Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!rutgers!usc!wuarchive!ukma!husc6!m2c!wpi!northrup From: northrup@wpi.wpi.edu (Jim Northrup) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga Subject: Amiga Mail Order Survey Keywords: Amiga Mail Order Survey Message-ID: <9058@wpi.wpi.edu> Date: 24 Feb 90 12:47:22 GMT Reply-To: northrup@wpi.wpi.edu (Jim Northrup) Organization: Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester ,MA Lines: 72 Amiga Mail Order Survey I've seen a number of comments and complaints about Amiga Mail order companies on the net over the last year or so, but I've neglected to keep track of them. It occured to me that perhaps a survey of comp.sys.amiga on this topic would be useful to the Amiga community, so I'm volunteering to conduct such a survey. Once I've got enough results to be able to come to some kind of conclusion, and once the input I get has slowed to a trickle, I'll post the results of this informal survey so everybody can see them. The survey is short, because I think all we really want to know is who to give our business to. So I don't ask about details (prices, delivery time, etc.); I only ask about the overall "quality" of the service. In order to make it easier to summarize the data, I've phrased most of the questions so that answers fit into a scale from 1 to 10. If you've done business with more than one company, you should send me more than one copy of this survey. If you're willing to participate, send your completed survey(s) to: northrup@wpi.wpi.edu or northrup@wpi.bitnet 1. Name of Mail Order company: _______________________________________________ 2. How much business have you done with this company? ______ 1 = I've made one purchase there. 2 = I've made two purchases there. ... 9 = I've made nine purchase there. 10 = I've made ten or more purchases there. 3. On the average, how has the service been with this company? ______ 1 = The service has been very bad on the average. (For example, you feel ripped off.) 5 = The service has been adequate, on the average. (For example, you weren't cheated but they weren't friendly either.) 10 = The service has been very good on the average. (For example, the service was friendly and fair.) 4. How consistent has the service been? That is, if it's bad on the average, has it been bad every time, or has it varied? ______ 1 = The service has always been either very good or very bad. 5 = The service has varied a little, either mostly good or mostly bad. 10 = The service has varied greatly. Sometimes it was very good, sometimes it was very bad. (If you have only made one purchase with this company, answer "1".) 5. Do you have any additional comments? Comments: In order to tabulate these results, I will sum up the answers to question (2) in order to determine the total number of purchases made with each company. In order to rate the service of each company, I will use a weighted average of your answers to question (3), weighted on the number of purchases you have made with that company. (In other words, the opinions of somebody who has done lots of business with a company will be weighted more heavily.) Your answers to question (4) will be used to compute a "deviation" from the average given by (3). I will also compute the statistical standard deviation for question number (3), as well as its weighted average. At the end of the survey, a good Mail Order company should have a high average rating with a low deviation. I'm counting on two things to make this survey work: (a) lots or respondants, and (b) honesty on the part of the respondants. Thanks in advance. -- Jim Northrup northrup@wpi.wpi.edu Assistant Professor, Mathematical Sciences WPI, Worcester MA 01609