Saves me a lot of late fees. I have my credit card on auto-pay as well. Pay the balance in full every month, automatically. It's a thing of beauty. I do look at the bills and recurring charges and I've done what I can to reduce them to start with.
I get the lack of control, though. For some having that sense of control may be important.
Tom
Getting back to the original topic: I haven't heard of missing packages from any of my customers in the US, so the USPS is not completely broken.
Of a few thousand orders shipped over the past decade or more I think I'm now up to two orders that have gone missing in transit. One package took about three months to arrive in Germany, but it did arrive. Normally the transit time is 1-3 weeks.
Tom
Of a few thousand orders shipped over the past decade or more I think I'm now up to two orders that have gone missing in transit. One package took about three months to arrive in Germany, but it did arrive. Normally the transit time is 1-3 weeks.
Tom
I'll bite:
What, exactly, do I get from sitting down, looking at my electricity bill, and writing a check (which, by the way, are never printed on decent paper for fountain pens), then sticking it in an envelope, sealing it, putting a stamp on it, and then putting it in my mailbox that I don't get by looking at the auto-pay receipt and / or my bank statement? I get plenty of writing practice with something called a lab notebook.
I just wish that I did a better job organizing my "lab notebooks" and class notes 30 years ago. They are still a disorganized mess today.
I will not use auto pay for this reason. I want to keep a mental track of where my money goes and see the outflow. That way you notice when someone skimmed your credit card at a gas station in Georgia and charged $200 worth of diesel fuel two hours later in Arizona.
However, life is a journey. Some prefer to travel through it blindly going wherever the "in crowd" goes. As many know I took the long and winding road full of speed bumps and detours, and I would do it that way again if I had a "reset" button. A human must keep learning and trying new things. Those adventures should be a unique experience for each person. When you stop learning and adventuring, you start growing old, and when you start growing old, you start to die. Your chronological age and health may impose restrictions but should not stop your journey.
I got my computer engineering degree in 1993 at the age of 40. Now 30 years later, I'm digging through those old notes and books relearning how to write "C" code. I have already created 3 digital music synthesizers and am working on number 4. Each has built on the previous one and become more elaborate. This is much more mental exercise than writing checks or playing Suduko. Now, soldering those little SMD parts is the "restriction."
Tubelab's post #64 above makes sense - to some people.
As I previously mentioned, I prefer to keep the control of my transactions under my own control, both for my own peace of mind, and for keeping my mind sharp.
Hiring a "helpful" assistant like some electronically controlled auto-pay system makes people lazy, with the notion that it's a convenience, or a time-saver.
Which in a way, it is.
However, even some "electronically controlled" systems are prone to fail or make mistakes, or become corrupted.
I'd rather have that issue stem from my own dealings, instead of some far away database.
As I previously mentioned, I prefer to keep the control of my transactions under my own control, both for my own peace of mind, and for keeping my mind sharp.
Hiring a "helpful" assistant like some electronically controlled auto-pay system makes people lazy, with the notion that it's a convenience, or a time-saver.
Which in a way, it is.
However, even some "electronically controlled" systems are prone to fail or make mistakes, or become corrupted.
I'd rather have that issue stem from my own dealings, instead of some far away database.
Back to the USPS. The missing Mouser box showed up in my mailbox today. It was clearly mangled somewhere in its travel, being ripped open and crudely taped over. It was also marked "DOOR 601 DO NOT SCAN." Where did this happen?
The label on the box shows that it was printed on Jan 12. Tracking shows that it was scanned on the 13th, then never scanned again until the 26th when it showed up at a USPS facility in the same zip code as the Mouser warehouse. That info, and something one of the Mouser customer service guys said leads me to believe that it happened at Mouser.
Either way Mouser sent me a second box via UPS, and anything in this box is a bonus, so It's time to open it.
The label on the box shows that it was printed on Jan 12. Tracking shows that it was scanned on the 13th, then never scanned again until the 26th when it showed up at a USPS facility in the same zip code as the Mouser warehouse. That info, and something one of the Mouser customer service guys said leads me to believe that it happened at Mouser.
Either way Mouser sent me a second box via UPS, and anything in this box is a bonus, so It's time to open it.
Attachments
Somewhere around 2001 or so I had a really sad USPS experience.
For the previous few years I worked for a company that provided multi-carrier shipping software solutions. Some were standalone systems and some could get client data from an order system and pass back tracking and shipping charges. One client even paid for a web scraping app that would collect actual delivery data from UPS, and RPS online tracking data. I knwe good and well what data the carriers provided.
Anyway I go to ship something by USPS and decide to pay extra for tracking.
A few days later the recipient has not seen the package and I go to track it. Enter the tracking numbers and USPS says: "Your package is in route to it's destination"
For the previous few years I worked for a company that provided multi-carrier shipping software solutions. Some were standalone systems and some could get client data from an order system and pass back tracking and shipping charges. One client even paid for a web scraping app that would collect actual delivery data from UPS, and RPS online tracking data. I knwe good and well what data the carriers provided.
Anyway I go to ship something by USPS and decide to pay extra for tracking.
A few days later the recipient has not seen the package and I go to track it. Enter the tracking numbers and USPS says: "Your package is in route to it's destination"
I've only used UPS for Mouser orders, and on occasion, the 3rd day option if I'm "in a hurry" to complete a job.
Besides, the customer pays the added shipping difference.
But never had any issues with Mouser, Newark, Parts Express, Jameco, Vetco, etc.
It seems that USPS gets bad reviews on here and elsewhere.
They really need to get their act together.
My main shipping issue of late has been with Newark and how they pack things these days.
I put in an order for a bunch of SMD passives. Mostly resistors and .1 u bypass caps.
What arrived at the loading dock was an enormous box, about 2' x 2' x 3' box. Each part in the order was put into a padded envelope, and then all dumped into the one massive box.
So out of a few reels worth of passives (all ordered as "cut tape"), they shipped a massive box of paper-and-bubble-wrap padded envelopes. I don't know about your jurisdiction, but those aren't recyclable around here, and they also aren't particularly biodegradable.
I put in an order for a bunch of SMD passives. Mostly resistors and .1 u bypass caps.
What arrived at the loading dock was an enormous box, about 2' x 2' x 3' box. Each part in the order was put into a padded envelope, and then all dumped into the one massive box.
So out of a few reels worth of passives (all ordered as "cut tape"), they shipped a massive box of paper-and-bubble-wrap padded envelopes. I don't know about your jurisdiction, but those aren't recyclable around here, and they also aren't particularly biodegradable.
I sometimes wish I used lab notebooks. I was never good at taking or keeping notes. I threw out all my notes from engineering school over a decade ago (graduated in 1999 with my B.Sc. and 2002 with M.Sc.). I never used them anyway. I scanned and kept a few in electronic form. I've tossed most of the textbooks as well. Kept the good ones and still use them on occasion.
Same with my notes from psychology school (B.A., 2019). I started the purge when I ran out of binders to put the notes in. Then another purge last year when I moved. I've held on to some notes and textbooks. Especially those that are more applicable to audio, so social psychology, sensing & perception, cognitive psychology, consumer psychology. Throwing those notes out were like ripping my heart out. I've put a lot of work into those. But I also know that, realistically, I would never touch them again - even if I end up pursuing more degrees in psychology.
"Back in the Day" (so a few years ago) Mouser shipped in normal cardboard boxes taped shut with reinforced paper tape. Those always arrived intact and unopened. Their newer small boxes are garbage. They're held together with adhesive, which makes them much more difficult to break down for recycling. The lid is usually barely held on and I've had several that arrived partially open.
The most spectacular failure was when I ordered 500 Keystone #4332 mounting brackets and Mouser didn't bother closing the ziplock bag with the brackets all the way. On top, the shipping box broke open in transit. Mouser ended up having to ship another 150-or-so brackets to replace those that escaped from the box.
I get all Mouser shipments by FedEx ("free" on orders over $100). I have nothing against UPS, but FedEx handles the import process better. They automatically charge my FedEx account for the sales tax without fees (see a pattern here?
) and deliver earlier than UPS in my area.The Neurochrome branded boxes I use are supposedly crush proof to 200 lbs. Yet, I have actually had one that got banged up in transit. It makes you wonder what the shipping companies do with those boxes exactly.
Tom
I've always joked that when someone gets a messed-up box or damaged goods, that it's likely the delivery guy having a "bad day", hungover, or his wife/girlfriend turned him down for nookie.
Besides, I've seen delivery guys tossing or dropping boxes on the ground without regard for what's in them.
Besides, I've seen delivery guys tossing or dropping boxes on the ground without regard for what's in them.
.xyz is a legitimate domain. I use one.
No, it would not be a good choice for business because ignorance.
@wiseguy, Really? I stopped using UPS after standing in line to pick up a package in the depot here in my town. A chain link fence separated the customer service from the loading area. I couldn't help but note the hustle and bustle with all the...crashing of boxes from the tailgates of the trucks to the concrete floor 5 feet below unloading and the slamming of boxes against the interior walls of the trucks loading up. A line of about 10 or so people stared in astonishment.
I've since had to be back there to pick stuff up and they've put up a wall to separate the customers now.
I've since had to be back there to pick stuff up and they've put up a wall to separate the customers now.
Back in the 1970s, is a box looked like it might have drugs, the UPS depot sorters would drop-kick it to find out.
As Pete says, pack to survive a worst-case toss off the back of the long-haul truck.
My dad always said to pack so the postal workers could drop a bundle of newspapers on the box without having the box collapse. One of his summer jobs was in a mail sorting centre. He also mentioned that those FRAGILE stickers (and fees for careful handling) aren't worth the money. "Oh... That one was labeled FRAGILE" (as the crushed box emerges from under that bundle of newspapers).
There's a reason I ship finished amps in 1/4" thick (double thickness) cardboard boxes with at least an inch of space around the amp.
Tom
There's a reason I ship finished amps in 1/4" thick (double thickness) cardboard boxes with at least an inch of space around the amp.
Tom
People never fail to mention how impressed they are upon opening one of my boxes...article tightly surrounded by minimum 1" styro in 1/4" double box tightly surrounded by minimum 1" styro in 1/4" double box.
but then there's blunt force trauma...
Unlike some of you guys, I'm not a scientist.
but then there's blunt force trauma...
Unlike some of you guys, I'm not a scientist.
I have had bad experiences with all of the shipping companies in 40+ years of buying and selling electronics.
I ordered a snowthrower from Sams club in the winter of 2015, or 2016. When it showed up in a Fedex truck I was in the basement and did not hear the doorbell, so the delivery girl went next door and got my 83 year old neighbor who wasn't much help with unloading, but he came inside to get me. As we came out of my front door we saw the driver shove the snowthrower off the back of the truck with her feet and drive away. This was after the "toss the TV set over the fence" fiasco. The plastic gas tank had been ripped off its mounting, the mounting tabs were broken off, a some of the sheet metal was bent up, but some coathanger wire and a hammer made it work.
I bought some large HP RF signal generators off Ebay and other surplus outlets during the time period when all the US electronics factories were shutting down and broken sig gens that were $25,000 new were available for under $500. They weigh about 75 pounds, so I left a large hand truck in the middle of the driveway with a note that said ring the bell and I'll get the generator from the truck. I took stuff like this into the garage first anyway since some of it needed a good decontamination before going into the house. This worked fine for all but one delivery where some macho-man delivery guy picked up a really big and heavy box and tried to get up the front steps to the front porch where he lost it and it hit the concrete.
I heard the thud from in the basement and saw the UPS truck driving away as I went out the door. The sig gen was quite mangled and one of the ultra rare VFD's was broken. It was seen displaying an error code in the Ebay ad, and a call to the seller confirmed that the unit he sent was the unit in the picture and both displays did work. I took all of this to the UPS where they basically told me to take a hike. "It wasn't packaged properly."
I ordered a snowthrower from Sams club in the winter of 2015, or 2016. When it showed up in a Fedex truck I was in the basement and did not hear the doorbell, so the delivery girl went next door and got my 83 year old neighbor who wasn't much help with unloading, but he came inside to get me. As we came out of my front door we saw the driver shove the snowthrower off the back of the truck with her feet and drive away. This was after the "toss the TV set over the fence" fiasco. The plastic gas tank had been ripped off its mounting, the mounting tabs were broken off, a some of the sheet metal was bent up, but some coathanger wire and a hammer made it work.
I bought some large HP RF signal generators off Ebay and other surplus outlets during the time period when all the US electronics factories were shutting down and broken sig gens that were $25,000 new were available for under $500. They weigh about 75 pounds, so I left a large hand truck in the middle of the driveway with a note that said ring the bell and I'll get the generator from the truck. I took stuff like this into the garage first anyway since some of it needed a good decontamination before going into the house. This worked fine for all but one delivery where some macho-man delivery guy picked up a really big and heavy box and tried to get up the front steps to the front porch where he lost it and it hit the concrete.
I heard the thud from in the basement and saw the UPS truck driving away as I went out the door. The sig gen was quite mangled and one of the ultra rare VFD's was broken. It was seen displaying an error code in the Ebay ad, and a call to the seller confirmed that the unit he sent was the unit in the picture and both displays did work. I took all of this to the UPS where they basically told me to take a hike. "It wasn't packaged properly."
Wow, so much doom & gloom over shipping here!
I once sent back components from a 1966 "hi end model" RCA Victor console stereo to a customer in Texas (from my shop in Phila Pa)
As usual, I lovingly, completely, restored the record changer, the power supply chassis, and the tuner/amp chassis.
It took two boxes, one for the changer, the other for the electronics.
I packed them like they were gonna be thrown off a cliff by an angry postman. (via UPS)
Guess what?
They got back to Texas in perfect shape!
The guy sent me back a touching email, thanking me for the re-installing instructions, and when he powered the console up his wife came into the room and they both wound up dancing to a Linda Ronstadt record.
She originally was against his spending the $400+ on my services, but now was utterly attached to the console!
The (happy) ending.
I once sent back components from a 1966 "hi end model" RCA Victor console stereo to a customer in Texas (from my shop in Phila Pa)
As usual, I lovingly, completely, restored the record changer, the power supply chassis, and the tuner/amp chassis.
It took two boxes, one for the changer, the other for the electronics.
I packed them like they were gonna be thrown off a cliff by an angry postman. (via UPS)
Guess what?
They got back to Texas in perfect shape!
The guy sent me back a touching email, thanking me for the re-installing instructions, and when he powered the console up his wife came into the room and they both wound up dancing to a Linda Ronstadt record.
She originally was against his spending the $400+ on my services, but now was utterly attached to the console!
The (happy) ending.