mallish Posted January 2, 2020 Share Posted January 2, 2020 On 02/01/2020 at 10:49, Riedquat said: What's better is a shop the village people can walk to. You won't sell a future to me that consists of people hardly ever leaving their homes - like most supposedly "positive" visions of the future it sounds dystopian. I could not agree more. On 28/12/2019 at 09:28, winkie said: Village has 100 homes......what is better 70 or 80 cars all going out to solely shop and for food, using expensive fuel, possible parking rent fees, the time it takes, pollution it may create, each week......or a few deliveries by a few vans........free delivery on a couple of days a week at a certain times....... special specified date and time extra delivery to pay. Personally I like to go to the ,local shops and support independent retailers. It also gives me the opportunity to interact with a human being. I now know a lot of the people who work in local shops and makes going shopping a far more pleasureable experience. One problem society has today is that with all the tech people have they have not learned to interact with and be able to relate to other people in face to face situation. This is well documented as the cause of huge depression among many young people. On the other hand when I am older and not mobile I am sure I will like the idea of stuff being brought to my home. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winkie Posted January 2, 2020 Share Posted January 2, 2020 On 02/01/2020 at 10:49, Riedquat said: What's better is a shop the village people can walk to. You won't sell a future to me that consists of people hardly ever leaving their homes - like most supposedly "positive" visions of the future it sounds dystopian. .....the better idea is almost everything day to day needs down the road, a better choice and an easy, clean, cost effective way to get there and back within a few miles, an a airport not that far away that can give anyone full access to the world....... On 02/01/2020 at 11:27, mallish said: I could not agree more. Personally I like to go to the ,local shops and support independent retailers. It also gives me the opportunity to interact with a human being. I now know a lot of the people who work in local shops and makes going shopping a far more pleasureable experience. One problem society has today is that with all the tech people have they have not learned to interact with and be able to relate to other people in face to face situation. This is well documented as the cause of huge depression among many young people. On the other hand when I am older and not mobile I am sure I will like the idea of stuff being brought to my home. Some of the best high streets we have are full of independent shops full of real people, real helpful knowledgeable shop assistants and real shoppers.....everything else can be delivered (and returned)...not into delivered ready food, there must be a good reason why people would pay big money to have ready cooked food delivered....how some people now live is not altogether healthy.....in more ways than one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arpeggio Posted January 7, 2020 Share Posted January 7, 2020 Amazon have recently made it so that anyone can rate something without having bought the product. https://www.marketplacepulse.com/articles/amazon-replaces-reviews-with-ratings "Using the new system ratings can be left with or without a previous purchase..............this change makes it harder for anyone to examine them. For the past few years, Amazon has been dealing with the issue of fake reviews, and the new rating system is about to make it worse." As if it wasn't bad enough already. Previously non-verified purchases where only allowed with reviews that had text, meaning you could see the reviewers profile, review history, and what they had written. For these new ratings there's no profile of the rate giver visible, just another star rating added. There is also no distinction shown of whether the rating is linked to a purchase of the product or not. I was surprised to learn that this is how Google Play have been doing it for years already. I always assumed their ratings and those including text where only permitted by people who had bought the product. What made me assume this was that most of my ratings are 5 stars with some 4 stars and that if that was allowed then surely someone would have carpet bombed me with 1 stars using a Chinese water army from anywhere in the world and I'd therefore have lower ratings. When I first put my stuff on Google Play some years ago I got 1 star reviews posted on different products all at the same time. At the time I actually thought it might be feedback and thought to myself in constructive critique "What could I have done better?" but now I realize whoever did it didn't even need to buy or have used it, just opens up how that could have been anyone and it might have just been a feuxing waste of time thinking that. Final food for thought that is more relevant to this thread subject knowing the customer reviews are one of the main attractions of the said company: It is against the interests of any online company to police its online customer reviews. This is because investment of time and money in doing so cuts into their margin and there is nothing that compels customers to buy from them. In other words a company could spend 100s of thousands (on staff and algorithms etc.) to police customer reviews and minimize fraud / increase accuracy ----> A customer / customers finds very useful and rely on these reviews on deciding what to buy -----> Goes somewhere else to buy the same product at a lower price from a company that doesn't have the expense of policing their customer reviews (because they either don't have them or don't police them). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riedquat Posted January 8, 2020 Share Posted January 8, 2020 Amazon is run by cats in order to keep up a supply of cardboard boxes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ebull Posted January 8, 2020 Share Posted January 8, 2020 Not difficult to level the playing field with high street and village shop somewhat. Simply charge all retail a 5% witholding tax on all sales that is then given back as a credit to use for payment of business rates and corporation tax. If you don't use it [profits offshored] you lose it. Maybe 5% is too much but set it at the right level and high st/village shops will pay nowt extra but kerching from the scrounging multinationals. [Wont be a popular comment but true that] will only be possible once we've left the EU. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arpeggio Posted January 8, 2020 Share Posted January 8, 2020 (edited) 9 hours ago, Riedquat said: Amazon is run by cats in order to keep up a supply of cardboard boxes. I like that idea. My cat will sleep in a box for 3 or so days, then lose interest. If there's another box he will move into that one. I think it's a natural instinct to alter sleeping location every now and then so they can't be located by rivals / predators. Part of the Amazon empire is Zappos who sell shoes, which is also run by cats... 8 hours ago, ebull said: Not difficult to level the playing field with high street and village shop somewhat. Simply charge all retail a 5% witholding tax on all sales that is then given back as a credit to use for payment of business rates and corporation tax. If you don't use it [profits offshored] you lose it. Maybe 5% is too much but set it at the right level and high st/village shops will pay nowt extra but kerching from the scrounging multinationals. [Wont be a popular comment but true that] will only be possible once we've left the EU. Interesting idea. Parking and charges for parking are an issue too, which might be helped if local shops were able to issue (100% subsidized) refunds for customers who spend money. Edited January 8, 2020 by Arpeggio Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy T Posted January 14, 2020 Share Posted January 14, 2020 On 26/12/2019 at 08:55, Saving For a Space Ship said: https://wolfstreet.com/2019/12/25/how-amazon-gains-control-domination/ and theres the sub layer of drivers reliant on amazon & the micro delivery co's, where the rug can be pulled at any time I need to stop using Amazon. Last few deliveries from Amazon have been by someone in an unmarked, battered, crash damaged van or car that might not even be road legal. Seems very at odds with the new shiny Amazon warehouses that have been thrown up everywhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
longgone Posted January 14, 2020 Share Posted January 14, 2020 They refunded me twice on the same pair of shoes Cheers amazon ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stuckmojo Posted January 14, 2020 Share Posted January 14, 2020 2 hours ago, Andy T said: I need to stop using Amazon. Last few deliveries from Amazon have been by someone in an unmarked, battered, crash damaged van or car that might not even be road legal. Seems very at odds with the new shiny Amazon warehouses that have been thrown up everywhere. Yes, I had that too. Best one was a lass on her way to a night out. Miniskirt and heels etc. I thought - wrong door, darling Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeanutButter Posted January 14, 2020 Share Posted January 14, 2020 Amazon only has one product: Prime. It’s like how Coca Cola measure market dominance in ‘throatshare’. Amazon know that when a household gets Prime it immediately switches their discretionary spending straight to Amazon pockets. Everything else, the TV/films, groceries, devices etc it’s just there to support Prime sales. Cancel Prime. Free yourself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
winkie Posted January 14, 2020 Share Posted January 14, 2020 On 08/01/2020 at 01:08, Riedquat said: Amazon is run by cats in order to keep up a supply of cardboard boxes. It is the huge amount of plastic bubble wrap that needs to be curtailed... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saving For a Space Ship Posted January 14, 2020 Author Share Posted January 14, 2020 29 minutes ago, winkie said: It is the huge amount of plastic bubble wrap that needs to be curtailed... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy T Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 17 hours ago, PeanutButter said: Amazon only has one product: Prime. It’s like how Coca Cola measure market dominance in ‘throatshare’. Amazon know that when a household gets Prime it immediately switches their discretionary spending straight to Amazon pockets. Everything else, the TV/films, groceries, devices etc it’s just there to support Prime sales. Cancel Prime. Free yourself. My brain initially read your post as : Amazon only has one product: Crime. Even when you don't have Prime, it's easy to accidentally sign up for a free trial of it when buying something, as they play with the layout/wording of the buttons/links to trick you. Probably should be continually signing up for 30 day free trials of Prime then cancelling it just before it ends, should piss them off a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeanutButter Posted January 15, 2020 Share Posted January 15, 2020 1 minute ago, Andy T said: My brain initially read your post as : Amazon only has one product: Crime. Even when you don't have Prime, it's easy to accidentally sign up for a free trial of it when buying something, as they play with the layout/wording of the buttons/links to trick you. Probably should be continually signing up for 30 day free trials of Prime then cancelling it just before it ends, should piss them off a bit. Yes Amazon are very into dark UX / dark patterns https://uxplanet.org/sinister-ux-how-to-recognize-and-avoid-dark-ux-patterns-95acdb15767f As long as you’re in the Amazon eco system you’re playing the game as they want it. I hasten to add this isn’t a theory I’ve come up with, I attended a meeting with a high up in Amazon who explained their Prime strategy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saving For a Space Ship Posted January 15, 2020 Author Share Posted January 15, 2020 (edited) 7 hours ago, Andy T said: My brain initially read your post as : Amazon only has one product: Crime. Thye facilitate and profit from an enormous amount of Vat fraud ....http://www.vatfraud.org/amazon-sellers/ Edited January 15, 2020 by Saving For a Space Ship Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hecto Posted January 16, 2020 Share Posted January 16, 2020 Upset the Indian shopkeepers. Calling Bezos an economic terrorist and to get out of India. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saving For a Space Ship Posted February 16, 2020 Author Share Posted February 16, 2020 Jeff Bezos spent more on his new home in Beverly Hills than Amazon has paid so far in U.S. federal income tax for 2019 https://www.marketwatch.com/story/jeff-bezos-spent-more-on-his-new-home-in-beverly-hills-than-amazon-has-paid-so-far-in-us-federal-income-tax-for-2019-2020-02-15 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Banner Posted February 16, 2020 Share Posted February 16, 2020 On 02/01/2020 at 10:49, Riedquat said: What's better is a shop the village people can walk to. You won't sell a future to me that consists of people hardly ever leaving their homes - like most supposedly "positive" visions of the future it sounds dystopian. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkG Posted February 16, 2020 Share Posted February 16, 2020 On 02/01/2020 at 04:49, Riedquat said: You won't sell a future to me that consists of people hardly ever leaving their homes - like most supposedly "positive" visions of the future it sounds dystopian. How is it 'dystopian' to be able to visit the Pyramids in the morning, Antarctica in the afternoon and Mount Fuji in the evening, all without leaving the comfort of your own home? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riedquat Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 (edited) 4 hours ago, MarkG said: How is it 'dystopian' to be able to visit the Pyramids in the morning, Antarctica in the afternoon and Mount Fuji in the evening, all without leaving the comfort of your own home? Fake substitute for the real thing. If you make it 100% convincing though then that's the human race finished, or society at least, as people just plug themselves into the Matrix. And don't overlook the effect of trivialising being able to do things. I was having a conversation with someone once who said teleporters would be great - imagine being able to pop out to all those exotic places in the evening! But they wouldn't be any more exotic than nipping down to your local town if they were just as easy to go to. People in London for example who'd love to be able to jump to Tokyo - make it that easy and it's really no more exciting than London (otherwise London wouldn't have its fair share of Japanese tourists, because it's exotic to them). Or a really banal example (and I'm wandering a bit now anyway) - a bit of junk food occasionally is a nice treat, have it all the time then it stops being anything special and you get fat. Edited February 17, 2020 by Riedquat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orb Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 15 hours ago, Riedquat said: Fake substitute for the real thing. If you make it 100% convincing though then that's the human race finished, or society at least, as people just plug themselves into the Matrix. And don't overlook the effect of trivialising being able to do things. I was having a conversation with someone once who said teleporters would be great - imagine being able to pop out to all those exotic places in the evening! But they wouldn't be any more exotic than nipping down to your local town if they were just as easy to go to. People in London for example who'd love to be able to jump to Tokyo - make it that easy and it's really no more exciting than London (otherwise London wouldn't have its fair share of Japanese tourists, because it's exotic to them). Or a really banal example (and I'm wandering a bit now anyway) - a bit of junk food occasionally is a nice treat, have it all the time then it stops being anything special and you get fat. Exactly. It'd be like flying to the top of Everest in a helicopter as opposed to climbing it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkG Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 20 hours ago, Riedquat said: Fake substitute for the real thing. Not when you're renting a drone body at your destination. Open borders are the creation of wealthy, comfortable societies who believe nothing bad can happen to them. We no longer live in one. Borders are going to close and countries break up into nations. Few people will be able to physically travel much longer, nor afford to once business travelers stop subsidizing cheap airfares. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riedquat Posted February 17, 2020 Share Posted February 17, 2020 2 hours ago, MarkG said: Not when you're renting a drone body at your destination. We're nowhere near being able to fully import all senses. Some people would say that seeing a good print of the Mona Lisa is the same as seeing the original with your own eyes. Some people are happy with fake branded goods. Others aren't. Quote Open borders are the creation of wealthy, comfortable societies who believe nothing bad can happen to them. We no longer live in one. Borders are going to close and countries break up into nations. Few people will be able to physically travel much longer, nor afford to once business travelers stop subsidizing cheap airfares. Good, I prefer the variety the world has to offer when it's not doing its hardest to homogenise, I'll certainly trade ease of getting around for that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saving For a Space Ship Posted September 17, 2020 Author Share Posted September 17, 2020 (edited) The high street is racing to stop Amazon from stealing Christmas https://www.wired.co.uk/article/the-high-streets-plan-to-stop-amazon-stealing-christmas Quote ..The two-month festive season accounts for 25 to 30 per cent of the high street’s annual revenue, according to the British Retail Consortium (BRC). And until now, the lion’s share of that cash is spent in stores: a 2019 survey found that 64 per cent of us still preferred to shop this way as opposed to online. In the context of a socially distanced, pandemic-struck Christmas, all this is about to change. Around a quarter of retailers’ 2020 income could be at risk because there simply won’t be the same crowds of shoppers pouring down high streets. The numbers speak for themselves. Footfall in August for non-food stores was down 34.8 per cent nationally, year-on-year, and London was the worst-performing city at -45.3 per cent, according to the BRC. Online figures, though, have shot up. Before Covid-19, online accounted for just 20 per cent of consumer retail spending, according to the Office for National Statistics: now it’s almost 30 per cent... Edited September 17, 2020 by Saving For a Space Ship Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scottbeard Posted September 17, 2020 Share Posted September 17, 2020 On 02/01/2020 at 10:49, Riedquat said: What's better is a shop the village people can walk to. You won't sell a future to me that consists of people hardly ever leaving their homes - like most supposedly "positive" visions of the future it sounds dystopian. I’m going out for a walk in the sunshine now. When I get back I’ll order my Dad a birthday present from Amazon. We don’t need to have physical shops to stop us being prisoners in our own living room. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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