Mark Bernstein responds to my comments on responsiveness and jobs well done. Is there a potential for backfire? He writes

But there are costs, too. One worry is that, when I’m on the road (like I’ll be in the coming weeks) and the office is shorthanded, we’re bound to be slower than usual. Unavoidable, but bad.

Perhaps, but Mark’s earned the respect.

Here’s an example from the edu-front. Typically I try to have student work back a few days after it’s been turned in for evaluation. So, when the crunch comes and things are delayed, say, British Literature research papers, students get a little antsy and start to clamour. When good habits are the norm, we often take them for granted. When they aren’t the norm, we adhere to the standard. For example, one of the things that tickles me are 1) email bot responses from companies acknowledging receipt 2) then the week’s lag response afterward that doesn’t address the original query. This happens a lot from my service provider, McAfee, Dell, and others. This may be a question of global convenience. Dell must get many thousands of email a day (if people can find the email). Everyone wants their question addressed; and there may be serious issues. But they sell the computers along with Platonic tech support. I remember going through the huge Dell Truemobile meltdown a few years back when wireless base stations just quite working after Comcast took over @Home. What a mess with DHCP, and yonder works the replacement by “guess who.”

Anyway, here’s to jobs well done across the board.

Especially now with grades in the pipeline and no time to work on Stoning Field.