Some progress

I haven't been feeling very festive of late, but spending money on things for other people did give me a mood boost this afternoon.

Unfortunately, some ground was lost when I stopped in Staples to peruse digital cameras. You can read specs up the wazoo (as I have), but you still need to see the thing, hold it, try the controls, and decide if you like it or not. I understand that theft protection measures are important, but their bulky design makes it impossible to get the feel for holding the camera. Is it comfortable? Can I hold this steady? Will I drop this? These are important questions.

At this particular store, an alarm chirps every few seconds around the camera display, presumably so you'll feel like someone's watching you or that the alarm system is high tech. I just find it annoying.

I appreciate that Staples supplies power to their cameras so you can turn them on and check out the features. However, I find it frustrating that the power supply is a large rectangular block, larger than the base of every camera I looked at, that is screwed into the camera's base. It was also inconvenient that the a/c adapter cord plugged in right on the side of the grip (I concede that is not Staples fault). The power supply/security base is then attached to the display by a self-retracting cord with a great deal of resistance. It's impossible to assess the feel of a camera under these conditions.

After a few minutes, a guy who worked there came up and asked if I had any questions.

"Yes. Is it possible to look at this unattached?"

"No, that's a security feature. The insurance company would frown on that. We can't just let someone look at a camera without the security measure attached. I know you're trying to see how heavy it is... We have a fourteen day return policy, so you can bring it back if you don't like it," he concluded, helpfully I'm sure he thought.

I jumped in and said, "Ok," and he walked away without offering to answer any other questions. I didn't have any and wouldn't have asked him if I had, but still, that's bad form.

It could've just been my imagination, or the effect of hours hunting for gifts, but his speech seemed rather snarky to me. A straightforward "No, I'm sorry" would've sufficed, but my feet were tired, so even his comment about trying to determine the camera's weight seemed mildly offensive. I didn't expect him to leave me unattended with it, but I don't think standing around while I looked at it ever even occurred to him. That would've involved problem-solving skills. Or maybe he just thought it was too cold outside to chase me if I decided to make a run for it.

I made a few notes in my square-ruled moleskine and left, pondering the display problem.

A much smaller security base would work. The same design that prevents a customer from simply unscrewing it now could be adapted to a smaller version. The a/c pack could be attached to the display. Then borrow some technology from laptop security devices, so that if the cord was cut or broken, an alarm would sound (assuming it doesn't already). If they would just do that, my life would be easier.