I’m reading blogs this morning and doing my usual scan through my list of aggregated blogs, and I happen upon a post by Alex Papadimoulis (who contributes a very cool hack #7) talking about James Avery’s Visual Studio Hacks book. I got to thinking “Gosh, where’s my copy – I pre-ordered in January.” I hopped out to Amazon.com and to my surprise, they _are_ shipping the book. Hmm.
As you can see from the image below (the top half), the book is shipping (and I can even get it tomorrow if I choose One-Day shipping!). Amazon.com even informs me that I already ordered this title and offers a link for me to check the order status (at top). So I do (see bottom half of image). Delivery estimate is March 3, 2005 – March 4, 2005 ?!? WTF?!? [sigh]
Oh, well. It made me chuckle (despite being a little miffed).. :-)
-Nino
(and yes, this is a composite image I made from two screen captures)
UPDATE:
After posting this, I contacted Amazon.com regarding my concern. I wrote:
I pre-ordered this item on January 27, 2005 and it has still not shipped (estimate ship date was March 3, 2005). Curiously, if I view the item listing, it *is* a shipping item (and I can even have it tomorrow if I pay for one-day shipping). It seems as though pre-ordering is a not worthwhile endeavor. What gives? ..and more importantly, Where's My Stuff?
Thanks,
Nino
P.S.
http://nino.net/blog/archive/2005/04/04/618.aspx
They replied seven hours later with:
Thank you for writing to us at Amazon.com with your concern.
I'm sorry, but sometimes unexpected fluctuations in supply can add time to our original availability estimate. We have learned that "Visual Studio Hacks" is now back-ordered, and our supplier has not been able to let us know exactly when they expect to have more in stock.
I apologize that you were not notified sooner of this change in availability.
I can understand your frustration in this issue, and I realize this is not what you expected when you placed this order. To help compensate you for this unexpected change, I have upgraded the method of shipment for this order to 2nd Day Domestic Shipping. There is of course no additional charge for this.
I've also waived the shipping charges for this package.
We will keep this item on order and ship it to you as soon as we are able to obtain it. You won't be charged until we ship it to you. On the date of shipment, we'll send you e-mail confirming the date, contents, and method of your shipment.
We would understand if you'd prefer to cancel your order. You may cancel unshipped items through the "Your Account" page, accessible at the top of any page on our web site. To cancel your order, simply click "Cancel items or orders." After signing in with your e-mail address and password, you will be able to view your order history and cancel your order for any item that has not yet entered the shipping process.
Customer feedback like yours is very important in helping us continue to improve the selection and service we provide. I will be sure to pass your message on to the appropriate department in our company for consideration.
I received my book today. Thank you Amazon.com.