Sunday, April 22, 2012

Google SUCKS!!

I am pissed.

Google has decided that they do not like the interfaces that we use, and that we must change. Even if it is not broken, and that we do not want it.

For more months that than I can remember, they have been asking if I want the "new look." I tried it, decided I don't want it, and declined, and declined for month after month. They asked why, and I told them. Middle of the day today...I got the new look.

There is NO way to contact them and complain.

And then...I logged in here, and I have been thrust into a new interface which I never asked for, do not like, and I am pissed.

I am about to change everything to another provider!!

Google, notice to you: "Do no evil" does not mean, piss off your users...

Addition 4/23: The forwarding function for Gmail does not work as you would expect. I apparently does nothing but let you think you are forwarding you gmail to another account.

Wednesday, April 11, 2012

Random thoughts about travel and travel in Panama

I have been thinking about our most recent trip, and the past one.

On both trips, I had the experience of driving in a place I did not know well, where the road signs were in a language which is not my strength. It made me think about what it must be like for the tourists who visit the US. One good think is the movement towards a universal system of symbols for use on road signs. That was a plus. But then there are the "construction zone" signs. They are bad enough in English, but they are even harder in an unfamiliar language. I managed through a detour, but partly because the map function worked so well on my cell phone. (Yes, we had signed up for the international data plan to be activated.)

I most certainly appreciate some of the road signage that I used to take for granted. One of them is route numbers, and signs to cities. On our most recent adventure, I drove from Changuinola to David. The first part of the trip was on a fairly major road from Changuinola to Chirquiri Grande. On the way the road goes through and by several large-ish communities. Only once was there a road sign pointing to one of the towns (Almirante), to which we had already been, and wanted to get past.

Sunday, April 01, 2012

Random thoughts about travel and travel in Panama

I have been thinking about our most recent trip, and the past one.

On both trips, I had the experience of driving in a place I did not know well, where the road signs were in a language which is not my strength. It made me think about what it must be like for the tourists who visit the US. One good think is the movement towards a universal system of symbols for use on road signs. That was a plus. But then there are the "construction zone" signs. They are bad enough in English, but they are even harder in an unfamiliar language. I managed through a detour, but partly because the map function worked so well on my cell phone. (Yes, we had signed up for the international data plan to be activated.)

I most certainly appreciate some of the road signage that I used to take for granted. One of them is route numbers, and signs to cities. On our most recent adventure, I drove from Changuinola to David. The first part of the trip was on a fairly major road from Changuinola to Chiriqui Grande. On the way the road goes through and by several large-ish communities. Only once was there a road sign pointing to one of the towns (Almirante), to which we had already been, and wanted to get past. I think the signpost at the one turning had been knocked over. But, not once was there a route number sign.

I made sure we were on the right road by asking at the gas station which, it turns out, was at the point where we needed to turn. (I did have a detailed map, but I was concerned.)

The road over the mountains (Chiriqui Grande to Chiriqui) was an adventure. It was two lanes, curving (sometimes without guard rails), and long, steep upgrades followed by the reverse. I was worried about getting through the Comarca Ngobe-Bugle (independent area governed by the indigenous people) before dark. On our trip leaving Bocas, one of our water taxi companions had mentioned possible disturbances after the President's speech that night.