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Datalore <datalore>

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	IOGEAR where art thou?	844 days ago
	I tend to freelance a little bit and go out to companies once every so often to help them with their technical queries. Sometimes, though, I need a device that is needed for a simple function, but Ireland lacks so far behind in hardware resources, it isn't funny anymore. One of the companies that I help out has an old HP OfficeJet D145. It's an MFD and since he doesn't have a server, he has it connected via USB to a PC. However, he has multiple accounts on his network of two Windows XP machines, and if he changes the passwords on the machine with the printer, he must do the same for the other machine. Add another machine to the mix (which he will) and there you can see a lot of trouble brewing. I started looking into a cheap print server solution that he could just share of his broadband router - the HP 250M JetDirect is NOT cheap, coming in at €250 ex VAT. however, one little gizmo caught my sight... It's the IOGEAR USB 2.0 Multi-Function Print Server (GMFPSU21W6) http://www.iogear.com/main.php?loc=p... Not only will this allow for the device to have it's own IP address and remove the requirement for sharing off a PC (thus removing the account password headaches mentioned above), but also it allows faxing and scanning over the network too! A little bonus I rubbed my hands in glee - felt like a kid opening a toy at Christmas... which it will soon be and I still don't have the damn device. IOGEAR promptly reported to me that a UK company would have it in stock....contacting this company resulted in a curt reply, saying that no, they don't have it...going back to IOGEAR with this response I found out that it was a new product and that the UK company should have it in a matter of weeks... I picked this email up on my Nokia E61 with the GMail app installed. As I waited for the bus (working on the driving test), my wife saw the drop in my face. I NEED IT NOW! Why should I have to wait WEEKS? It's not like it is 1907 and you have to transport it by ship! 2007 - we should be on the brink of teleportation! Why is it so hard to get this device? I'll tell you why. It is a small order. Too small to worry about. I get the feeling that they don't care about selling it to little me. The fact that I haven't heard about it before - the brand, not the device itself - should ring bells and get someone's ass in PR or Sales promptly reporting to my query and facilitating my needs.... Yet I have a company that I need to get it out to and have my credibility as a sourcer maintained... and not appear to be delaying the issue. After-sales expectations were a top priority for me. Pre-sales should be intuitive, guess- and time-wasting-free. Why should pre-sales be a concern? Most people looking for techy objects don't know and therefore this can lengthen the selection and purchasing process. But I ALREADY know EXACTLY what I want. It is there, made up and looking all fancy (check the webpage - it has a pic...) I want Christmas Day - is that too much to ask? I have been a good boy, honest
	posted by Datalore