Microsoft Recommends FireFox, is it the End Days?

I wonder if Microsoft recommending FireFox is one of the last signs before Armageddon. Now I can say that I have seen everything in the gamut of "Customer Service", and this borders on mind-boggling.

What transpired is that I recently signed up for Microsoft's new ad program, Microsoft AdCenter. Considering the problems, I am grateful I can see humor in this fiasco of a Web site and its customer service. This is only possible as I didn't spend any money on the program. If I had, I would surely be upset. If I were an Internet novice, I'd be incensed.

Soon after signing up for Microsoft AdCenter via a promotion, I was exchanging a couple of e-mails with Microsoft AdCenter customer service concerning my promotional code, which I could not see credit for. This was eventually resolved somewhat, that is when the billing page works. Days later, when I was ready to start advertising, I again contacted support because AdCenter did not work for my account.

If the "new account" page even loads, which it often doesn't, I will go through the steps to set up a new ad campaign and then after I click "Submit," the Web page gets stuck ... "Loading..."

I think, "Ok, Microsoft. New Program = Perpetual Beta," and decide to go back to the AdCenter program later. I do and the next day it still doesn't work and no word yet from Microsoft AdCenter's customer service. Then finally I get a friendly response from AdCenter support. It starts off like this:

Microsoft Recommends

"I have provided some troubleshooting steps in this email that will usually help to alleviate any errors or latency issues within adCenter. These steps include clearing the temporary internet files which can often cause these issues."

Then the AdCenter e-mail goes on to explain this process. Though I happen to know as I'm reading that this is not the problem in my case, my files are automatically cleared. So, anticipating there might be a more useful suggestion, I continue reading and am recommended to do the most incredible thing:

"Another option if this doesn't work is that you can try another browser such as Firefox. This will often work because you then have a new browser that has not had any changes made to it. You can read more about Firefox and download it at:..."

My jaw dropped and I questioned if I took my sanity pill today, oh wait, I don't take any medicine for that - maybe I need to. Microsoft recommends Netscape? This can not be. But, yes it is and then I let that colossal picture sink in a little.

Just Imagine

Can you imagine a person working at Chevy recommending a Honda, for any reason? Or, how about Sprint telling you to try AT&T because you have line noise? In the digital world, would you ever see Google recommending Yahoo to find better search results? On that last one, after this, I wonder.

I can think of few places or instances where one would have continued employment for recommending a competitor as Microsoft AdSense support did-- or at least that is how it has always been. And Microsoft is doing one better, they are recommending a competitor, and arch rival, to make their own product work for the customer. Ingenious!

Microsoft and The Dot.com Philosophy

Has Internet commerce really degraded to this level whereas the quality of goods and customer service doesn't matter as long as there are enough customers from the world-wide sea of potential fools? That is, those that will tolerate poor goods and services because they either don't know better or they are used to it.

It just takes too long to help a customer these days, much less fix a technical problem. Company philosophy: "We'll release products we know don't work, but we'll eventually fix them as our business grows. Sure, we will lose a few customers in the meantime, but it is more profitable this way."

Substandard quality is nothing new, nor is poor customer service, but it looks like things have taken a nose dive for the worse. If mega-profitable companies, such as Microsoft, operate this way, what about the rest of the dot.com's?

I then have a recommendation to Microsoft: "I will return to using Mozilla FireFox and go back to Google AdWords, which I know works, and maybe explore Ask.com and Yahoo as well. And, if any of these companies want to inconvenience me by requesting I use another browser , because their programs do not work, at least I'll have my bases covered. That is, unless I need a Mac. too."