Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!ncar!ames!coherent!dplatt From: dplatt@coherent.com (Dave Platt) Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.programmer Subject: Re: APDA Technotes Keywords: APDA Tech Notes Message-ID: <24380@coherent.com> Date: 1 May 89 18:13:33 GMT References: <8319@chinet.chi.il.us> <29828@apple.Apple.COM> <8326@chinet.chi.il.us> Reply-To: dplatt@coherent.com (Dave Platt) Organization: Coherent Thought Inc., Palo Alto CA Lines: 122 In article <8326@chinet.chi.il.us> henry@chinet.chi.il.us (Henry C. Schmitt) writes: > It figures! About a half hour after I send my message Federal > Express shows up at my door with last year's missing Tech Notes. Yup. Just like washing your car or going on a picnic... rain is certain to follow. > No, don't faint, APDA didn't get it 100% correct, I got printed > copies not on disk like I ordered. > > Well, tomorrow I'm calling and writing a letter to let them know how > I feel. Also, I saw someone mention a new APDAlog; has anyone else > gotten one, I haven't! (Knowing the way Murphy works, the Post > Office will deliver it today [Sunday] just to make me wrong! :-) My copy of the new APDAlog arrived last week. Interesting reading, to say the least. It's pretty clear (to me, at least) that APDA has _definitely_ been hearing some of the howls of dismay re their prices, service, etc. that have been represented in this newsgroup. Specifically: - APDA acknowledges that they have been rather tardy in getting all of the Old APDA membership information transferred over into their new files, and in handling new membership applications. The sidebar that discusses this problem is rather apologetic. - APDA has cut the prices on the Macintosh and Apple II Tech Notes, thanks to a "streamlining" of the production process. [Henry... maybe your set of 3.5" floppy disks were streamlined into paper ;-]. Y'all may recall that the New APDA was charging roughly twice as much for the Tech Notes as the Old APDA did... apparently, this was a real sore point for many developers. They leave the door open to the possibility of similar price reductions on other high-volume items. - APDA now offers standard UPS delivery (ground service) in addition to its FedEx Second Day Air service. Delivery is slower, of course, but the cost is rather lower as well. Apparently, not everybody was thrilled at the idea of spending $25 to get second-day-air shipment of a software order that APDA took weeks to fulfill... - APDA has cut some of its prices on third-party software. They also state, specifically, that they're pricing third-party software at "suggested list" (or a bit below) and well above the prices offered by high-volume discounters such as ComputerWare and MacConnection. They don't want to be in competition with independents, it seems, but are offering third-party software as a convenience to developers. The marketing manager says that APDA isn't trying to increase its profits at the expense of its developers. That's the good news. The disappointing news is that the marketing manager's article confirms what I'd suspected... the New APDA has been set up with a charter that requires that it "break even" financially. This suggests to me that the New APDA's prices will always be higher than the Old APDAs, for any specified level of service, because operating and overhead costs in the Cupertino area are almost certainly a good deal higher than similar costs up in Renton, Washington. The other disappointing news is what I hear in this newsgroup... that APDA clearly has not gotten their act together yet, and are not yet able to offer the high-quality service that was Apple's stated reason for reabsorbing APDA. I can make a couple of suggestions as to how we can help assist APDA in meeting the needs of the market (that is, our own needs ;-). First off... when you're unhappy with their service (or lack thereof), write them a letter, in your best professional style. Make it clear what you're unhappy about; cite names, places, times, and so forth. To all of you who have already taken the time to write, phone, FAX, email, or otherwise inform APDA of your dissatisfaction: Thank You! The new APDAlog shows clear evidence that your words are being heard. Although I never got a personal response to the letter I FAXed to APDA a few months ago, the new APDAlog addresses almost all of the issues that I raised in my letter. I'm sure I wasn't the only person to raise these issues... keep up the good work, folks. Second point... in thinking over this whole issue during the past week or so, I've realized that many of us _do_ have a "Horn of Persuasion" that we can blow in APDA's ear. It's legal, effective, and quite simple. It's simply this: if we order stuff from APDA by mail (rather than by telephone or FAX), then APDA is legally obligated to comply with the FTC regulations that concern mail-order sales. As I recall (I don't have the regs here with me), APDA _must_ do the following: 1) They must deliver the product within 30 days of receiving the order, unless the catalog states that the product will not be available until a later date. 2) If they cannot deliver within 30 days, they must send you a postcard telling you that they can't deliver within 30 days; they must tell you how long delivery is actually expected to take, and give you the opportunity to cancel the order with no penalty. 3) If you don't cancel the order, and they are unable to deliver the order within another 90(??), then they must send you _another_ postcard telling you of the delay. They must give you another opportunity to cancel your order... in fact, I believe that they are required to cancel unless you send back a postcard (that *they* must provide and stamp!) telling them that you wish the order to remain pending. Now... I agree that most of us don't want our orders cancelled because APDA can't deliver in a timely fashion... we want our materials delivered! However, we can probably put pressure on APDA by gently reminding them that prolonged shipping delays, without proper notification and an offer-to-cancel, are a violation of FTC regulations and could subject them to substantial legal penalties! So... if you ordered something from them by mail, and they haven't delivered within 30 days or dropped you a note to confirm the delay, then you may have a significant leverage to apply some pressure. Check the mail-order pages of any good audio, video, or photo magazine... most of these magazines describe a purchaser's legal rights in detail. Then, drop APDA a note and remind them! -- Dave Platt FIDONET: Dave Platt on 1:204/444 VOICE: (415) 493-8805 UUCP: ...!{ames,sun,uunet}!coherent!dplatt DOMAIN: dplatt@coherent.com INTERNET: coherent!dplatt@ames.arpa, ...@uunet.uu.net USNAIL: Coherent Thought Inc. 3350 West Bayshore #205 Palo Alto CA 94303