This (meet people where they are) is AWESOME Bill. Thanks for articulating it all so well. The relentless drive for cash suddenly only willing to take plastic- and our vitals - can be so frustrating. The analogy of a relationship is wunderbar. Some relationships are personal, some are business, some community, some long term, some short term, some only transactional. All take energy, and we only have so much energy to "spend". So we need to choose wisely where to invest our energy.
Just like the 30,000 pictures on my phone, I have too many apps downloaded just to get some more info or order one item. I’ve finally deleted my old email address from 2004 when Gmail was created because I received an overwhelming amount of crap in my inbox. Of course now, I have a new email address that’s beginning to accumulate more crap. I become more aware of digital overload and frequently take a digital detox vacation. Then returning from vacation, I find an inbox full of more crap. I guess the solution is to delete everything and if it’s important, they’ll contact me again, but there’s always that nagging feeling that there is an important deadline that I might be missing. Just thinking what it will be like in five years when AI decides what’s important and what’s not. I hope we can trust AI like we did in the original Internet, somewhat blindly, but it felt good at the time.
I walk to Peets Coffee every day. I stand in line and pay with cash. And then wait for the barista to create all of the orders they receive remotely via their app - even though those folks won’t arrive until after I’m gone.
Cory Doctrow coined the term "enshittification" to describe the intentional degradation of tech products, but really it should apply to all things that started out great, good, or at least highly useful, only to be chipped away down to mediocrity or worse while increasing their price. Subscription-only pricing and app-only deals are certainly part and parcel to the ongoing slide into enshittification.
Once I’ve downloaded it, I would like for your app to retain my points for ordering longer than 180 days. Please, realize that there are many restaurants that want our business so if our points evaporate like ice in July our relationship may also be similarly evanescent.
Do be careful about clicking on QR codes in public places; lots of fake ones leading to bad sites. Also, remember that Venmo does not come with the same consumer protections as credit cards.
Thank you Bill for this article. I don’t know how many times I’ve had to call Customer Service about an issue that is not included on their website and ended up spending 10 minutes being frustrated by some automated system because I’m not answering their questions the way they want them to be answered. It amazes me that in this one-size-fits-all, instant gratification world that things have gotten so complicated. It’s getting to the point that if you don’t do things their way you don’t get to do it at all. I’m sure the first five paragraphs mirrored what thousands of people have thought at certain times. I plan on forwarding this to several friends because I know they will enjoy it and we’ve actually discussed what you have written. I wonder if there’s someway that some of us consumers could get together and boycott this app nonsense other than just going to a different store or venue. Again thank you for the awesome article it discussed a very frustrating issue that many of us have dealt with.
Two Things: You missed my favorite "Your call is very important to us" but apparently not important enough to answer. Second, having made 2 business trips to China the LuckIn app requirement reflects their home nation economy, which is nearly 100% digitized. Cash is hard to use and every store and service expects to pay with their app or WeChat
Wow Bill, you touched a nerve with this one! Well, a few nerves! After reading it, my bride just shared her issue with the multiple health care apps we have to deal with, said the guy with the nerves in his back giving him fits at the moment. Speaking of nerves.
Also, seems like C.B.P. is doing its best to keep tourists out of the U.S. Idiocy reigns supreme
I prefer to download no apps. Many are so fluky and flunky. I would bet all the tea in India that every time you download an app from the google store, you are making a direct connection with the google spy machine.
Why do you think so many apps have to go through google to be downloaded? Why is that? Even my banking app for my desktop goes through the google app store. It's still a brick and mortar bank, not some cloud vapor in the sky. Disgusting.
You never know who is on the other end of these apps and how they might be opening up your data to be "collected and analyzed" like that anti-privacy monster called Palantir does to no end.
I know the Apple app stores has a vetting process for apps. Not sure about google. Whether an app or an internet site (an app is just a shortcut to the site), there are always potentials for tomfoolery. The safest way is to use a VPN you actually pay for vs. a “free” one because nothing is free.
I do run a constant VPN but there is one streaming service I use that creates a lot of issues if they detect it. I only use it for one specific show and as soon as this season is over, I’m done with them. Thankfully, I’ve learned work arounds but it’s still aggravating.
While liking your data since you are a paid subscriber you have more ability to manage what they are able to capture. The good thing about VPN is you can look like you are anywhere in the world you choose!
I do run a constant VPN but there is one streaming service I use that creates a lot of issues if they detect it. I only use it for one specific show and as soon as this season is over, I’m done with them. Thankfully, I’ve learned work arounds but it’s still aggravating.
That said, on a recent international trip, I needed to tip someone in the airport and found I had zero cash. I was so glad to find out she was willing and able to take Venmo.
Where I am now, there is a payment method that just about everyone uses. It’s called Yappy. It doesn’t use an app but is built into all the banking systems and attached to one’s account. Businesses and individuals use it as a payment method. QR codes/phone numbers are displayed in businesses and when I get ready to pay the rent, my dog’s groomer or the young man who cuts my grass I use Yappy to pay. If a receipt is needed, it generates an accompanying screenshot that goes with the payment. Works well for just about everyone as do credit cards of course. Cash is problematic. ATM’s spit out $20.00 bills but NO ONE wants to change them! That does get aggravating.
More than apps though, for me at least, are the automated “things” that are supposed to handle your problems. I really intensely hate them! And any automated operator that thinks I’m going to hang around and answer their stinking survey after having dealt with a non human, is out of its Hal-like mind. There is no way these monsters can be improved unless they’re junked and replaced by human beings. Hell, I’ll even deal with an accent!
It’s a sucker’s game. I always go through the legally mandated but time consuming process of refusing cookies. Likewise, I don’t download apps I neither recognize nor want. The constant is impatience. Slow down and think about to what you are consenting. Why does anyone need to know your location other than a map? No one needs my cell phone or email, not really. I’m not important enough to merit all that attention for any other reason than my personal information. So Go Away.
As usual, you are 100% right on target with this column. I don’t want to download an app containing my personal info and a password I won’t remember. I can’t cancel accounts that are not useful to me - even if I delete the app.
It’s ironic that I had to enter a code to leave this comment…
This (meet people where they are) is AWESOME Bill. Thanks for articulating it all so well. The relentless drive for cash suddenly only willing to take plastic- and our vitals - can be so frustrating. The analogy of a relationship is wunderbar. Some relationships are personal, some are business, some community, some long term, some short term, some only transactional. All take energy, and we only have so much energy to "spend". So we need to choose wisely where to invest our energy.
Just like the 30,000 pictures on my phone, I have too many apps downloaded just to get some more info or order one item. I’ve finally deleted my old email address from 2004 when Gmail was created because I received an overwhelming amount of crap in my inbox. Of course now, I have a new email address that’s beginning to accumulate more crap. I become more aware of digital overload and frequently take a digital detox vacation. Then returning from vacation, I find an inbox full of more crap. I guess the solution is to delete everything and if it’s important, they’ll contact me again, but there’s always that nagging feeling that there is an important deadline that I might be missing. Just thinking what it will be like in five years when AI decides what’s important and what’s not. I hope we can trust AI like we did in the original Internet, somewhat blindly, but it felt good at the time.
I walk to Peets Coffee every day. I stand in line and pay with cash. And then wait for the barista to create all of the orders they receive remotely via their app - even though those folks won’t arrive until after I’m gone.
Cory Doctrow coined the term "enshittification" to describe the intentional degradation of tech products, but really it should apply to all things that started out great, good, or at least highly useful, only to be chipped away down to mediocrity or worse while increasing their price. Subscription-only pricing and app-only deals are certainly part and parcel to the ongoing slide into enshittification.
Love it! And I agree - we could use this term for all kinds of things that used to be great! Thanks for posting.
Once I’ve downloaded it, I would like for your app to retain my points for ordering longer than 180 days. Please, realize that there are many restaurants that want our business so if our points evaporate like ice in July our relationship may also be similarly evanescent.
Do be careful about clicking on QR codes in public places; lots of fake ones leading to bad sites. Also, remember that Venmo does not come with the same consumer protections as credit cards.
Thank you Bill for this article. I don’t know how many times I’ve had to call Customer Service about an issue that is not included on their website and ended up spending 10 minutes being frustrated by some automated system because I’m not answering their questions the way they want them to be answered. It amazes me that in this one-size-fits-all, instant gratification world that things have gotten so complicated. It’s getting to the point that if you don’t do things their way you don’t get to do it at all. I’m sure the first five paragraphs mirrored what thousands of people have thought at certain times. I plan on forwarding this to several friends because I know they will enjoy it and we’ve actually discussed what you have written. I wonder if there’s someway that some of us consumers could get together and boycott this app nonsense other than just going to a different store or venue. Again thank you for the awesome article it discussed a very frustrating issue that many of us have dealt with.
Two Things: You missed my favorite "Your call is very important to us" but apparently not important enough to answer. Second, having made 2 business trips to China the LuckIn app requirement reflects their home nation economy, which is nearly 100% digitized. Cash is hard to use and every store and service expects to pay with their app or WeChat
Wow Bill, you touched a nerve with this one! Well, a few nerves! After reading it, my bride just shared her issue with the multiple health care apps we have to deal with, said the guy with the nerves in his back giving him fits at the moment. Speaking of nerves.
Also, seems like C.B.P. is doing its best to keep tourists out of the U.S. Idiocy reigns supreme
I prefer to download no apps. Many are so fluky and flunky. I would bet all the tea in India that every time you download an app from the google store, you are making a direct connection with the google spy machine.
Why do you think so many apps have to go through google to be downloaded? Why is that? Even my banking app for my desktop goes through the google app store. It's still a brick and mortar bank, not some cloud vapor in the sky. Disgusting.
You never know who is on the other end of these apps and how they might be opening up your data to be "collected and analyzed" like that anti-privacy monster called Palantir does to no end.
I know the Apple app stores has a vetting process for apps. Not sure about google. Whether an app or an internet site (an app is just a shortcut to the site), there are always potentials for tomfoolery. The safest way is to use a VPN you actually pay for vs. a “free” one because nothing is free.
I do run a constant VPN but there is one streaming service I use that creates a lot of issues if they detect it. I only use it for one specific show and as soon as this season is over, I’m done with them. Thankfully, I’ve learned work arounds but it’s still aggravating.
While liking your data since you are a paid subscriber you have more ability to manage what they are able to capture. The good thing about VPN is you can look like you are anywhere in the world you choose!
I do run a constant VPN but there is one streaming service I use that creates a lot of issues if they detect it. I only use it for one specific show and as soon as this season is over, I’m done with them. Thankfully, I’ve learned work arounds but it’s still aggravating.
We are a commodity, and it's maddening.
That said, on a recent international trip, I needed to tip someone in the airport and found I had zero cash. I was so glad to find out she was willing and able to take Venmo.
Where I am now, there is a payment method that just about everyone uses. It’s called Yappy. It doesn’t use an app but is built into all the banking systems and attached to one’s account. Businesses and individuals use it as a payment method. QR codes/phone numbers are displayed in businesses and when I get ready to pay the rent, my dog’s groomer or the young man who cuts my grass I use Yappy to pay. If a receipt is needed, it generates an accompanying screenshot that goes with the payment. Works well for just about everyone as do credit cards of course. Cash is problematic. ATM’s spit out $20.00 bills but NO ONE wants to change them! That does get aggravating.
More than apps though, for me at least, are the automated “things” that are supposed to handle your problems. I really intensely hate them! And any automated operator that thinks I’m going to hang around and answer their stinking survey after having dealt with a non human, is out of its Hal-like mind. There is no way these monsters can be improved unless they’re junked and replaced by human beings. Hell, I’ll even deal with an accent!
It’s a sucker’s game. I always go through the legally mandated but time consuming process of refusing cookies. Likewise, I don’t download apps I neither recognize nor want. The constant is impatience. Slow down and think about to what you are consenting. Why does anyone need to know your location other than a map? No one needs my cell phone or email, not really. I’m not important enough to merit all that attention for any other reason than my personal information. So Go Away.
As usual, you are 100% right on target with this column. I don’t want to download an app containing my personal info and a password I won’t remember. I can’t cancel accounts that are not useful to me - even if I delete the app.
It’s ironic that I had to enter a code to leave this comment…