Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Net shopping and fighting the cube wars...
Saturday, Dec. 2 in Centreville Maryland, they held the 10th annual “Heck with the Malls” which featured artwork by local artisans. The idea was to offer an alternative to the crowded malls for Christmas gifts.
I am sure the artists offered many unique items for people to give loved ones in an atmosphere far calmer than the typical mall yesterday.
But I am afraid during the same 10 years the “Heck with the Mall” has been around a competitor has been taking a larger and larger bite of the holiday season business.
I am, of course, talking about the Internet. It has become increasingly popular during the past decade to the point where it has become a major force in many business’s revenues. The influence of the Net can been seen in how shopping patterns have changed in recent years.
The Monday following Thanksgiving has been considered the peak day for online shopping after people had competed for the Black Friday sales in the stores. This year businesses found that many online buyers were flooding their Websites.
The Walmart Website was down for eight hours Friday. Unprecedented volume that overwhelmed the company’s servers was given as the reason. Other business sites experienced sluggishness as their servers were stressed by volume.
Use of the Internet for shopping is becoming increasingly accepted by the public. This week we have a poll question (first one in a long time) on stardem.com asking if you plan to increase your use of the net for shopping this holiday season. The poll question is located on the lower right side of the home page. Check it out and vote.
The Internet is a great way to do comparative shopping. You can search for an item and find the best price and where it is available. You are interested in a new digital camera? Type the brand you are interested in into a google search and you will be amazed at the number of responses you get. You can then either order it online or call the business you locate and place a telephone order.
The Net helps you find presents you might never find anywhere else. How about a USB Missile Launcher. It conveniently hooks into a USB port on your computer and is powerful enough to launch a barrage against the guy in the next cubical. It can fire foam missiles in an arc of from 5 to 8 feet. Why put up with his rubber-band powered paperclips when you can retaliate with missile power. It requires 3 AA batteries and only works with Windows XP so check your system before you order. Don’t believe me? Check out the ThinkGeek website and look for USB Missile Launcher. It sells for $39.99. Every cubical should have its own missile defense system.
Looking for something a bit more old-fashioned? You might consider another cubical defense device—the tabletop war machine. It is a desktop catapult based on an ancient design that will launch your favorite projectile into the adjacent cubical. The notes on the catapult suggests that little mints are especially good for this task. This device is less pricey than the missile launcher. It goes for $34.99. It can also be found at ThinkGeek.
But say you are more a traditionalist when it comes to cube warfare. The site also offers a firewheel rubber band gun. It can carry a load of up to 10 rubber bands and have a range of approximately 25 feet. If the guy next door has one of those missile launchers, you’ll need something for protection. This device will only set you back $24.99. It also is available from ThinkGeek.
Do I see a pattern here?
More on the holidays next week.
As always, you can reach me at rpolk@chespub.com.
I am sure the artists offered many unique items for people to give loved ones in an atmosphere far calmer than the typical mall yesterday.
But I am afraid during the same 10 years the “Heck with the Mall” has been around a competitor has been taking a larger and larger bite of the holiday season business.
I am, of course, talking about the Internet. It has become increasingly popular during the past decade to the point where it has become a major force in many business’s revenues. The influence of the Net can been seen in how shopping patterns have changed in recent years.
The Monday following Thanksgiving has been considered the peak day for online shopping after people had competed for the Black Friday sales in the stores. This year businesses found that many online buyers were flooding their Websites.
The Walmart Website was down for eight hours Friday. Unprecedented volume that overwhelmed the company’s servers was given as the reason. Other business sites experienced sluggishness as their servers were stressed by volume.
Use of the Internet for shopping is becoming increasingly accepted by the public. This week we have a poll question (first one in a long time) on stardem.com asking if you plan to increase your use of the net for shopping this holiday season. The poll question is located on the lower right side of the home page. Check it out and vote.
The Internet is a great way to do comparative shopping. You can search for an item and find the best price and where it is available. You are interested in a new digital camera? Type the brand you are interested in into a google search and you will be amazed at the number of responses you get. You can then either order it online or call the business you locate and place a telephone order.
The Net helps you find presents you might never find anywhere else. How about a USB Missile Launcher. It conveniently hooks into a USB port on your computer and is powerful enough to launch a barrage against the guy in the next cubical. It can fire foam missiles in an arc of from 5 to 8 feet. Why put up with his rubber-band powered paperclips when you can retaliate with missile power. It requires 3 AA batteries and only works with Windows XP so check your system before you order. Don’t believe me? Check out the ThinkGeek website and look for USB Missile Launcher. It sells for $39.99. Every cubical should have its own missile defense system.
Looking for something a bit more old-fashioned? You might consider another cubical defense device—the tabletop war machine. It is a desktop catapult based on an ancient design that will launch your favorite projectile into the adjacent cubical. The notes on the catapult suggests that little mints are especially good for this task. This device is less pricey than the missile launcher. It goes for $34.99. It can also be found at ThinkGeek.
But say you are more a traditionalist when it comes to cube warfare. The site also offers a firewheel rubber band gun. It can carry a load of up to 10 rubber bands and have a range of approximately 25 feet. If the guy next door has one of those missile launchers, you’ll need something for protection. This device will only set you back $24.99. It also is available from ThinkGeek.
Do I see a pattern here?
More on the holidays next week.
As always, you can reach me at rpolk@chespub.com.
# posted by Richard Polk @ 10:06 AM 
