on-line advertising
13:51 Tuesday 19 October 2021
I often see ads when I use a browser at work. (I see them far less at home, where I can install ad blockers.) There are some Google-served ads that ask for feedback when I close them:Ad was inappropriate
Not interested in this ad
Ad covered content
Seen this ad multiple times
I'd like to suggest some additional response choices for them:I have no interest in this product.
I have no use for this product.
Too expensive.
WAY too expensive.
These ads must be raising the price of the product.
This ad is too distracting. (I am leaving the web page/site.)
This product is bad for the world.
The world cannot afford the waste of resources required to make (and market) this product.
This ad has made me aware that this company is evil.
I hate this company.
I don't know what this ad is trying to sell.
If I want to know more about a product, I will research it. I don't need ads. I have no reason to trust ads.
I will be less willing to buy your product if I'm paying for your advertising. (And we all must be.)
Tuesday 23:33
I just did an order on-line to get parts for the bike...., watch Thursday Night Football with your 30-day FREE trial of Prime.
They've got no clue who I am. While inappropriate ads are a waste of time and space, they are remarkably ineffective. (And I did not get a trial of Prime.)For the next 24 hours, you have FREE Shipping on all Amazon-shipped items. No minimum order. Why? We just want to thank you for shopping with us.
Might be useful. Ooh, spoke reflectors?
I don't seem to have been hit by supply-chain problems, although some items I might have bought were unavailable. There have been past orders (cheap spokes, cables, and brake pads in largish quantities - large for the occasional repair; not so large for several years of maintenance riding 4000-5000 miles/year (6400-8000 km/yr)) that were coming from China. I suppose it depends on what's in U.S. warehouses.
Sunday I should have the crucial cassette lockring. There was only 1 left of the particular ring I picked. There were other choices, and it would be good to have spares. There will also be a tool to remove the freehub. Then I might have some idea whether the replacement freehub will fit. Or maybe I can clean and re-lube the old one and it will work again. (It's working again now.) And there will be a couple of cheap tail lights. They caught my interest because it looks like they will clip on the back of the seat. (Not theft-secure, but positioned well for visibility.) It occurred to me later that they will probably clip onto the trailer, too. I've been wanting lights on the trailer, since it largely blocks the bike's taillights. The back of the helmet would also be a good spot to clip a light. (So if those are as good as they look online, I'll probably be ordering more.)
I ordered a couple of "accessory holders" to mount a headlight on my bike's twin. It's not really a spare bike if it's not ready to ride. And the new freehub will be the last thing to arrive. It may not fit. I may not need it.
Wednesday 10:05
The NY Times website showed me an ad today for the Greubel Forsey (never heard of them) "GMT Sport" watch. It looks really cool, but I'd say $50 is my upper limit for a watch.
Web search (not clicking on the ad!), on a different computer (through a different ISP) ....
Nice photos and review here:*Limited edition: 33 pieces
Price: 480,000 Swiss francs (rubber [watchband]), 520,000 Swiss francs (bracelet)
At the current exchange rate (2021/Oct/20), that's US$520,113.60 and $563,456.40. That's a lot more than our house cost.
That's 10,000 times (yuk) what I would spend on a watch. That ad has really missed its market.
Owning a watch like that is just showing off - to a very small, select clique who would know what you've got.
($43,342.80 for just the metal watchband? That's a car!)
*I can't see anything on Greubel Fursey's own site; my Firefox is too locked down.
I kept wandering the SJX site, and gee, I'd really like some of those watches. (But not at the cost of a house.)
You know, showing me the toys of the ultra rich really just builds class resentment. It can't possibly lead to a sale. I suppose it does earn the NYT site some money, and I do want the site to thrive.
Friday 23:00
Supply chain? I got an email this evening saying the cassette lockring will not be arriving Sunday:Token Products Lock Ring for Shimano 11T Cassette, Black
New estimated delivery date: Fri/Sat, December 17/18, 2021
That's 54/55 days later.
I've ordered another lockring (genuine Shimano) that should arrive Oct 28 - Nov 3. I'd hoped to have the bike rideable again sooner than that. I can try calling local shops tomorrow to look for the part, or see whether I can take the part off another bike here.
And why do they ask questions like this?Choose a delivery option:
Thursday, Oct. 28 - Wednesday, Nov. 3 FREE Shipping
Thursday, Oct. 28 - Wednesday, Nov. 3 $16.04 - Shipping
Who would pay extra for shipping that isn't faster? (This is more than the part costs.) And I've often chosen slower, free shipping and received the packages before the paid-shipping dates.
Saturday 02:23
Now that the most-important item from tomorrow's delivery has been delayed almost 2 months, the rest of the order is coming early - today.
Saturday 16:00
Today's shipment arrived - a couple of tail lights and some tools.
The lights aren't as bright as I'd hoped. And I don't know what they "auto-sense"; they don't sense braking and brighten. They may be useful to carry as spares, for those occasions when the primary lights weren't recharged when they should have been. Or if there's someone who's safety is at risk from not having a light.
The tools may not help get the freehub off. I'll have a 3rd chain whip (no task should need more than 2, but my 2nd one is rather primitive) and a big allen wrench (for something(?) stubborn).
Saturday 23:38
Surprise! One of the accessory mounts arrived USPS from Philadelphia. (It's Oct 23.) That was expected Nov 1-9. I guess there's a lot of guessing going on about how long shipping is taking now. (I wonder whether that shop has lockrings? The additional weight would have been negligible.)
Useless tracking info? The package tracking with the order didn't say anything about where the package was (although I can guess that "delivered" is at my house). Hunting for the USPS tracking page and pasting in the tracking ID was more informative.A M A Z O N T R A C K I N GU. S. P. S. T R A C K I N G Shipped with USPS Tracking ID: ######################Oct 20, 12:21Shipping Label Created, USPS Awaiting ItemPHILADELPHIA, PA 19147 Carrier picked up the package.Oct 20, 15:00Shipment Received, Package Acceptance PendingPHILADELPHIA, PA 19147 Thursday, October 21 Thu 10/21 20:50Package arrived at a carrier facility.Oct 21, 20:50Accepted at USPS Origin FacilityPHILADELPHIA, PA 19147 Thu 10/21 22:05Package arrived at a carrier facility.Oct 21, 22:05Arrived at USPS Regional Origin FacilityPHILADELPHIA PA NETWORK DISTRIBUTION CENTER Friday, October 22 Fri 10/22 01:25Package left the carrier facility.Oct 22, 01:25Departed USPS Regional FacilityPHILADELPHIA PA NETWORK DISTRIBUTION CENTER Fri 10/22 07:25Package arrived at a carrier facility.Oct 22, 07:25Arrived at USPS FacilityHYATTSVILLE, MD 20785 Fri 10/22 08:14Package left the carrier facility.Oct 22, 08:14Departed USPS FacilityHYATTSVILLE, MD 20785 Fri 10/22 09:09Package arrived at a carrier facility.Oct 22, 09:09Arrived at USPS Regional FacilityMERRIFIELD VA DISTRIBUTION CENTER Fri 10/22 14:37Package arrived at a carrier facility.Oct 22, 14:37Arrived at USPS Regional Destination FacilityDULLES VA DISTRIBUTION CENTER Fri 10/22 20:26Package left the carrier facility.Oct 22, 20:26Departed USPS Regional FacilityDULLES VA DISTRIBUTION CENTER Fri 10/22 21:09Package arrived at a carrier facility.Oct 22, 21:09Arrived at USPS Regional FacilityMERRIFIELD VA DISTRIBUTION CENTER Saturday, October 23 Sat 10/23 01:26Package left the carrier facility.Oct 23, 01:26Departed USPS Regional FacilityMERRIFIELD VA DISTRIBUTION CENTER Sat 10/23 01:47Package arrived at a carrier facility.Oct 23, 01:47Arrived at USPS FacilityARLINGTON, VA 22207 Oct 23, 05:22Arrived at Post OfficeARLINGTON, VA 22207 Sat 10/23 17:26Package delivered. Oct 23, 17:26Delivered, In/At MailboxARLINGTON, VA 22207 Times are shown in the local timezone.our item was delivered in or at the mailbox at 17:26 on October 23, 2021 in ARLINGTON, VA 22207.
"Local time" doesn't mean much if you don't know where the package is.
I've ordered some more stuff. I ordered that 2nd lockring - arriving sooner than December - all by itself. There were some other things I was adding in with it, but the shipping charges looked crazy, and I dropped them. (The lockring, all by itself, still had free shipping.) I tried them again tonight and the shipping was free - some reflective and flourescent slap/snap bands (
vvalkyri could use a few; her new bike has no chain guard.), another cheap tail light (probably no better than today's, but cheaper), a (hopefully) brighter clip-on light (probably destined for the back of the helmet, but maybe a couple on the back of the seat if it's good), and motion/braking-sensing light designed to rack mount.
I've got a good, huge light mounted to the rack, but it's not designed for that, and it's not a good mounting. It's also difficult and inconvenient to change the batteries. It's an awesome light the first few days nights, and it's a really good light the next couple of weeks (as the battery voltage drops), and then it's so-so, but you don't see how good it is (or isn't) when it's behind you. The new rack light would be one more light to unclip and take inside to recharge, like all the others.
There wasn't anything like this available the last time I looked. There were a few lights designed to mount on racks, but they were feeble.
I remember when I first had a light on my bike. It was one of those streamlined chrome things with 2 "D" cells. The first night ride I hit a pot hole that I never saw. Bike lights were crap then. (This would have been about 1973, ±1. LEDs were in digital watches and calculators (no LCDs yet), which were new technologies. (We still used slide rules.)) It should be no surprise that when I started bike commuting year round I was adapting car lights (front and rear) so I could see and be seen.
Amazon gets cranky if you log in from 2 different browsers at the same time. Tonight's show up as the same IP, but that doesn't mean they're on the same computer because (from outside the house) everything in the house shows up as the cable modem's IP.
Sunday 11:24
I found the BikeSpark website, https://bikespark.com.tw/rear-lights/ (which I suppose I should have done before I decided to buy the light). Firefox refuses to load the site; Secure connection failed. (Firefox does this for a lot of sites.) And this model of the light isn't on the website. (It's got just the G4 model that uses AAA cells, not the USB-recharge G4R model.) Seems to me keeping your website updated with your full product line would be a priority. Especially if on your Amazon page for the AAA model someone specifically commented "Would be exactly what i was looking for if it had a built in battery and usb charging. :-/ light + reflector + rack mount."
I've found only 1 magazine review for this light, and it's in a Danish magazine (Test: BikeSpark BKS-G4 rear light with brake light), and it's for the AAA-cell version of the light. It's light [yuk] on detail, but concludes "The BikeSpark light is a really good commuter light, it gives good visibility, is easy to mount and has a very fair price."
I think most of the magazines are aimed at mountain bikers, and most of the rest are aimed at competitive/wanna-be road bikers. Those folks are not likely to have a pannier rack, so they can't mount these lights on their bikes; ⇒ no review. Who's got a rack? Commuters. Tourers. People who are using bikes instead of driving or taking transit. People who need to carry stuff. Urban bikers - commuters, shoppers, errand-runners - might be riding in traffic.
[This entry was originally posted as https://syntonic-comma.dreamwidth.org/1262513.html on Dreamwidth (where there are
comments).]
I often see ads when I use a browser at work. (I see them far less at home, where I can install ad blockers.) There are some Google-served ads that ask for feedback when I close them:Ad was inappropriate
Not interested in this ad
Ad covered content
Seen this ad multiple times
I'd like to suggest some additional response choices for them:I have no interest in this product.
I have no use for this product.
Too expensive.
WAY too expensive.
These ads must be raising the price of the product.
This ad is too distracting. (I am leaving the web page/site.)
This product is bad for the world.
The world cannot afford the waste of resources required to make (and market) this product.
This ad has made me aware that this company is evil.
I hate this company.
I don't know what this ad is trying to sell.
If I want to know more about a product, I will research it. I don't need ads. I have no reason to trust ads.
I will be less willing to buy your product if I'm paying for your advertising. (And we all must be.)
Tuesday 23:33
I just did an order on-line to get parts for the bike...., watch Thursday Night Football with your 30-day FREE trial of Prime.
They've got no clue who I am. While inappropriate ads are a waste of time and space, they are remarkably ineffective. (And I did not get a trial of Prime.)For the next 24 hours, you have FREE Shipping on all Amazon-shipped items. No minimum order. Why? We just want to thank you for shopping with us.
Might be useful. Ooh, spoke reflectors?
I don't seem to have been hit by supply-chain problems, although some items I might have bought were unavailable. There have been past orders (cheap spokes, cables, and brake pads in largish quantities - large for the occasional repair; not so large for several years of maintenance riding 4000-5000 miles/year (6400-8000 km/yr)) that were coming from China. I suppose it depends on what's in U.S. warehouses.
Sunday I should have the crucial cassette lockring. There was only 1 left of the particular ring I picked. There were other choices, and it would be good to have spares. There will also be a tool to remove the freehub. Then I might have some idea whether the replacement freehub will fit. Or maybe I can clean and re-lube the old one and it will work again. (It's working again now.) And there will be a couple of cheap tail lights. They caught my interest because it looks like they will clip on the back of the seat. (Not theft-secure, but positioned well for visibility.) It occurred to me later that they will probably clip onto the trailer, too. I've been wanting lights on the trailer, since it largely blocks the bike's taillights. The back of the helmet would also be a good spot to clip a light. (So if those are as good as they look online, I'll probably be ordering more.)
I ordered a couple of "accessory holders" to mount a headlight on my bike's twin. It's not really a spare bike if it's not ready to ride. And the new freehub will be the last thing to arrive. It may not fit. I may not need it.
Wednesday 10:05
The NY Times website showed me an ad today for the Greubel Forsey (never heard of them) "GMT Sport" watch. It looks really cool, but I'd say $50 is my upper limit for a watch.
Web search (not clicking on the ad!), on a different computer (through a different ISP) ....
Nice photos and review here:*Limited edition: 33 pieces
Price: 480,000 Swiss francs (rubber [watchband]), 520,000 Swiss francs (bracelet)
At the current exchange rate (2021/Oct/20), that's US$520,113.60 and $563,456.40. That's a lot more than our house cost.
That's 10,000 times (yuk) what I would spend on a watch. That ad has really missed its market.
Owning a watch like that is just showing off - to a very small, select clique who would know what you've got.
($43,342.80 for just the metal watchband? That's a car!)
*I can't see anything on Greubel Fursey's own site; my Firefox is too locked down.
I kept wandering the SJX site, and gee, I'd really like some of those watches. (But not at the cost of a house.)
You know, showing me the toys of the ultra rich really just builds class resentment. It can't possibly lead to a sale. I suppose it does earn the NYT site some money, and I do want the site to thrive.
Friday 23:00
Supply chain? I got an email this evening saying the cassette lockring will not be arriving Sunday:Token Products Lock Ring for Shimano 11T Cassette, Black
New estimated delivery date: Fri/Sat, December 17/18, 2021
That's 54/55 days later.
I've ordered another lockring (genuine Shimano) that should arrive Oct 28 - Nov 3. I'd hoped to have the bike rideable again sooner than that. I can try calling local shops tomorrow to look for the part, or see whether I can take the part off another bike here.
And why do they ask questions like this?Choose a delivery option:
Thursday, Oct. 28 - Wednesday, Nov. 3 FREE Shipping
Thursday, Oct. 28 - Wednesday, Nov. 3 $16.04 - Shipping
Who would pay extra for shipping that isn't faster? (This is more than the part costs.) And I've often chosen slower, free shipping and received the packages before the paid-shipping dates.
Saturday 02:23
Now that the most-important item from tomorrow's delivery has been delayed almost 2 months, the rest of the order is coming early - today.
Saturday 16:00
Today's shipment arrived - a couple of tail lights and some tools.
The lights aren't as bright as I'd hoped. And I don't know what they "auto-sense"; they don't sense braking and brighten. They may be useful to carry as spares, for those occasions when the primary lights weren't recharged when they should have been. Or if there's someone who's safety is at risk from not having a light.
The tools may not help get the freehub off. I'll have a 3rd chain whip (no task should need more than 2, but my 2nd one is rather primitive) and a big allen wrench (for something(?) stubborn).
Saturday 23:38
Surprise! One of the accessory mounts arrived USPS from Philadelphia. (It's Oct 23.) That was expected Nov 1-9. I guess there's a lot of guessing going on about how long shipping is taking now. (I wonder whether that shop has lockrings? The additional weight would have been negligible.)
Useless tracking info? The package tracking with the order didn't say anything about where the package was (although I can guess that "delivered" is at my house). Hunting for the USPS tracking page and pasting in the tracking ID was more informative.A M A Z O N T R A C K I N GU. S. P. S. T R A C K I N G Shipped with USPS Tracking ID: ######################Oct 20, 12:21Shipping Label Created, USPS Awaiting ItemPHILADELPHIA, PA 19147 Carrier picked up the package.Oct 20, 15:00Shipment Received, Package Acceptance PendingPHILADELPHIA, PA 19147 Thursday, October 21 Thu 10/21 20:50Package arrived at a carrier facility.Oct 21, 20:50Accepted at USPS Origin FacilityPHILADELPHIA, PA 19147 Thu 10/21 22:05Package arrived at a carrier facility.Oct 21, 22:05Arrived at USPS Regional Origin FacilityPHILADELPHIA PA NETWORK DISTRIBUTION CENTER Friday, October 22 Fri 10/22 01:25Package left the carrier facility.Oct 22, 01:25Departed USPS Regional FacilityPHILADELPHIA PA NETWORK DISTRIBUTION CENTER Fri 10/22 07:25Package arrived at a carrier facility.Oct 22, 07:25Arrived at USPS FacilityHYATTSVILLE, MD 20785 Fri 10/22 08:14Package left the carrier facility.Oct 22, 08:14Departed USPS FacilityHYATTSVILLE, MD 20785 Fri 10/22 09:09Package arrived at a carrier facility.Oct 22, 09:09Arrived at USPS Regional FacilityMERRIFIELD VA DISTRIBUTION CENTER Fri 10/22 14:37Package arrived at a carrier facility.Oct 22, 14:37Arrived at USPS Regional Destination FacilityDULLES VA DISTRIBUTION CENTER Fri 10/22 20:26Package left the carrier facility.Oct 22, 20:26Departed USPS Regional FacilityDULLES VA DISTRIBUTION CENTER Fri 10/22 21:09Package arrived at a carrier facility.Oct 22, 21:09Arrived at USPS Regional FacilityMERRIFIELD VA DISTRIBUTION CENTER Saturday, October 23 Sat 10/23 01:26Package left the carrier facility.Oct 23, 01:26Departed USPS Regional FacilityMERRIFIELD VA DISTRIBUTION CENTER Sat 10/23 01:47Package arrived at a carrier facility.Oct 23, 01:47Arrived at USPS FacilityARLINGTON, VA 22207 Oct 23, 05:22Arrived at Post OfficeARLINGTON, VA 22207 Sat 10/23 17:26Package delivered. Oct 23, 17:26Delivered, In/At MailboxARLINGTON, VA 22207 Times are shown in the local timezone.our item was delivered in or at the mailbox at 17:26 on October 23, 2021 in ARLINGTON, VA 22207.
"Local time" doesn't mean much if you don't know where the package is.
I've ordered some more stuff. I ordered that 2nd lockring - arriving sooner than December - all by itself. There were some other things I was adding in with it, but the shipping charges looked crazy, and I dropped them. (The lockring, all by itself, still had free shipping.) I tried them again tonight and the shipping was free - some reflective and flourescent slap/snap bands (
vvalkyri could use a few; her new bike has no chain guard.), another cheap tail light (probably no better than today's, but cheaper), a (hopefully) brighter clip-on light (probably destined for the back of the helmet, but maybe a couple on the back of the seat if it's good), and motion/braking-sensing light designed to rack mount.
I've got a good, huge light mounted to the rack, but it's not designed for that, and it's not a good mounting. It's also difficult and inconvenient to change the batteries. It's an awesome light the first few days nights, and it's a really good light the next couple of weeks (as the battery voltage drops), and then it's so-so, but you don't see how good it is (or isn't) when it's behind you. The new rack light would be one more light to unclip and take inside to recharge, like all the others.
There wasn't anything like this available the last time I looked. There were a few lights designed to mount on racks, but they were feeble.
I remember when I first had a light on my bike. It was one of those streamlined chrome things with 2 "D" cells. The first night ride I hit a pot hole that I never saw. Bike lights were crap then. (This would have been about 1973, ±1. LEDs were in digital watches and calculators (no LCDs yet), which were new technologies. (We still used slide rules.)) It should be no surprise that when I started bike commuting year round I was adapting car lights (front and rear) so I could see and be seen.
Amazon gets cranky if you log in from 2 different browsers at the same time. Tonight's show up as the same IP, but that doesn't mean they're on the same computer because (from outside the house) everything in the house shows up as the cable modem's IP.
Sunday 11:24
I found the BikeSpark website, https://bikespark.com.tw/rear-lights/ (which I suppose I should have done before I decided to buy the light). Firefox refuses to load the site; Secure connection failed. (Firefox does this for a lot of sites.) And this model of the light isn't on the website. (It's got just the G4 model that uses AAA cells, not the USB-recharge G4R model.) Seems to me keeping your website updated with your full product line would be a priority. Especially if on your Amazon page for the AAA model someone specifically commented "Would be exactly what i was looking for if it had a built in battery and usb charging. :-/ light + reflector + rack mount."
I've found only 1 magazine review for this light, and it's in a Danish magazine (Test: BikeSpark BKS-G4 rear light with brake light), and it's for the AAA-cell version of the light. It's light [yuk] on detail, but concludes "The BikeSpark light is a really good commuter light, it gives good visibility, is easy to mount and has a very fair price."
I think most of the magazines are aimed at mountain bikers, and most of the rest are aimed at competitive/wanna-be road bikers. Those folks are not likely to have a pannier rack, so they can't mount these lights on their bikes; ⇒ no review. Who's got a rack? Commuters. Tourers. People who are using bikes instead of driving or taking transit. People who need to carry stuff. Urban bikers - commuters, shoppers, errand-runners - might be riding in traffic.
[This entry was originally posted as https://syntonic-comma.dreamwidth.org/1262513.html on Dreamwidth (where there are
comments).]