i really hate being a barclays customer

i am (not by choice) a customer of barclays bank; i used to be a woolwich customer. i liked woolwich, they just happed to be bought by the bunch of fascists that are bastard bank.

the 2 biggest bugbears i have with them are:

their cash machines don't let you make deposits, meaning you have to go there during opening hours, which is difficult when you have to work
their internet banking is shit on every level.. and it just got worse.

like most people, i don't ever want to have to go to an actual branch. there is no need. ever. i want to conduct all of my banking needs from the comfort of my own internet. up until about 10 minutes ago they just about managed that. but no more.

they obviously subscribe to the scare stories waved about in the daily mail that some illegal immigrant is going to manage to steal my 12 digit online banking membership number, and be able to guess my 5 digit passcode and memorable word (perhaps immigrants live in the internets now too). because of the likelyhood of this happening they have introduced "pinsentry" (for my protection apparently). this effectivly renders the freedom to bank wherever you are.. gone.

apparently:

" *
PINsentry is an improved protection system for Online Banking, using Chip and PIN technology.
*
It uses your Barclays Bank card and a PINsentry card reader to create unique eight-digit codes that you use as you bank online. You will need to use the card reader when you log-in to Online Banking and when you set up a payment to someone new for the first time."

"it uses a pinsentry card reader" which looks like this



to authenticate me.

which includes logging in to internet banking and being able to make transactions.

which means i have to carry the fucking thing around with me if i might want to do something with my account on line.

it also means that if want to transfer money to somebody now, to make sure they get money tomorrow tomorrow, to make sure i have something delivered the following day. and it is not somebody who i have paid before, and i don't have a "pinsentry" card reader I CAN'T PAY THEM!

WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU THINKING YOU BUNCH OF MORONS. DO YOU NOT UNDERSTAND WHAT INTERNET BANKING IS ABOUT?

with all the other stuff i fill my pockets with i don't want to be lugging this piece of shit about as well.

even playing devils advocate and looking at it entirely from a security point of view you still a total bunch of fuckwits. yes it protects me and barclays all well and good, but i am sat here typing away on a machine with a built in card reader.. do you offer any software that will do the same job and mean i dont have to use your reader.... do you fuck.

i don't care if it is possible (by way of jumping through hoops with your call centre) to change they way i log in once i am registered with pinsentry. you have just made something that should be easy the exact opposite.

cretins.

absolute total fucking wankers. i shall be removing my custom and going to a real bank ASAP

shut the box

due to the usual petty money grubbing and total inability by the music industry to understand what the public want, onthe 15th of january anybody outside america had to wave byebye to pandora. although it is not difficult to get around the block (there's a big hint in their faq) this is still a great shame for all those who bought hardware players that stream from the site. i used pandora a lot and it introduced me to artists who would not have made money from me previously.

the reason pandora stopped was the fees asked by the labels for internet radio are far in excess of the charges made for traditional broadcasting and a comparatively small organisation like pandora just can't finance it.

step up last.fm. somehow they are doing the same thing, for free, and without masses of ads (not that you need to look at the screen, or interact with the site in any way. they have the same addins to the social networking and blogging sites pandora has (more even); there is even a plugin for your local machine that will feed that back and create a dynamic preferences list so you only get music you like.... that's the theory anyway. personally i think the pandora interface was slicker and i really hope the bean counters take their heads out of their collective arses and see the light, but until it does come back last.fm is plugging the gap quite nicely.

blogging

there is a fundamental aspect of blogging, social networking sites and the internet in general that some people don't really seem to understand. it actually caught me out but it was a useful lesson to learn.

anyway, my point is the internet is public. this means anybody can read it. no matter why you write it, who you write it for or who it's aimed at. don't say anything on the internet that you wouldn't say in front of the same people who can read your site. internet balls are an interesting phenomenen but if you're not careful, sooner or later youll get kicked in them