Announcement from EZ Read/Astak Team

[kennyc]

That's definitely a possibility...

[HarryT]

Given that we all know what RobertB looks like, thanks to his promotional videos with Astak, the matter can easily be resolved if Robert posts a photograph of himself holding a piece of paper with his new username written on it.

[Freeshadow]

even a better idea than the kitty question. well spoken Harry

[eGeezer]

In addition, he would have been unable to reclaim a forgotten password if the email with which he registered was his work email.

[frmniantic]

Maybe he should just update his blog? That way he can let us all know his new username. Just a thought.......

http://robertbez.blogspot.com/2010_07_01_archive.html

[ReaderEatter]

Originally Posted by SaraD

I have a question from a PM conversation I had with Robert back in June. What were the weights and ages of the kitties you lost earlier this year and when did you lose them? I'm sorry to use so sad an event for this purpose, but I doubt anyone in the Astak office would still remember that tidbit of information if they knew in the first place.

Dear Sara:

Charley was my male cat and weighed around 17 pounds. He died first when I was back in New York on the IDPF trip. I do not have my Blackberry or calendar anymore as they took it. I think this was around May 23 He was around 14 years old.

Squeeky was my "baby" at about 7 years old and was a little female ofaround 14 pounds. She came down with the same symptoms about a week after Charley died and was put out of her misery in early June after, again, the vets could do nothing.

You have to remember that we have tried not to forget them but to erase the constant horror we were experiencing. The flashbacks were all-consuming. As such, I have tried to purposely forget the dying and remember them as alive.

Yes, I used to always use "Dear All" but when I signed back on I was not sure how I would be received so I chose to say "Hello All".

Bob

[ReaderEatter]

Originally Posted by eGeezer

In addition, he would have been unable to reclaim a forgotten password if the email with which he registered was his work email.

Dear eGeezer:

The day that my employment was terminated they took everything: Blackberry, Pocket PRO, EZ Reader, Mentor, Desktop, Notebook... anything that contained contact info. As such, I was in shock for quite a while. I never expected that what I was doing for the firm wasn't appreciated at least enough to stay with the firm. My home computers had not been used in a year or so. Getting squared away so I could job search was my first priority.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by ReaderEatter

Dear eGeezer:

The day that my employment was terminated they took everything: Blackberry, Pocket PRO, EZ Reader, Mentor, Desktop, Notebook... anything that contained contact info. As such, I was in shock for quite a while. I never expected that what I was doing for the firm wasn't appreciated at least enough to stay with the firm. My home computers had not been used in a year or so. Getting squared away so I could job search was my first priority.

Sorry this all happened Robert and for the skepticism here as well....that's no fun to pile on top.

Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help job-wise or other-wise I do feel you are one of the Good Guys (tm).

[SaraD]

Originally Posted by ReaderEatter

Dear Sara:

Charley was my male cat and weighed around 17 pounds. He died first when I was back in New York on the IDPF trip. I do not have my Blackberry or calendar anymore as they took it. I think this was around May 23 He was around 14 years old.

Squeeky was my "baby" at about 7 years old and was a little female ofaround 14 pounds. She came down with the same symptoms about a week after Charley died and was put out of her misery in early June after, again, the vets could do nothing.

You have to remember that we have tried not to forget them but to erase the constant horror we were experiencing. The flashbacks were all-consuming. As such, I have tried to purposely forget the dying and remember them as alive.

Yes, I used to always use "Dear All" but when I signed back on I was not sure how I would be received so I chose to say "Hello All".

Bob

More than good enough for me! There is no way that answer could have been given by anybody other than RobertB. It is pretty much impossible to fake being so much a cat person. Also the description of Griffonwing was very good and only someone reading here for a long time would be able to do it that well.

Welcome to you Bob as yourself rather than the Astak Rep.

[phenomshel]

Way good enough.. Welcome Back Robert!!! So glad it's you. Bless your heart. There's a LOT of things I want to say about the way you were treated, but I'll leave them for a PM.

hugs, Phenom

[rhadin]

Originally Posted by hch568

I can think of another reason that RobertB can't login with his old id/password, that is, all his username/password info is embedded/saved in his office computer/laplop/cell-phone/etc. Once those gadgets were gone, it will be difficult for him to login successfully.

I was visiting my brother this August and was trying to show him some of my favorite forums, and I just can't log-in, I tried (believe me) with several possible passwords that I normally used, but just can't remember the correct one. Finally, I had to give up trying. Once I was back to my PC, everything is fine (I rely on a password program to save all my id/password)!

If you use RoboForm along with its sister program GoodSync, you can set it up so that your passwords are available anywhere you are. I have used these programs for years for just that purpose (and because RoboForm is a great way to keep track of passwords).

[phenomshel]

Originally Posted by eGeezer

LOL.

Well, whether it is Robertb, or an Astak impersonator, the result is the same: we now appear to have confirmation that Astak (not Jenifer) lied to us because they didn't have the integrity to just say, "Robert is no longer with the company due to <state any vaguely relevant truth here>" -- something we all would have accepted and moved past.

Unless, of course, we are dealing with the sicko 3rd option.

eGeezer, you are correct, except that Jenifer DID blatantly lie to us. Whether willingly or by order of her bosses, we'll probably never know. And I don't really think it matters, either. Astak's track record is getting worse and worse. We now have confirmation that they treat their employees horribly (and this an employee who tirelessly promoted their product, on the job and off of it, which in my book makes it even more inexcusable); they apparently have no compunction about lying to their customers to save their reputation (which didn't work - this time - but how much other stuff have they fed us that wasn't true since RobertB left?) ; and to top all that off, they also apparently think it's fine to keep their customers in the dark and feed them carefully metered fertilizer (aka the mushroom syndrome). Doesn't say much for what they expect our collective intelligence levels to be, does it now?

For the record: I find this to be not only unacceptable behavior, but also inexcusable and insulting to my intelligence.

[kennyc]

I agree completely Shel. Well said.

[Blossom]

Robert it is so good to see you here! *hugs*
I think we all knew something was up when the announcement about your retirement made no sense. Thank you for setting the record straight.

I still love my Pocket Pro but I will not be purchasing another Astak Product after seeing how they treat their employees and how much customer service has gone down since you left.

[ifantig]

Just wanted to chime in here. I've been following the Astak forum for quite some time. One of the main reasons I bought the Pocket Pro was because of RobertB's posts regarding the usability of the device and its bright future. He's a rare and dying breed in the corporate world: someone who actually does care about customers. He seems like a guy who really put his heart into his work and was punished for it by a bunch of loveless corporate SOB's.

I'm not sure if someone mentioned this already but there's no way the Astak e-reader section is closed for maintenance...NO WAY...NO HOW. If that was the case some sort of notification would be posted, instead of just flat-out pulling the e-reader links from their site. And if Jenifer or whoever insists otherwise they are simply lying.