If anyone would like copies of the conversations and communications listed here, please request them
Part I
DELL Computers: Did Drugs Signal Downfall?
The drug-related arrest of Dell spokesperson Ben Curtis in 2003 in New York City may have been part of the
source of the problems leading to the November Business Week magazine article titled "It's Bad to Worse
at Dell."
Perhaps Ben Curtis is not the only Dell representative afflicted with a drug-related problem.
A recent series of contacts with other Dell employees evidenced serious shortcomings in some of the people
working for a company founded in a college dormitory room by a man who is now believed to be the fourth-richest man in the United States.
Among these shortcomings were the following: misrepresentation, deceit, blatant lies, rudeness, disconnections, and disappearances to list just a few.
But, perhaps at Dell, these are not considered shortcomings but are expected actions that these employees are trained to perform in an all-out effort to generate revenue by deceiving the public and creating the illusion that Dell is concerned for the consumer, which, obviously, Dell is not.
Why?
Well, one employee, Jeffrey Mudgett, went so far as to invoke the name of the founder of the company, Michael
Dell, and the name of his (Mudgett's) alleged supervisor, Seth Norris, as approving and encouraging his actions.
The approval and encouragement of deception was evident from the very beginning of an experience that might be
called: DELL - As In HELL.
It is easy to see why Dell products are not sold at reputable retailers.
Here is the story.
Act I
FUDGE IT by Mudgett
After months of reviewing ads in newspapers and visiting local retailers, a decision was made to buy a new
computer - preferably a laptop or notebook, as they are now called.
Unable to afford the Toshiba, the Dell ads were rather seductive in price and contents.
With the then current issue of Parade magazine in hand, four attempts were made to conduct this purchase
on-line.
Each attempt was stifled. When the "E-code" was entered, the Dell website switched to a different (and higher-priced) product than was shown in Parade magazine. Allowing for a possible incorrect entry of the "E-code", three additional attempts were made - all with the same result. Nothing!
Therefore, while the "buying mode" was still functioning, a telephone call was made and, after an lengthy telephone "tree, " the above-mentioned Jeffrey Mudgett answered the call.
After listening to the tale of the on-line attempts, Jeffrey took a short break. When he returned, he claimed the Parade magazine ad was outdated and that the computer offered in the ad was no longer available.
The Parade ad was NOT outdated. The expiration date was later than the telephone call - and - for the record, the very same ad appeared the following week in the next issue of Parade magazine with an even-later expiration
date.
With his deception started, Jeffrey continued with, "Let me see what I can do for you."
Knowing that large companies rarely attempt to "do for you, " the story should have ended there; but, it did not.
Jeffrey came up with a different model that was (allegedly) priced at $599. - $100. More than the desired model which had been "reduced" from $549. To $499.in the Parade magazine ad. (It is fair to say that $50. Would have to be added to the "sale" price to get the required "up-grades.") Thus, a willingness to spend $549. Was not difficult to be raised to $599.
But there was more fudge to be added.
Before stuffing a little more fudge in the ingredients, Mudgett attempted to spread a little icing on the cake.
"Good News, " he said. "You qualify for free shipping."
There was no mention of what these qualifications were and no discussions that might reveal the requirements for
these qualifications. But, now that a little icing was spread, Mudgett reached for the old fudge scoop again.
Now dodging flying fudge and wiping away icing is not an easy task - especially when trying to keep focused on
the purpose of the conversation which was to buy a computer.
Somewhere in his rambling, Mudgett referred to a "handling" charge of $49. Which certainly appears to be brother to a shipping charge (as in shipping & handling) and is usually, but unfortunately, incurred when dealing with reputable firms.
Another cost that was added was $39. - to upgrade and / or extend the warrantee and you will read later why this
was a rather slick maneuver to further dupe an innocent buyer.
But next comes the most grievous sin of all.
Mudgett was SPECIFICALLY asked if the machine had both usb and parallel ports and his answer was "Yes."
This was (and is) needed because the machine will be used with an old but perfectly functioning Iomega ZIP Drive that has parallel connections and the only way to transfer data from a retiring computer to the replacement will be to use the ZIP disks. This was explained to Mudgett and his reply was "You will have no problem."
Summarizing the sale, Mudgett rattled off a series of numbers beginning with the "base price" of $599. And ending with (tax included) $822.included in the itemization was - again SPECIFICALLY - the fact that the parallel port was part of the machine.
He stated that a "Confirmation" will be generated and sent and that the product would be shipped on or before
November 17 (2005.)
He did not mention that the machine had no A-Drive (floppy), thus rendering any data stored on floppies unusable until transferred to another medium. It must be stated, however, that he was not asked about an A-Drive due to the naivete of the buyer not knowing that this long-functioning medium was being outdated.
Days passed without receipt of a confirmation.
This caused a bit of wonder since items purchased on-line for high school activities and personal needs have
always been preceded by a confirmation showing the item (s) and additional charges, if any.
Soon, the reason for no confirmation became evident.
It is not hard to imagine an Instant Messaging system within the Dell network announcing that another innocent
buyer has been duped and cheers echoing throughout the complex.
Now, please relax, digest this information, pass it on to other possible unsuspecting prospective buyers and tune in again in a few days for.
Part II
Dell computers: jamaal and the site inquisitors
Philip
Placida, Florida
U.S.A.
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