What's Wrong with DELL?

The same thing that is wrong with WalMart and Target. Dell sucks. It didn't always. I remember once buying a Dell for my daughter, even though I like building computers from scratch. Dell made good computers (and the parts worked well together, unlike some of the ones I built). Dell had good customer service. You had a complaint, they tried to fix it. Not anymore. Now Dell sucks. And so it should be no surprise that DELL, the stock, sucks, too. They can't sell enough computers because the company doesn't make people who have spent money with them in the past feel good about the purchase. Apple, on the other hand, keeps surprising people with its innovativeness, aesthetics, and cult of the machine (all hail iPod). People feel good about their powerbooks, macs, and ipods. They even like Steve Jobs! Nevertheless, I wouldn't buy APPL any more than I'd buy DELL, but just thought I'd throw a bit of the APPL rah, rah in for good measure (I do not own any of their products, by the way, but my wife is a charter member of the Apple cult). In the end, Apple and Dell both just make boxes with lots of dowickees inside (usually made by someone else), although Apple does have the advantage of sort of being a software company (which, as Microsoft has demonstrated, is a lot better than being a box maker). Nevertheless, stick to this simple rule (that usually works): steer clear of retailers, box makers, and sociopaths and you'll have a better life. By the way, WalMart, grungy as it is, has better customer service than Target, which has learned to create a pretty façade to hide its monstrously bad customer service ("service," now that's a misnomer). Target's "customer service" should greet you with a screwdriver held high. More on Target later, but I'm waiting for a reply (or not) from their CEO before I start venting.

Speaking of bad customer service, we need a networked army of consumers who will take action against companies that forget why they are business (to serve the consumer, not to just take her/his money), although you can usually take more of her/his money when you are nice to her/him.