Minor things that bother you

[kphoger]

Anal or pissy?  I tend think the latter has stronger feelings behind it versus the former.

Oh, I meant anal, as in anal-retentive.  It's important to distinguish between nit-picking, pedantry, and being anal-retentive.  Being pissy has to do with one's petulant mood, rather than one's focus on rules, details, or order.  Though, I can confirm you're being all four.

But, anyway, back to the original question...

Isn't being pedantic and nitpicky the one thing that's the most important about roadgeekery?

No, sarcasm is the most important thing.

[LilianaUwU]

Isn't being pedantic and nitpicky the one thing that's the most important about roadgeekery?

Technically, those are two things.  Pedantry and nit-picking, while related concepts, aren't entirely the same thing.  It's quite possible to be a nit-picker who isn't pedantic.

I may have made the post with only pedantry in mind and didn't update to plural when I added being nitpicky.

[kphoger]

It shall be unlawful in this State for any medical patient intake forms, surveys, questionnaires, or other such means of collecting information from a medical patient or their guardians, proxies, or assigns, to ask the same question or collect the same information (including the patient's name, address, or today's date) more than once per appointment. For each instance of a field being duplicated on such forms, the provider shall be required to credit to the patient 10% of the chargemaster price for services rendered, or $500, whichever is greater.

We'll call it the Health Intake Paperwork Prevention Act, or HIPPA for short.

On a more serious note, it's medically necessary to repeatedly confirm your name and date of birth even if it gets annoying, because they really don't want to mix up two patients. I suppose they could give you one of those scannable hospital bracelets for outpatient visits, but that might be more annoying.

Sure, and it makes some amount of sense when the form is on physical paper and thus there's a risk of a page getting separated and not knowing which patient it is or which packet it belongs to. (A stapler is a handy thing to own.) But these days I mostly fill these things out on the computer, and a lot of the time they are clearly a 1:1 digitization of the paper forms. Which means I get to fill out my name and address (surely the latter isn't needed on every one of these forms—does my psychologist want to punch it into Google Maps to see if my neighborhood is responsible for the answers to the depression questionnaire or something?) ten or fifteen times, and every signature line has a date field after, even though the server I'm submitting the form to should know perfectly well what the date is when I submit it.

It smacks to me of people just kind of ad-hoc creating a process by copying things they've seen before without thinking why they're doing it that way or who it's intending to serve, ending up with something that's disrespectful of everyone's time.

My favorite times are when I fill out my information online ahead of time, and then I end up having to fill out a bunch of papers when I get there anyway—whose fields are 70% the same stuff I already filled out ahead of time.

[LilianaUwU]

Apps that do shadow updates that change the UI. I didn't tell you to update!

[GaryV]

Isn't being pedantic and nitpicky the one thing that's the most important about roadgeekery?

Technically, those are two things.  Pedantry and nit-picking, while related concepts, aren't entirely the same thing.  It's quite possible to be a nit-picker who isn't pedantic.

So is ^that post^ exhibiting pedantry or nit-picking? 

[kphoger]

So is ^that post^ exhibiting pedantry or nit-picking?

Pedantic semantic sarcastic quibbling.

[hbelkins]

Thanks to this thread, I was reminded to change my MS Office settings to not automatically superscript ordinals.

[formulanone]

Delta Air Lines new AI phone assistant.

Say something..."mileage reimbursement" (well, it understood me...so far, ok).

"OK? Is this for a flight already taken, or for miles promised due to service recovery" (uh, don't say that last term aloud, keep that off-stage)

Pretends to use a keyboard...that's cute. Wait, why would AI need a keyboard...?

"Is this related to your flight to Newark Intel? ...to Huntsville Intel? ...to Seattle-Tacoma Intel?" (it pronounced I'ntl out)

No.

Then tell us why in a short sentence?

Me: mileage reimbursement for a past flight

"OK? Is this for a flight already taken, or for miles promised due to service recovery" You can go online at uuuuuu.delta.cahm, just punch in your ticket numbers... (note: this didn't work 3-4 months ago; and no, it said "double-u" but I didn't want it to hyperlink)

A flight already taken.

"OK? Is this for a flight already taken, or for miles promised due to service recovery..." (Uh, oh. It's in a loop.)

[clarifying] I am requesting Sky Miles for a flight already taken.

"I cannot do that at this moment. And neither can a representative at this moment." (did that fake-ass rep just sass me?)

[emphasis] Let me talk to a representative.

"OK (fake keyboard noises). Please wait while we get you a representative (same looped keyboard din)."
"Are you still there?" (Hmmm...I heard a slightly-annoyed tinge in that voice. Might be my imagination.)

[emphasis] Yes.

"Hold on while we transfer you to a representative. We have sent a six-digit code to your email on file."

(...oh great, 2FA has hit the phone system of airlines...there's two ideas that need to get stuck in their own elevators for a few hours...)

[waiting 5-6 minutes]

"My name is Belac*, how can I be of service today."

I have complex concern; I took a series of flights with your airline and a code-shared partner back in December.

"ok"

All of them were under the same ticket number, but the website will not convert it to SkyMiles.

"ok...I see that you're waiting on one for...five months. Can you read me the ticket number."

006-blah-blah-blah-yakkety-smackety

"This was with our partner airline, WestJet."

Yes, I specifically bought a Delta ticket because I only wanted Delta SkyMiles. And that's why I'm calling you today. The computer can't help me with this, and your A.I. assistant couldn't help me, either.

This may be because one of the flight segments was cancelled, and they issued a new ticket number [holding all physical tickets in my hands and saved them as a PDF, because The Man Can't Put No Thing On Me].

Reading the other ticket number; 006-tiki-tiki-tembo-no-sa-rembo

"That shouldn't matter. You need to check with WestJet." (this is probably the end of his shift or he's new)

Ahem, a Delta ticket means your company was paid for the flight and therefore, you, as a representative of the airline, should help me out. I have already checked with them and they told me to call Delta.

"Well, you just need to wait until WestJet posts the miles." (this dude ain't listening and while it might not be his first rodeo...he's a clown, not a cowboy)

So after five months, you're telling me to wait some more?

"yes"

You and your terrible AI assistant should fly WestJet**. Please let me speak to your supervisor.

[five more minutes, more 2FA]

[Next representative, Andrea*** actually listens.]

"Hello, is this Million Miler F. D. None (way to butter me up)? How can I be of service?"

[Only had to do a minimum of explaining]

"Ok, here's a case number. Check your account in the next 3-5 days. I'm sorry about all that."

[gives me a case number, and has a lovely Jamaican accent which feels like home (it's not "home", that's what's amazing about it).]

[gave a top survey score]

Of course, I have no idea if the miles will ever show up.

Verdict: the AI Assistant isn't that much worse than the first human I spoke to, which isn't saying much.

* name changed to protect my sanity.
** would ValuJet be too much of a threat?
*** that's her name, kudos when deserved.

[Scott5114]

I normally lose patience with the AI after about five inane questions and start saying Prisencolinensinainciusol stuff to it to try to force it to fall through the bottom of its switch statements and kick me over to a rep.

[vdeane]

A few months ago, Google had finally started referring to my website correctly in search results, but I see today that at some point they reverted to just using the URL.    They really need to let webmasters set this for them and not assume they know better.

[thenetwork]

Yesterday, we saw the mail truck pull up to our box, and put several letters into it.  He then moved up about 5 feet, and pulled out two boxes to bring up the driveway to the house.

I answered the door and took the two packages from him.  Then I followed him back towards the street to retrieve the other mail.

This has happened on several occasions.

If the mail carrier is going to bring stuff to the front door, why doesn't he bring *everything* with him, and if no one answers, THEN take what can fit into the mailbox and put it in there?

[Rothman]

Yesterday, we saw the mail truck pull up to our box, and put several letters into it.  He then moved up about 5 feet, and pulled out two boxes to bring up the driveway to the house.

I answered the door and took the two packages from him.  Then I followed him back towards the street to retrieve the other mail.

This has happened on several occasions.

If the mail carrier is going to bring stuff to the front door, why doesn't he bring *everything* with him, and if no one answers, THEN take what can fit into the mailbox and put it in there?

Because you might not be home.

[kphoger]

Yesterday, we saw the mail truck pull up to our box, and put several letters into it.  He then moved up about 5 feet, and pulled out two boxes to bring up the driveway to the house.

I answered the door and took the two packages from him.  Then I followed him back towards the street to retrieve the other mail.

This has happened on several occasions.

If the mail carrier is going to bring stuff to the front door, why doesn't he bring *everything* with him, and if no one answers, THEN take what can fit into the mailbox and put it in there?

Because you might not be home.

Now answer the question.

[kphoger]

Computer — Looks like there's a problem with your internet connection.

Me — There, I restarted my computer, and now you're connecting to the internet just fine.

Computer — Oh, you're right.  I'm sorry.  It wasn't an internet problem.  It was a computer problem.  I shouldn't have shifted the blame like that.

That last part doesn't happen.  But it SHOULD.

[Rothman]

Yesterday, we saw the mail truck pull up to our box, and put several letters into it.  He then moved up about 5 feet, and pulled out two boxes to bring up the driveway to the house.

I answered the door and took the two packages from him.  Then I followed him back towards the street to retrieve the other mail.

This has happened on several occasions.

If the mail carrier is going to bring stuff to the front door, why doesn't he bring *everything* with him, and if no one answers, THEN take what can fit into the mailbox and put it in there?

Because you might not be home.

Now answer the question.

I don't see the problem with my answer. ;D

[thenetwork]

Yesterday, we saw the mail truck pull up to our box, and put several letters into it.  He then moved up about 5 feet, and pulled out two boxes to bring up the driveway to the house.

I answered the door and took the two packages from him.  Then I followed him back towards the street to retrieve the other mail.

This has happened on several occasions.

If the mail carrier is going to bring stuff to the front door, why doesn't he bring *everything* with him, and if no one answers, THEN take what can fit into the mailbox and put it in there?

Because you might not be home.

Now answer the question.

He could always place the mail in the mailbox AFTER leaving the packages at the door IF nobody comes to the door.

[Rothman]

Yesterday, we saw the mail truck pull up to our box, and put several letters into it.  He then moved up about 5 feet, and pulled out two boxes to bring up the driveway to the house.

I answered the door and took the two packages from him.  Then I followed him back towards the street to retrieve the other mail.

This has happened on several occasions.

If the mail carrier is going to bring stuff to the front door, why doesn't he bring *everything* with him, and if no one answers, THEN take what can fit into the mailbox and put it in there?

Because you might not be home.

Now answer the question.

He could always place the mail in the mailbox AFTER leaving the packages at the door IF nobody comes to the door.

Sounds like that takes more time.

[gonealookin]

I mostly like the Maverik gas station/c-store chain.  If I'm not near the Costco, I usually buy gas at one of the Maveriks.

However...I do not like being blasted with loud advertisements from the video screen at the top of the pump as soon as I start pumping the gas.  This seems to be a feature at most or all Maveriks.

I do give Maverik credit for giving me a paper receipt at the pump 95% of the time, much higher than at most stations whether either you hear the printer spinning but no paper ever spits out, or you get the "See cashier inside for receipt" message.

[D-Dey65]

Ultra bright headlights.

Someone coming towards me on a 2-lane yesterday had lights so bright they blinded me even though it was the middle of the afternoon.  Hint:  other drivers will have a hard time judging distance from you if you blind them.

Projector headlights. These are quite bright and certainly make it look like high beams are on.

I think those go beyond normal high beams. I used to find them blinding, but at some point when I was taking "defensive driver" courses, the instructor gave some tips for resisting the negative effects of those lights. I think it involves looking in a certain direction then looking back or something like that, but whatever the case may be, it didn't work for me at first. Eventually thought I learned to live with them. That could be because I found a way to deal with them, or it could be a sign that my eyesight is diminishing with age.

[DenverBrian]

What's a kernal?

[GaryV]

What's a kernal?

It's how corn comes packaged by nature.

Or the central core of a computer operating system.

Pedantically, or is that nit-pickingly, it's spelled kernel.

[Max Rockatansky]

What's a kernal?

It's how corn comes packaged by nature.

Or the central core of a computer operating system.

Pedantically, or is that nit-pickingly, it's spelled kernel.

And why is there twelve of them?

[wxfree]

Yesterday, we saw the mail truck pull up to our box, and put several letters into it.  He then moved up about 5 feet, and pulled out two boxes to bring up the driveway to the house.

I answered the door and took the two packages from him.  Then I followed him back towards the street to retrieve the other mail.

This has happened on several occasions.

If the mail carrier is going to bring stuff to the front door, why doesn't he bring *everything* with him, and if no one answers, THEN take what can fit into the mailbox and put it in there?

Because you might not be home.

Now answer the question.

He could always place the mail in the mailbox AFTER leaving the packages at the door IF nobody comes to the door.

Sounds like that takes more time.

When I see things like that, I tend to assume that a large organization has taken the time to collect reports of things that have happened, mistakes that have been made, and arranges procedures to reduce those mistakes.  It may make the process take a little longer but still improve overall efficiency by reducing mishaps.  Sometimes assumptions that seem obvious to an outsider aren't correct.  I once saw the mailman deliver a package early in the day, as he was driving normally (not stopping at every house) and just going to houses getting packages.  He said he would be back later to deliver letters in the mailbox.  That probably had to do with having the packages up front and box-bound mail in the back (or possibly still at the post office), not ready to go.  I haven't seen that again.  I don't know if it was experimental or if he just had a lot of packages that day and found it easier to get them out first.  It didn't bother me because I tend to assume that people who do something professionally know what they're doing, and even if they're trying something new and find that it doesn't work, they learn from that.

[kphoger]

I do not like being blasted with loud advertisements from the video screen at the top of the pump as soon as I start pumping the gas.

Ugh.  I hate that too.  I hate all forms of advertising that I can't simply turn off or throw away or mute or otherwise avoid.  I feel the same way about ads playing inside a city bus.

[Rothman]

I do not like being blasted with loud advertisements from the video screen at the top of the pump as soon as I start pumping the gas.

Ugh.  I hate that too.  I hate all forms of advertising that I can't simply turn off or throw away or mute or otherwise avoid.  I feel the same way about ads playing inside a city bus.

Some machines can be muted by holding down the second button down on the left.  Think I've managed it with other buttons, too...but, yep, lots of unmutable machines out there now...