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Vents with allowed responses.

Posted by rogar308
rogar308
member, 469 posts
Gaming is good!
Got RPOL in my soul
Wed 17 Jul 2013
at 18:22
  • msg #1

Vents with allowed responses

For those cases where you may be looking for some compassion or not but permitting the rpol community the option of a response with out moderation for responding here's the thread for you!

---

Mandatory work training. I have mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, I'm glad to get training. On the other, it seems a bit gestapo in its administration.
kouk
member, 193 posts
Wed 17 Jul 2013
at 22:27
  • msg #2

Re: Vents with allowed responses

OK:

Mandatory training isn't for the employee, it's to cover the butt of the employer. So when employee Bob screws up something, whether it was covered in the training or not, Manager Steve can say "He completed/refreshed the full training, it's not my fault!"


*** And a slight possibility that they actually want employees to know the basics of what they're doing in the first place -- or at least enough to let lazy managers sleep at night.

**** And "Manager Steve" includes everyone else on up.
This message was last edited by the user at 22:31, Wed 17 July 2013.
rogar308
member, 470 posts
Gaming is good!
Got RPOL in my soul
Thu 18 Jul 2013
at 01:24
  • msg #3

Re: Vents with allowed responses

Don't know what we are doing?
->Oh no. Don't let that little secret out. Reminds me of an article I think about a year ago where a programmer actually contracted out his job oversees for a fraction of his salary. It went on for years and he was getting rave reviews and bonuses until one day they were tracking access to company assets and he got snagged. Brings up a number of interesting questions.


Heh. Precisely why I've stayed out of management. I get my tasks and do them (hopefully well) and their happy and I'm happy. I do pretty well at avoiding most of the political business nonsense. I'll probably 'lemming up' and do some sort of training so not to draw extra unwanted attention to myself. The training is not all bad. The worse is the employee review stuff. Oh my gosh. Inevitably, it has been my experience the bigger the company you work for the more ridiculous the review becomes. Just when you think it's gotten real bad they seem to find another way to take it to more a ludicrous level. I'm wondering if its actually developed into an art form. The fact that we often have to waste probably a weeks worth of time over the year doing a review seems not very productive. And, ironically, it completely doesn't matter. You get bucketed into a slot pretty much no matter what you do or say. There are a few exceptions but for the most part your on a bell curve and the pool of money gets divided up and that's that. And don't get me started on the vitality program. Who thinks up this silliness anyway? I'd like to put them through kobold patty whack machine.
Newgirl2010
member, 261 posts
Thu 18 Jul 2013
at 01:46
  • msg #4

Re: Vents with allowed responses

Actually rogar308, if I were you, I'd feed them to the darkspawn, but that's just sadistic, little old me.
rogar308
member, 471 posts
Gaming is good!
Got RPOL in my soul
Thu 18 Jul 2013
at 02:26
  • msg #5

Re: Vents with allowed responses

@Newgirl2010: Perfect. I'm making you director of distraught, madame of mayhem, and gal of gotchas. How's *that* title? I hope it fits on the business cards.
cero1
member, 533 posts
Thu 18 Jul 2013
at 20:47
  • msg #6

Re: Vents with allowed responses

The worst are employee reviews if you're in pure sales. Like commission sales. Its a nice way for them to say, 'We need you to sell x10 as much as you have been? Can you do so? Y/N?'

N means you're fired. Y leads you to another week or so and when you don't get the sales in you'll want to find another job anway... Because you have less than minimum wage and less than welfare... :(
rogar308
member, 472 posts
Gaming is good!
Got RPOL in my soul
Thu 18 Jul 2013
at 22:54
  • msg #7

Re: Vents with allowed responses

Sales. Tried that. Didn't like it. Not only was I forced to sale stuff that was crap but you're constantly hit with quotas, most of which, barring holding a gun to peoples heads your not going to meet. So yeah, I feel for sales folk. Some gigs are tougher then others and I don't begrudge them when they do well and make something for themselves. Plus the positions that are based solely off commission are even tougher. Lots of times sales happen in waves so your salary is all over the place up and down which makes it a nightmare for trying to plan any sort of sane budget for yourself.
cero1
member, 534 posts
Thu 18 Jul 2013
at 23:19
  • msg #8

Re: Vents with allowed responses

I never want to do it again. I did pure commission on double-glazing and had to work with a right bunch of brosives... :/

Its always those frontin' tools that seem to well in sales, isn't it?

Second time I had to do cold calls. It was either that or be penniless. I used to come home with phone-ringing tone filling my ears and feeling physically sick as I felt like a sell-out. I hate cold calling with a passion and how they seem to really target people.

Then I was stuck doing it. Because of a certain agency of which I hope I never get to experience again...

But I was glad when they kicked me for not making the impossible quota. I'm much happier doing min.wage retail or even customer service than that again...
Evil Empryss
member, 597 posts
I feel your pain
It makes me giggle
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 00:51
  • msg #9

Re: Vents with allowed responses

Thank you, Sharknado.  I'm certain that scene where they blow apart a tornado with a bomb is going to inspire idiots to go storm-chasing so they can try it themselves.
rogar308
member, 473 posts
Gaming is good!
Got RPOL in my soul
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 03:12
  • msg #10

Re: Vents with allowed responses

The only upside to that is natural gene pool cleansing but it's really too bad anybody has too die needlessly.
rogar308
member, 474 posts
Gaming is good!
Got RPOL in my soul
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 03:22
  • msg #11

Re: Vents with allowed responses

Here's another vent. It irks me when I get a trouble ticket to resolve and I develop the code fix in dev, test it successfully, get it promoted to test only to find out that credit processing wasn't set up at all or correctly in test for this application. Now I got to spend an inordinate amount of time figuring out what's missing and what needs to be done to get payment processing working in the test environment. Meanwhile some poor chap is not getting the product he paid for because they allowed the product manager to add products at will without actually testing them first. Nice job guys. If that's not good enough, half the team is out training this week and the key team lead is out on vacation the entire next week. Yeah, good times.
cero1
member, 535 posts
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 12:29
  • msg #12

Re: Vents with allowed responses

Here's my vent...

For ages a certain online rpg store I won't name accepted my debit card as payment. I always had the cash in and never had any problems. Now it won't accept my card. I even went to the bank to see if there were any blocks or problems, nothing. Seeing as most games are on pdf now and that site was the one I really trusted more than any other dev store, I am now stuck with the systems I have and unable to buy more until they happen to maybe want to accept debit cards again. I am not getting a credit card and running myself into a potential debt purely so I can get the newest supplements for my games.

Thank fudge most of the systems I play are pretty old now and most supplements I have wanted I have already...

Also, Tbh, I think a debit card is better than a credit card as it means I have the money already, right there and I'm not having my bank pay and then possibly not paying back the credit later... (I would never be so unscrupulous, but some people can be) >_<
Evil Empryss
member, 598 posts
I feel your pain
It makes me giggle
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 12:41
  • msg #13

Re: Vents with allowed responses

Did the site say they won't accept debit cards anymore?  Did you contact them to ask what happened?  They may have accidentally tagged your account as a problem, confusing it with another account and you might be able to clear it up with an email to customer service.

And Debit cards are NOT better than credit cards for buying online.  In many cases you do not get the same level of protection from a debit card that you do from a credit card.  You often lose the extended warranties that come with most credit cards.

And if someone steals from your credit card account, the company will let you challenge the charges and not make you pay while they investigate.  If someone gets into your debit card account, you'll be out the cash immediately and have to fight the bank to return it.  The burden of proof is on you either way, but at least with a credit account you won't be out the rest of your bill and grocery money for the month.

If you insist on using a debit card, have a separate account for buying stuff online.  I have one set up at my bank just for buying online or traveling.  When I want something, I transfer that amount from one account to the other (free at my bank) and then buy it.  That way, if someone steals my debit card info, they aren't going to be able to empty my good account and make my kids go hungry.
Starchaser
member, 243 posts
Creator of Dark Tales
and Eldritch Horror
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 13:08
  • msg #14

Re: Vents with allowed responses

In reply to Evil Empryss (msg # 13):

While that is true in a lot of cases. Some places offer things like debit card protection free with their accounts. I know Nationwide do this.
Evil Empryss
member, 599 posts
I feel your pain
It makes me giggle
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 13:12
  • msg #15

Re: Vents with allowed responses

The problem with that is that you are still out all that cash because it only activates *after* your money is gone.  If you've got bills being paid directly out of your account you risk running up a ton of overdraft fees before it gets caught.  Yes, the bank *should* return all that money, but in the mean time your credit is going down the drain and you're having to take the time to deal with the bank and all your other creditors.
truemane
member, 1712 posts
Firing magic missles at
the darkness!
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 13:17
  • msg #16

Re: Vents with allowed responses

In reply to Evil Empryss (msg # 15):

I think what cero1 was trying to say was that Debit Cards are better for the bank/vendor since it means he already has money, and was saying that by way of expressing his confusion that the site doesn't take Debit. Maybe he's right, maybe he's wrong, but that's what he was saying. The relative merits of Debit vs Credit for the end-user wasn't really the point.
cero1
member, 536 posts
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 13:23
  • msg #17

Re: Vents with allowed responses

In reply to truemane (msg # 16):

Thats it, yeah. In a nutshell, I find it annoying they'd stop accepting my card, especially when I have never had a problem with them in payments. The money is always there when I want to buy something. I come from the school of living that if you don't have the money, you can't have it until you do.

Of course things like mortgages etc are the exception.
Evil Empryss
member, 600 posts
I feel your pain
It makes me giggle
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 13:24
  • msg #18

Re: Vents with allowed responses

In reply to truemane (msg # 16):
Which doesn't make sense since 1) cero mentioned using it with them before, so if they were taking it previously I was wanting to know if they changed the policy site-wide or just flagged cero's account and 2) it sounds like he's working with a large, reputable site so it's unlikely they're suddenly making a distinction between debit and credit cards (there's very little difference if there's a Visa/MC logo on the card; only the vendor sees a difference in the fees the vendor pays for each transaction).
Shannara
moderator, 3281 posts
Welcome to Wal-Mart, get
your (crap) and get out!
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 13:41
  • msg #19

Re: Vents with allowed responses

Debit cards have some risks that credit cards do not.  When a debit card # is stolen and used, then the money is gone.  Disputing the charges is a lot harder, a lot more time consuming, and the money may not be returned to your account at all.

I don't like debt either.  I avoid it by using my credit card and paying off all balance once or twice per month.  That way, I get the buffer of the credit card extra protection, no fees or interest, and no debt.  I also get cash back that I periodically apply to the balance before making my payment.  I don't get a discount for paying cash or for using my debit card, and the bank pays so little interest on checking accounts that it makes more financial sense to use a good credit card if you have the self discipline to pay it off every month and not charge it if you don't have the money to pay for it then.


I had a friend who once told me she had an American Express card because they gave her no option not to pay off the debt monthly.  She paid them about $75 per year for the extra kick in the pants to do what she could have done for free on her own.  I didn't understand then, and I don't understand now.

Depending on the bank, they may have extra restrictions on the use of debit cards including the location of the purchase if it's out of the country.  I'd try the customer service number listed on the card in question and ask them about it.

Paypal is good too - you can even tie the payments to your bank account if you want to use it like a debit card, and it gives you some additional security in that you're not giving your card # out to multiple sites.  I usually choose the Paypal option to pay when buying online if possible.
This message was last updated by the user at 13:41, Fri 19 July 2013.
cero1
member, 537 posts
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 14:03
  • msg #20

Re: Vents with allowed responses

Seems more likely my account has been mistakenly flagged for some reason then, based on that. I am a Brit and it is a US site, but that shouldn't make a difference as I've been using them for the past two years just fine with nay problems.

I'll message them about it when I get the chance.

But yeah, I dislike giving my card details out, online or not... Too many bad people out there on the net (second rant of the day ;D)
Andrew Wilson
member, 271 posts
Scary? My mask is to keep
your viscera off my face
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 17:22
  • msg #21

Re: Vents with allowed responses

My best friend of 10 years and my beloved girlfriend dont like eachother, and there making me choose between the 2 all the time... Its not fair to my friend because I always let her win, but sometimes he can be so unreasonable... it makes me so depressed, like im just not suppose to have it easy.
rogar308
member, 475 posts
Gaming is good!
Got RPOL in my soul
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 17:37
  • msg #22

Re: Vents with allowed responses

Sounds like your best friend needs a girlfriend.

I know one of my good friends and my now wife don't really get along. They tolerate each other is about as good as it gets. Basically when I started dating her my time shifted from him to her. Not completely but significantly. He felt abandoned by me and well there may be some truth to that but it's not like you don't like them anymore but rather it's you are pursing a relationship with someone else. They usually see it as losing out to someone else. This often means they develop a dislike or hatred towards said person and take it hard. Even if you do spend time with your good friend they see the situation as 'not like it used to be' and still hassle you. I would say you should spend time with your friend regularly and not abandon the relationship but he's going to have to accept the fact that he's not going get the time from you like he used to. As enjoyable as hanging out and doing stuff with the guys is, not all of us want to spend the rest of our life alone.
Brianna
member, 1695 posts
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 17:54
  • msg #23

Re: Vents with allowed responses

In reply to Andrew Wilson (msg # 21):

If they have been so rude as to say outright you must choose, they aren't very good friends!  Even if it is only a matter of pressure to 'choose me' whenever a conflict comes up, it's not a good sign.  Your male friend should realize you need to spend time with your g/f (yes, he needs a g/f of his own!), and your g/f should not be trying to cut you off from your old friends (unless your favoured mode of entertainment in his company is something she has reason to object to, no matter the company).  Doesn't your g/f has friends?  If she doesn't, she needs to find some.  Everyone needs a variety of people in their life, hopefully an s/o, but also good friends and family.
DreamQuestin
member, 192 posts
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 18:03
  • msg #24

Re: Vents with allowed responses

My direct supervisor left the company suddenly last Friday.  In a department of 2, that means I have to learn her job and step in.  I am actually enjoying that very much.

My vent comes in today, a co-worker in another department denied in a loud voice that she would EVER tell me to use a specific menu in the computer to find lead times for the arrival of computer parts.  Said it three times in a loud voice, twice over my trying to politely state she had.  I went into my office and got the sticky note with HER handwriting telling me that menu and 'lead times' written on it.  She then switched to say that that menu was not what she was updating NOW.

I told her 'that is fine, but I was doing what you last told me to do' she storms out of the office telling me to quit being so damn defensive.  What?

Now I am having a cup of tea trying to figure out if I am just too sensitive?  Don't people get defensive when yelled at?  I know I am abby-normal (abnormal) in a lot of ways, but I would think that was just human nature.
Tlaloc
member, 506 posts
From the island of Nunya
Fri 19 Jul 2013
at 18:32
  • msg #25

Re: Vents with allowed responses

In reply to DreamQuestin (msg # 24):

You dared use a person's own notes against them?  Blasphemy!

I wouldn't worry about this.  It said a lot more about her than it did about you and it doesn't sound like you were being defensive.  You were merely stating reality.

Get used to dealing with tools like her and keep handling them the way you did.  Be polite but stick to your guns if you are right.

(That is easier to write than to do by the way.  I have been known to nuke such people from orbit.  It's the only way to be sure the point gets across.)
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