of the relaunch. The art is a departure from the moody, feverish, and often disturbing work of Jock and Francavilla, but I really enjoyed it. It brings a feeling of heroism and frantic action back to Batman and worked quite well for the issue. I will definitely miss the old Detective art team and I can’t wait to see what their new projects will be, but I still found a lot to appreciate in the new art direction.

Animal Man

I’d never heard of Animal Man before, but this issue immediately made me care about him and his family as they are thrust into a terrifying new chapter in their lives. The portrait of a conflicted hero’s home life is quite interesting and amusing, expertly built up at the beginning of the issue only to be shattered by the stunning arrival a very dark trio of villains and a shocking revelation. The story is intriguing and the artwork is superb. This is definitely one you don’t want to miss.

Green Lantern

The Green Lantern universe is exactly the same as it was pre-Flashpoint, from what I can tell. This is still a very compelling story arc, though, and definitely a good entry point for new readers. Excellent writing and artwork make this a very enjoyable issue that I would definitely recommend to anyone curious about Green Lantern.

I also really enjoyed today’s Green Lantern Corps. It explored the fact that two of Earth’s Lanterns don’t have secret identities, and that has a profound effect on their personal lives back home. The story arc launched with this issue doesn’t seem like anything special yet, but I’ve got high hopes for the series as it moves forward.

Action Comics

The changes made to Superman in this issue are fantastic! Before the relaunch, I didn’t have the slightest bit of interest in this character. Grant Morrison has taken the boy scout and made him much edgier and more interesting. He has his own opinions about right and wrong, and they sometimes run contrary to the status quo at the Metropolis Police Department. I love how he is challenging the apathy and corruption in the government system and becoming a champion for true justice!

Honorable Mentions

In addition to my favorites above, I also enjoyed Swamp Thing, Red Lanterns, Batwoman, and Justice League. Detective Comics was okay, but it didn’t really draw me in. I think Demon Knights has promise, but it needs to pull together a more coherent storyline in the next issue. Resurrection Man was the only one that I’ve been truly disappointed by, and I probably won’t continue reading it.

I hope you’re enjoying the new 52 as much as I am! I can’t wait for next month’s #2 issues now!

Draw a Stickman

Wed, 21 Sep 2011 21:38:45 -0500

Draw a Stickman

American Vampire 13 to 18: Ghost War

Fri, 02 Sep 2011 17:31:00 -0500

I just finished up Ghost War, the latest storyline in the American Vampire comic by Scott Snyder and Rafael Albuquerque. A lot of people came to the American Vampire series because of Stephen King’s work on the first several issues. I actually started following the series much later, after Scott had already began his run on Detective Comics. It was Scott Snyder’s name that drew me to the comics, and his writing never ceases to amaze!

Despite my late arrival to the series, I started reading with issue #1. I’m very glad I did, because the thrilling finale of the Ghost War storyline draws heavily from the events at the beginning of the comic. Scott Snyder made a fantastic effort to reward the long-time readers of the series, while still making the story accessible to newcomers.

This story brings American Vampire out of the late Wild West era and into the struggle of World War 2. The new setting works very well with Snyder’s characters, and I hope he keeps them in this time period for a little while longer. The vampire-hunting Vassals are growing into a larger and more influential organization in the world, and they draw Henry into a covert mission on a besieged island close to Japan. The danger that awaits them is far more than they imagined, however.

The story is a great read with lots of exciting moments and plot development. The epic conclusion that it builds up to plays out in a way that truly does not disappoint. It’s going to be very interesting to see how the series continues after the events that unfolded on the island.

Rafael’s art just gets better and better. The panels at times look like paintings, rendering the broad landscapes and visceral action in vibrant colors and harsh, jagged lines. The recent “Strange Frontiers” issue that wasn’t drawn by Albuquerque made me realize just how much I enjoy his art. It’s very good to see him back in action for this arc.

I really can’t think of anything I dislike about this story. The surprise ending really has me on the edge of my seat, eager to see where Snyder takes his vampires next! I’d highly recommend Ghost War if you enjoy historical settings filled with the hissing, clawing, brutal vampires that you won’t find glistening in the sunlight.

The Higher Education Bubble

Fri, 12 Aug 2011 08:51:20 -0500

Time Magazine recently reported on a study showing that 85% of college graduates are now moving back home. They are now saddled with crushing student loan debt, and they’re unable to find the work they were led to believe would be abundant once they graduated.

Many of those who are actually able to find jobs have to settle for low-paying work that doesn’t take advantage of their degree. According to Doug French in the Christian Science Monitor, “In the United States, 80,000 bartenders as well as 317,000 waiters and waitresses have college degrees. Nearly a quarter of all retail salespersons have a college degree. In all, 17 million Americans with college degrees are working at jobs that do not require a bachelor’s degree.”

Successful businessman, hedge fund manager, and venture capitalist Peter Thiel was recently interviewed by TechCrunch. He believes that education is the next big bubble that will burst. “A true bubble is when something is overvalued and intensely believed. Education may be the only thing people still believe in in the United States. To question education is really dangerous. It is the absolute taboo. It’s like telling the world there’s no Santa Claus.”

The article’s author, Sarah Lacy, goes on to say “Like the housing bubble, the education bubble is about security and insurance against the future. Both whisper a seductive promise into the ears of worried Americans: Do this and you will be safe. The excesses of both were always excused by a core national belief that no matter what happens in the world, these were the best investments you could make. Housing prices would always go up, and you will always make more money if you are college educated.”

In the New York Times, Hannah Seligson reports that “the median starting salary for those who graduated from four-year degree programs in 2009 and 2010 was $27,000”. Is that really worth the price of admission?

Very inspiring video! I think a lot of us, myself included, are...

Wed, 29 Jun 2011 11:22:42 -0500

Very inspiring video! I think a lot of us, myself included, are exactly as described in the video - casually dismissing our own ideas because they aren’t astonishing to us.

Comic Review: Mystery Men #2

Thu, 23 Jun 2011 08:11:00 -0500

I’ve really enjoyed rediscovering comics over the past few months, and I’ve decided to start posting reviews at my favorite comic site, Comic Vine. Here’s my first review, for the 1930’s noir series Mystery Men, issue #2.

The plot thickens…

The Good

The comic starts out great with a brief flashback that sets up one of the big reveals of the comic nicely. As the book progresses, we learn more about why The Revenant is so invested in solving the murder of Alice Starr, and we start to see a team gradually forming around the search for justice. There’s plenty of mystery all around, but we’re starting to see how everyone is connected to each other. This feeling is enhanced by one the big twist at the end of the comic, and it definitely left me excited for more.

The art is fantastic! Lots of hard, dark lines enhancing the grittiness of this hard boiled story. The Operative doesn’t have much in the way of a costume (just gloves and a mask), but it works perfectly for his character and gives off a great anti-hero vibe. The colors are somewhat muted and darkened to enhance the atmosphere, and this makes the severe splashes of bright color significantly more jarring and exclamatory, as they should be.

The Bad

A new character joining the ranks, shown on the bottom-left of the cover, is too much of a Rocketeer look-alike for my taste. The helmet and puffed-out pants are darn near identical. Also, some of the Revenant’s dialog comes across as silly. It’s supposed to be dramatic and theatrical, but it seems over the top. Then again, this may be intentional given the background that is revealed about the character.

The Verdict

So far, I’m really loving this trip into 1930’s era noir, and the way the plot is growing and connecting the various characters is very compelling. The art is superb, and the action is great. This is definitely a must-read in my opinion. I really hope they do something more with these characters once the limited series is over!

Code Commenting Made Easy (Geek and Poke)

Fri, 03 Jun 2011 17:37:07 -0500

Code Commenting Made Easy (Geek and Poke)

Hidden away in a secret prison for 20 years, the REAL George...

Thu, 02 Jun 2011 11:11:56 -0500

Hidden away in a secret prison for 20 years, the REAL George Lucas has escaped… and he’s out for revenge!

Alcohol and the Believer

Sun, 29 May 2011 13:27:00 -0500

The topic of drinking has come up recently in my life in a few different ways, and I want to take a moment to describe my position and the biblical basis for it.

One of the primary arguments for prohibition says the the alcohol content of wine in the bible was so low that it would not cause intoxication. I’ll start out with the most common example cited when anyone talks about alcohol and Christianity, Jesus turning water into wine. This event is detailed in John 2:1-11. The key quotation that is always cited is from the master of the feast. “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.” Why would the common practice be to defer the poor wine until later if the alcohol content was so low it prevented the dulling of senses? This simply doesn’t make sense in context. Matthew Henry’s commentary describes it this way: “Good wine is brought out to the best advantage at the beginning of a feast, when the guests have their heads clear and their appetites fresh, and can relish it, and will commend it; but when they have well drank, when their heads are confused, and their appetites palled, good wine is but thrown away upon them, worse will serve then.” The original Greek word used is “methuo” (Strong’s number 3184), which is translated elsewhere in the bible as to “be drunken” or to “be made drunk”. It clearly refers to the effect of alcohol, which would not be an issue if the alcohol content was so too low to intoxicate.

Ephesians 5:18 says “do not get drunk with wine”, and Acts 2:13 tells of spectators supposing that the apostles were drunk with wine when they began speaking in tongues. These and many more examples show that wine clearly had an alcohol content strong enough to intoxicate.

Another perspective asserts that drinkers of wine in the Bible made sure to water it down to prevent intoxication. Wine was used with water to kill impurities in the water that would make the drinker sick otherwise. This is most certainly true for their everyday consumption of wine, but it was not the case during celebrations or feasts like the marriage described above. The master of the feast made his exclamation because the wine that Jesus miraculously created was full and flavorful, not the watered down wine one would expect towards the end of a feast.

Isaiah 25:6 speaks of the day that “the Lord of Hosts will make for all peoples a feast of rich food, a feast of well-aged wine, of rich food full of marrow, of aged wine well refined.” What would the benefit of well-aged wine be if it were watered down? New wine can counteract bacteria just as effectively as aged wine, if not better. This is clearly referring to a rich, flavorful wine fit for a feast.

A strong point that advocates of prohibition use are the many warnings and commands against drunkenness in the bible. These commands are clear and unmistakable, drunkenness is something that should be avoided except in very extreme circumstances (those who are dying or are in bitter distress - Proverbs 31:4-7). However, drinking is not drunkenness. There are many of God’s creations that can be abused, but that doesn’t mean one should abstain from those creations altogether. Good food can be abused through gluttony, medicine can be abused through misuse, sex can be abused in a myriad of ways - but by no means should we strictly abstain from these things in our lives if we are not involved in their abuse.

The bible actually speaks positively of wine and strong drink on many occasions. Psalm 104 praises God for his many blessings, including “wine to gladden the heart of man” (v15). Proverbs 3 presents wine as a reward for tithing in v9 and 10 - “Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine”. This sentiment is also expressed in Deuteronomy 14:26, where it says those that cannot haul their first fruits all the way to their town can sell them and bring the money to the town, where they are to “spend the money for whatever you desire—oxen or sheep or wine or strong drink, whatever your appetite craves. And you shall eat there before the Lord your God and rejoice, you and your household.” Notice the use of “strong drink” here. The Hebrew word here is “shekar” (Strong’s number 07941), which means “strong drink, intoxicating drink, fermented or intoxicating liquor.”

There are numerous places in the bible where the lack of wine is presented as a judgement (Jeremiah 48:33, Hosea 2:9, Joel 1:10, Haggai 2:16), and its abundance is a blessing (Genesis 27:28, Deuteronomy 7:13 & 11:14, Joel 2:19, 24 & 3:18, Amos 9:13, 14).

I believe that the Bible makes it very clear that alcohol is one of many of God’s creations that can be honestly enjoyed, or horribly abused. Enjoying alcohol in moderation is not sinful, but drunkenness and excess is. A great many things can be easily abused and addictive to certain people, but that doesn’t mean that those who are not abusers should abstain.

That being said, it is an area where many have a weakness to abuse. There are many to whom I believe God gives the conviction to absolutely abstain. Perhaps these are people who have fallen into abuse in the past, or who God foresees would abuse in the future. I think 1 Corinthians 8 is speaking directly to this issue when it says in v8 and 9 “Food will not commend us to God. We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do. But take care that this right of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak.” If we are in the presence of someone who has a conviction against drinking and we are not sensitive to that conviction, we could easily become the stumbling block that sends them back over the edge into abuse. We should take care to limit our own freedom in cases where that freedom would cause others to sin.

That was the most sanctimonious, insulting, and infuriating speech yet from our President....

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 09:05:14 -0500

That was the most sanctimonious, insulting, and infuriating speech yet from our President. I’m not one of the people claiming that Obama wasn’t born in the US, but I think that he handled those that are in the worst way possible. He should have put this issue to rest two and a half years ago by simply showing the public his birth certificate and silencing the “birthers”. Instead he’s kept the issue alive and smoldering this whole time, and now he unleashes a putrid wave of derision on the American public who dare to question him. We can’t let this arrogance and audacity continue into a second term!

User Agreements == Oppression

Wed, 13 Apr 2011 14:53:13 -0500

Over a year ago now, Sony removed the “Other OS” feature from the Playstation. This was something they advertised as a feature, and was a big part of my decision to switch to Playstation. I’d like to be able to install Linux and awesome software like Boxee and use the Playstation as a media center. Through an online “update”, they took the feature away without warning or compensation to their customers.

Now, Sony is suing developers left and right who have found ways to open the PS3 back up so that they could install Linux and restore this feature that they were promised. People in the US and UK are having their homes invaded by police who are confiscating their computers and treating them like criminals. It’s a sad world when Sony is more closed and draconian than Microsoft.

Though I know full well that the Playstation is a superior piece of technology that still hasn’t been pushed to its limits, the company behind it is corrupt and actively seeks to destroy the rights of those who purchase their products. The fact that we as consumers don’t own our technology, but merely pay for a license to use the technology, is a serious problem that could endanger our freedom if it goes on unchecked. If we decide to use a piece of hardware that we own in a way that the manufacturer doesn’t like, then we could be hit with enormous legal costs and fines. The public needs to be aware of this danger, and we need to fight back!

Last night, I woke up around 1:30 am to find that the temperature in the house was approaching...

Wed, 06 Apr 2011 11:22:30 -0500

Last night, I woke up around 1:30 am to find that the temperature in the house was approaching sauna-like levels. I stumbled out of bed and hurdled over the baby gate so that I could adjust the thermostat. On the way back I hit my foot on the gate hard, immediately and irrevocably waking me up.

I tried to go back to sleep, but it just wasn’t going to happen. So, I headed into the office and proceeded to hack on my netbook and iPhone. Finally, around 7 am, I started to feel tired again.

I hate insomnia.

Borders is definitely a sore loser. @avecvoix on Twitter...

Sun, 03 Apr 2011 09:57:01 -0500

Borders is definitely a sore loser. @avecvoix on Twitter photographed this snarky sign.

Magnificent and horrifying at the same time: A Mashup of John...

Tue, 29 Mar 2011 22:10:53 -0500

Magnificent and horrifying at the same time: A Mashup of John Lennon’s Imagine and Van Halen’s Jump.