Packaged with care...

A few days’ ago, I received a telephone sales call. This time, it wasn’t anyone asking if I had a recent accident, or pleading to apply for the return of payment protection insurance, nor was it a power company promising mysteriously to “save you some money”. There wasn’t a Floridan holiday in sight, or a new conservatory nor a set of spanking-new, double-glazed windows. Nope, the caller on this occasion was enquiring about the efficacy of my computer care package…ah! Now, there’s a new phenomenon for me to take in: a computer care package. I assured the young lady that my computer was well cared for, thanks, and hung up. I meditated for a while, then I did a quick roll-over of Google to see what I had been missing and – lawksamussy! –ye gods! There are none so blind as those who do not see. For a sum of money, the computer owner can purchase a number of service hours, per month, from a company like Microsoft, to ensure the smooth running of their computer equipment. If you don’t use “your” hours one month, you can roll them on to next month, and so on and so forth. Like health care, there a different levels of care package, from the most basic computer maintenance to the more exclusive (read expensive) levels that include a removal service of old and broken computing equipment for recycling. One package, sold by Microsoft, even includes a power usage health check – now, we are getting into the realms of anthropomorphism. But don’t take my word for it. Check this link for more details. In the meantime, I scratch my head while I wonder what household god to sacrifice in the name of good, computer care – food, perhaps?