Annoying companies

Big company rips off local blogger

adamg — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 17:25:35 -0400

Jenny is now just "parannoyed."

A couple of years ago, Jenny Frazier came up with the idea of Boston Blogtoberfest, an annual get-together for local bloggers. Being a graphic designer, she also came up with a logo to go with the event - and the concern she set up to promote other blog events.

And now it looks like Brown Brothers Harriman & Co has ripped off her design for some T-shirts. Granted, it's for a good cause (a charity road race tomorrow), but sheesh, don't big companies have lawyers to check stuff like this?

... If you're in Boston and you go to the Corporate Challenge, please let everyone from that company wearing that shirt know that you've seen that design before. IN BOSTON. AT A BOSTON EVENT. DESIGNED BY BOSTON-BASED GRAPHIC DESIGNER JENNY FRAZIER. ...

How McDonald's could reduce its carbon footprint

adamg — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 13:51:03 -0400

Stop having a stupid ad truck drive up and down crowded Needham Street.

Send lawyers, guns and money, well, guns, anyway

adamg — Mon, 23 Jun 2008 23:50:28 -0400

Secretly Ironic recounts a disappointing trip all the way out to Worcester for a "Jack and Jill night" at the Boston Gun Range, which, despite what its make your eyes bleed Web site and answering machine would have you believe, actually closed several months ago:

... So, then what? Obviously, the four of us drove around past the nudie bars and automotive spring repair shops on the outskirts of town until we hit Worcester Center. We briefly got lost in the Abandoned Warehouse district, and then stumbled upon the Gentrified Abandoned Warehouse district, featuring loft condos (natch), a discount meat store (”We Towed You So” emblazoned cheerfully across the parking lot), and a tapas bar called Bocado. ...

Bye alt.; so long ne....

Dave — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 13:13:08 -0400

Continuing the trend for ISPs to offer less service for more money, Verizon announced on their website that they're no longer going to be carrying Usenet groups beyond the "Big Eight" hierarchies. They didn't really explain why.

Apparently they're using Little CuCuomo's attempt to fight kiddie porn to justify their reduction of services. They're dropping the entire "alt" hierarchy and others such as the regional "ne" one. This represents something like 90% of Usenet. Couldn't they just filter the offending newsgroups?

I'm still on the fence about whether it was a good idea to drop Comcast and go to FiOS. Comcast had Usenet retention of several months. Verizon only gave you a week or so. With FiOS it takes over a minute to reconnect when my machine comes out of Hibernate mode; with Comcast it was instant. Comcast offers free McAfee protection; Verizon offers you a teaser trial download for a $5 monthy charge.

Amsuck

adamg — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 22:26:55 -0400

Dan Kennedy and Chris Helms both write about how Amtrak is sucking this week, not so much because of track work in Connecticut as the way the railroad is handling replacement bus service and, in Helms's case, not notifying riders with reservations about the suddent change.

When your Realtor turns stalker

adamg — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 16:13:12 -0400

Jennifer Lord reports she doesn't want "a Realtor for life."

Undependable Mail Delivery on Saturdays?

newchristine — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 14:11:27 -0400

Anybody been noticing that there are no US Mail deliveries sometimes on Saturdays? No mail truck, no postman/woman on foot....very annoying. Is there some official cutback?

Don't hire Broadway Express as your moving company

Ron Newman — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 10:22:12 -0400

Photo by Juldea

They might just decide to smash their moving van into the Longfellow Bridge and spill your belongings all over Storrow Drive. And then charge your credit card before you can file a claim against them.

Earlier: An eyewitness account from someone standing on the bridge when it happened, and comments from Universal Hubsters. Also more photos at Flickr.

Pedestrians are so icky

adamg — Wed, 11 Jun 2008 16:04:56 -0400

Steve Garfield photographs an example of how the Ruling Class really hates the little people: By ordering workers to drive metal rod things into a granite planter on Franklin Street to make really sure nobody ever dares think about sitting on its bench-like sides.

Tweeter Center now Comcast Center

oddjob60 — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 12:39:31 -0400

The new signs are going up: ~~Great Woods~~ The Tweeter Center is now the Comcast Center.