Just when you thought that Google has done it all, it is introducing Gmail Paper, which currently is in beta testing. Google Gmail Paper is the latest in a new concept where you can get all of your Gmail messages printed for you and delivered to your home. On its site it claims it will even do up to 100,000 or more messages. It also states:

Is it free?

Yes. The cost of postage is offset with the help of relevant, targeted, unobtrusive advertisements, which will appear on the back of your Gmail Paper prints in red, bold, 36 pt Helvetica. No pop-ups, no flashy animations — these are physically impossible in the paper medium.

How about attachments?

All part of the deal. Photo attachments are printed on high-quality, glossy photo paper, and secured to your Gmail Paper with a paper clip. MP3 and WAV files will not be printed. We recommend maintaining copies of your non-paper Gmail in these cases.

Is there a limit?

You can make us print one, one thousand, or one hundred thousand of your emails. It’s whatever seems reasonable to you.

But what about the environment?

Not a problem. Gmail Paper is made out of 96% post-consumer organic soybean sputum, and thus, actually helps the environment. For every Gmail Paper we produce, the environment gets incrementally healthier.

I have already signed up for this free service and received my first shipment this morning from Google. I chose the 100,000 message option and received 22 boxes of printed emails. I plan to go through the messages this weekend and should be completed cataloging the messages by 04-01-08.

Comments welcome.

Gmail Paper website is here and it’s FREE!

PS If you need help with using Gmail Paper you can contact ubenhad@google.com.

Back on January 14, 2008 I posted an article which attempted to answer the question of who provides support when a person buys a Dell computer from Best Buy. But according to DB, there is still some confusion as to who does what. In one of his statements he mentions that a Dell support supervisor stated that his purchase from Best Buy, and calling Dell support, would be like a HP customer calling Dell.

DB stated the following in his quest for customer service:

I bought a Dell XPS 420 desktop over the weekend at Best Buy, on a whim. The Dell scan said there were a few problems, I checked the link “tell me” and ended up (immediately) in a chat with dell. I was reprimanded for contacting Dell because– DUH– I had bought the computer from Best Buy. However, I had the printed warranty at my desk and there was absolutely no discussion of Best Buy or Geek Squad. Everything is about Dell support and how long it lasts after purchase.

Eventually the Dell chat support disconnected me and within a few seconds I got a call from Dell support, where a very nice indian lady told me there was nothing she could do for me.

I called back the number and reached somebody stateside and while talking to him I found the page on my Dell account website, based on my service tag, that said I had Dell support for the NEXT 500 DAYS. That’s phone support. Parts support was assigned to Best Buy for a few months, then transferred to Dell.

However, the sympathetic Dell employee told me that his supervisor told him I was the equivalent of an “HP Customer” calling Dell for service.

Well, let me see… I have been buying Dell for years, one of the reasons I picked up this machine was my positive experience with Ma Dell. The Best Buy rep even tried to sell me an addon warranty and I told him I would not need it because I was familiar with Dell’s service and have been very happy with it.

My bad, apparently. I was never even allowed to talk to the supervisor, who continued to insist I was no better than an HP customer asking for Dell support.

I thought Dell was on a mission from Mr. D himself to make service paramount. Where’s the beef?

One would hope that customer support would make some exceptions when contacted by a person who actually owns a Dell system and not an HP computer. I am not sure, but since Dell now sells through Staples, Wal-Mart and other retail outlets, who provides support for these systems? I don’t recall Wal-Mart having a computer service department.

I am also forwarding this to a Dell advocate as well.

Comments welcome.

While wandering around the Internet I found an interesting article by a television station in the Sacramento, CA area about an experiment done concerning PC repairs and three of the major chains. The TV station KCRA-TV had its own Manager of Information Technology (David York) create a problem on an IBM PC by disabling the hard disk in the BIOS. The station contented that the fix should have been an easy one and could be done in about 30 seconds with six or seven keystrokes.

It then took the PC to three of the major chains that advertise they fix computers, being Best Buy, Circuit City, and Staples for a fix of the problem. It reported the following:

Best Buy and Circuit City charged $60 up front to say what it thought was wrong with the PC.

Staples charged a $50 diagnostic fee.

Best Buy’s Geek Squad on Freeway Boulevard in Sacramento thought the problem was a software issue and asked for the Eventually, Best Buy found and fixed the problem, but it gave the worst customer service of the three chains. Best Buy promised five times to return Call 3’s phone calls but never did. It also kept the computer the longest amount of time. Windows restore disc. When that did not work, they asked to use their own Windows disc. York gave BB a letter grade of D.

Circuit City Firedogs in Elk Grove ran disc fitness and memory tests. The computer passed both. Circuit City said there was no operating system and charged an additional $129.99 to restore it. Later, they found and fixed the real problem. “You got charged $130. It wasn’t for fixing the real problem — it was for reinstalling the operating system. You also lost all your data. Any personal folder, files, pictures of the kids — it’s all gone. You’re not getting it back,” York said.York gave Circuit City an F.

Staples on Howe Avenue in Sacramento assigned Easy Tech Kevin Sakamoto to work on the Call 3 PC.But when that did not work, Sakamoto started poking around the system settings and hit on the real problem.”It was actually pretty easy because you could see in there that the boot device was turned off. It was just a matter of turning it back on, and then somehow it magically worked,” said Sakamoto.Staples found the problem the fastest. Sakamoto thought the hard drive was missing and charged an additional $139.99 to replace it. It returned the computer working in the same condition in which we gave it to them. Staples also said they initially misdiagnosed the problem and refunded the money for the hard drive.He gave Staples a letter grade B.

This makes for an interesting read. But how accurate is the information? Does it judge every store in the chain’s service department the same? Or should one take these findings with a grain of salt?

What has your experience been with one of the major chains? Were you satisfied or did you feel like you got ripped off?

Let us know. Comments welcome.

Full article is here.

Though I do my own backups on a regular bases, I thought I would try a online backup service just to see how well or not so well it would work. I have heard all of the rhetoric about safety issues and so forth, and also the issues about security. After going through my important documents, pictures and other data I came to one conclusion. What I have on my personal computer is only valuable to me and may just bore others to tears.

Anyway, I decided to try the online back up system from Mozy. You sign up for an account which provides you with 2G of free backup server space. After setting up a username [email address] and password, you are sent a confirmation email. Than you can download their backup software to your system.

The backup software is very easy to use. Once installed you can click on the backup button and the software will auto find your files such as my documents, outlook, outlook express, IE favorites, Firefox favorites, picture & music folders and others or you can select expert mode to add additional files.

I did my backup at night before I went to bed. In the morning it had completed approximately 975MB of data.

I did not try the restore feature.

You must have a broadband connection.

See what you think. Are there other recommendations for online backup software? If so, let us know.

Mozy website is here. The free account is on your left about 1/3 page down.

PS Using an online backup service should not be a substitute for doing your own backups, but should be treated as an enhancement. Just my two cents.