Re: New Linux Computer

[Herb Johnson <hjohnson@pluto.njcc.com>]

Tom, I ship equipment of this sort weekly. If Chris packed this computer
and shipped it via UPS or Fed Express, there is a tracking number 
on the lable on the box. Some but not all forms of Postal Service
shipping include tracking or insurance numbers. Contact
the shipper with that number and
describe your situation. If the shipper repacked the unit they will tell
you so. This is VERY unusual and would only be done if the original
packing had been damaged or destroyed. If the shipper did not do this
they may at least be able to tell you the route: if some third party
did this along the route your information may be useful in finding them.

I suspect most other shippers have similar policies, and there will
be some kind of tracking number on the box. If Chris used a 3rd party
shipper like Mail Boxes Etc or other companies which pack for you,
THEIR lable will be on the box and you (or Chris) can address those
issues. Such shippers will pack for you but use other shippers in
turn, they primarily provide a packing service (for a fee). I do my
own packing and have not suffered loss and very little damage when
shipping similar equipment.

I have shipped by UPS, US Postal Service and Fed Express and this has
not occurred to me in three plus years of shipping. When the Postal
Service has delivered a damaged bit of mail (envelope not package)
it is in a baggy and there is an explanation of some sort (damaged
in transit, equipment malfunction, etc.).

Herb Johnson


Herbert R. Johnson              http://pluto.njcc.com/~hjohnson
hjohnson@pluto.njcc.com         voice 609-771-1503, New Jersey USA
             amateur astronomer and telescope tinkerer
   reseller of classic Macs & accessories from Plus to PowerMac
   S-100 & 8-inch drive manuals and parts, call for "Dr. S-100"

On Thu, 15 Feb 2001, Tom Droege wrote:

> The good news is that my new Linux computer has arrived from Chris and I 
> have turned it on and it works.
> 
> The bad news is that it came sans the box with all the documentation in 
> it.  This is all the CDs that Chris had set up with the computer so that I 
> could recover in the case of a disaster.  This was really the prime reason 
> for assembling the box this way.  I could have bought the parts and 
> assembled the computer.  Now Chris will have to guess at all the little 
> things that he did to make it work.  I just hope that he can remember what 
> is needed.  Of course all the original disks that came with the hardware 
> are lost.
> 
> For those interested, somewhere along the route, the computer was removed 
> from the box it was shipped in and packaged in a new box.  This sounds like 
> fraud to me.  They did not tell me that this had been done.  Sigh!
> 
> Tom Droege
> 
> 
>