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Subject: Re: ADMIN POST: Future of MAPUG list ?
From: David Thielke
Reply To: mapug@shore.net
Date: Tue Sep 19 03:58:32 1995

Robert Preston wrote: >................................................................... The
internet isn't the telephone, >yet. This list was never meant to be a Meade customer service, either.
>This list isn't necessary for Meade to know what they are "doing right/
>wrong". They have a whole customer service department and a bunch of
>telephones, and they have the addresses of the people who buy and register
>their scopes. I'd rather go news-group at no charge (other than the
>internet provider connect-time fee, which buys thousands of groups)
>than have Meade involved financially. They do not seem to be particularly
>competent in internet matters, anyway, so they'd be paying somewhat
>blindly, which is not good business practice.
>
>

I think when all factors are considered, the usenet newsgroup idea seems the best solution.

As for Meade's technical service .... how about a 1-800 number for all of us outside the Irvine area. I work for a company that sells, in a very general sense, the same type of thing that Meade sells - computerized equipment. We are a much smaller company than Meade but are sales are worldwide (and we're only 2 years old), but we had a 1-800 number set up about a year ago for tech support (as the software/computer/robotics/controller engineer I tend to be involved in that sort of thing).

I know our customers really appreciate the convenience of the service and also the confidence on our part, making ourselves available so easily at our expense, and YES there were some tough design problems that had to be ironed out, but the extra expense was *well* worth it.

Just a thought .... oh and if there is a 1-800 number that I am unaware of, ..... ................what is it?

______________________ :-) David Thielke dthielke@idirect.com