Bitching about the IRD
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Thursday, 02 July 09 - 10:57 PM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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As I don't have half an hour to wait on the phone to talk to the IRD, and as you have to talk to them on the phone in order to activate the online registration that you need to do in order to email them, I will blog my rage. It's the done thing.
So my current issue is to do with provisional tax.
A few points to describe the situation as I understand it:
- provisional tax is essentially paying your tax throughout the year to avoid a massive bill at the end of the year.
- provisional tax for 2008/09 is based on your earnings in the 2007/08 tax year.
- the theory is, you pay in 3 installments throughout the year (which are calculated by IRD) and at the end of that financial year you either pay more or get a refund.
- you won't know for sure how it all pans out until you've done your tax return sometime after 31 March.
What I discovered this week is that even though I have paid all my installments - as calculated by IRD - on time, and I have submitted my 08/09 return before the due date, the IRD are charging me interest on the difference between what I paid and what it turns out I should have paid as my earnings were more than the year they based their assessment on.
Even though I am not overdue with my tax, and even though there is no way I could have known for sure what I would be earning and therefore how much tax I should pay until I did my return. And even though I am not overdue - they charge interest on what I owe - before I even owe it! A Lot of interest.
That really sucks!
Can anyone shed any light on what gives the IRD a mandate to charge this interest? They don't even say what rate it is charged at, or from when exactly. But it's calculated daily - and is way more than any interest I have earned having that money in a savings account.
Fuckers.
Why Webstock rocks
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Tuesday, 03 March 09 - 07:52 PM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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The Webstock 09 Conference is all over for another year and the rampantly exuberant blogging, flickring and twittering has settled down again ... til next time.
So why the hype? Why does the web community get so excited about a conference? A conference in Wellington no less, where many attendees don't even get to travel
somewhere exotic?
Well basically, Webstock rocks. It's easily the most well organised, interesting, inspiring and stimulating conference I've been to. The organisers pay attention to every detail.
The speakers are from all over the world; they're experts in their fields, they're big names or big-one-day-soon names, there are no filling-in-the-gaps speakers. There are no sessions you don't want to be at.
The organisers take good care of the speakers, and of the attendees. So the speakers hang around - they're having a good time and they are also attendees. The speakers, who are awesome, go out for drinks and are easy to talk to. They're not all stressed and rushed and wishing they were somewhere else.
You come away from those two days (or more if you do workshops) and feel like you're part of, or have had a taste of, what's going on in the world and what is shaping the world. Like you've had conversations with people that are making things happen.
A few more reasons why it's so cool:
- The prizes for the complex and totally cool trading card game were amazing!
- The swag bags are gorgeous and have great schwag
- Local companies show off fabulous ideas
- The nametags have an agenda that you can read.
- There is free coffee (courtesy of People's coffee)
- There were DJs for the coffee breaks
- The drinks were at the Embassy and the band had no people in it
I really enjoyed Webstock 09. I'd like to congratulate the organisers. They did an awesome job. Again.
Online Booking at SkyCity Cinemas ... FAIL
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Sunday, 01 March 09 - 06:12 PM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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I sent the following email to SkyCity today. Somehow I doubt they'll pay any attention. But their website experience is so unbelievably bad I had to share.
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I have just tried to book tickets through your website to see a movie this evening.
On so many levels using your website is a truly awful experience.
1. You have ads. On your corporate site. In a prime top banner position! And they are badly designed, out of sync with the already bad site design and sending what kind of message to your users. I don't want to shop at woolworths, I want to buy movie tickets! However, given how impossible that is I just might go to Woolworths, although I doubt that was your purpose.
2. I was offered the option to buy Platinum tickets, they're a bit more expensive than regular tickets so I assume that means you get some kind of added value. I searched your entire site and could not find any reference anywhere to what Platinum tickets were. Am I supposed to just go on trust that I'll get value? You have an ad for Woolworths on your site, how am I meant to trust you?
I persevered.
3. When I selected the number of tickets and then clicked Next my entire screen disappeared. Then came back, then disappeared. Then a coffee cup appeared. Then a seating plan with NO information - what is free, what is taken, what does Platinum mean - a word which is tagged to a block of seats but no idea if they're bigger, or upstairs, or just apart from the others.
4. When I figured out which seats were mine, I wanted to change them. I couldn't. I clicked some blue boxes, nothing happened. I clicked "Reset", nothing happened. I tried a different browser - as I am a very experienced web user and thought maybe some different settings would help. Still, couldn't change my seats.
5. I figured I'd deal with seats later and just get through this process. I clicked "Next". Nothing happened. In the other browser (Safari 4, Mac OSX) there wasn't even a Next button.
6. I gave up. I booked at Readings Cinemas where the process is easy, professional and works. It's a bummer, I actually prefer the Embassy on Courtney Place. But I could not use your system - and I really did try.
So there you have it. A free usability review from a professional web user, of one of the most appalling online e-commerce experiences I've had the displeasure of enduring in recent months.
If people aren't using your system to purchase tickets - don't blame the people, your site sucks. Don't dismiss this email - show it to your manager and do something about your website - you're Sky City, aren't you meant to be high end and quality??!
(FYI - my settings were : Mac OSX 10.5 with Firefox 3 and with Safari 4)
You just have to love them
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Thursday, 26 February 09 - 12:37 PM (GMT +12:00) By Sandy Mamoli in General |
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They made a mistake and double charged me.
Well, everyone makes mistakes but if you own up, inform me in a charming and funny way and fix the problem I really don't mind.
MOO did just that and put a smile on my face.
Thanks guys, this is the best client communication I've ever seen:
Hello,
I'm Little MOO. We've spoken before, I'm the piece of software that
manages your order with MOO.
I've done a Very Bad Thing, and it doesn't happen often.
Don't worry - your order is going through ok, it's already been
passed to Big MOO for printing, but something happened during
payment
when you ordered your cards. You were double charged the full amount
by accident.
I am only a piece of software, but I feel like a fool. I've also had
a stern talking to. (Several, in fact).
You'll be pleased to know however, that I've refunded this amount
now, and it should appear in your account very soon - if it's not
there already.
Very best wishes, and sorry for the confusion.
I hope you love your order when it arrives,
Little MOO
Great idea, shame about the execution
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Monday, 16 February 09 - 07:45 PM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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It's actually a pretty cool idea.
The premier of A Song of Good. Free for 24 hours to stream from the website.
As a relatively recent convert to the joys of local content I thought I'd check it out.
What I did eventually manage to see looked awesome - compelling, shocking, gritty, real and I certainly would have watched more and told all my friends.
Unfortunately ... there were some rather major disincentives that were nothing to do with the film:
- it didn't work on Firefox
- on Safari, the hi-res version didn't work
- 20 minutes in it started jumping and stopping and starting
- 22 minutes in I paused for a toilet break and when I came back it had lost my place and was only able to start from the beginning again .. which it wouldn't do anyway
I gave up.
I might go and see it at the theatre. Maybe that's what they wanted to achieve - but it would've been better to say that up front .. "hey btw, it's going to crash after 20 minutes and you're not allowed to pee".
Cool idea. Crap execution. Bummer.
Cheap flights to Australia
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Thursday, 29 January 09 - 08:15 AM (GMT +12:00) By Sandy Mamoli in General |
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Looks like some ad agencies know what they're doing online: Unruly Media produce fun videos and seed them into the blogosphere, facebook and other social and not so social media.
Seeding is done by paying people to publish the video. Which is exactly how they motivated me ...
Given the number of visitors on this blog I project a profit of approx. 95 cents by June which I might just spend on a cheap flight ticket to Australia.
Oh, and the video IS actually quite funny :-)
text madness
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Wednesday, 17 December 08 - 08:24 PM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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"I send 260 texts a day" says a 16 year old girl.
I'm sure there are worse cases out there, but what actually got me was this:
Hannah Brooke's top two texts:
"Whats up dawg"
"Wea u at"
I really hope one day this girl will wake up and realise what a loser she is.
If not, I hope at least she doesn't breed. I guess if she just texts all day there may actually be some hope of that outcome.
Why it's cool
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Sunday, 26 October 08 - 03:16 PM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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There's actually something a bit different for me about the NZ On Screen website. Aside from the wild ride of getting it online, this would be one of the few projects I've worked on where the content draws me in.
I never really was a big TV fan, and actually only got one this year so that I would have a better idea of what everyone was talking about at work. But the material on NZ On Screen keeps dragging me back.
My favourites so far...
Kaikohe Demolition, a documentary by Florian Habicht - who'd'a thought I'd sit and watch an hour's worth of blokes from up North hanging out in mud pools and driving cars around a field. It's awesome! It captures something I would not otherwise have known about - they deepen the tread in their tyres with a chainsaw.... say no more.
Footage, by Niki Caro - foot fetishes and podiatrists - perhaps a likely combination, but presented in an intriguing and unlikely way in this doco.
Velvet Dreams, by Sima Urale - I was looking for this for the last few years and it's so cool to see it at last.
But not just the video - there are stories there, individual perspectives written by a diverse group of people and profiles of key cast and crew.
It's actually great to work on a project where the content is so cool, and I've realised from some of the fantastic feedback, that people are so happy to have access to it!
More coverage (podcast here) from National Radio today.
NZ On Screen madness
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Saturday, 25 October 08 - 11:20 AM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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It's been a while ... actually it really annoys me usually when people whose blogs I regularly read disappear for a while and then they come back and start with something like "It's been a while since my last post". So if that annoys you too, pretend you never read the last paragraph.
But, big news is NZ On Screen is live at last! If you've somehow managed to avoid the recent media blitz (or twitter and facebook blitz if you're not in NZ), then now you know.
It is, if I say so myself, an awesome website. I strongly urge you to check it out.
Not just because the content is great - and then probably mostly if you're a New Zealander - but the site itself has been extremely well received from a design and functionality perspective. It rocks.
There was a bit of a fuss on local Breakfast TV, and on National Radio, and on various websites around the country. The twitter network response was fast and furious and very positive.
The launch on Thursday was excellent - see some of the photos here.
Yesterday I crashed ... spent the afternoon on the couch answering emails but could not move. Yay for a long weekend!
Stamford Plaza - what a rip!
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Wednesday, 01 October 08 - 02:29 PM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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An event that I am attending this evening is held at the Stamford Plaza Hotel in Auckland. Thinking it would be easier all round, I booked a room in this relatively grand establishment.
On their website it says "high speed internet access in the room". Great, I thought, I can do some work, go to the event, be online etc.,
On checking in I'm told that yes, there is internet in the room but it's not free. It's $5 for half an hour. Minor explosion in reception - 5 star hotel, outrageous rip-off etc.,
But getting to the room, getting online - it's $10 for an hour - a consecutive hour - so not dipping in and out but must be a consecutive hour or you buy another. And it's $30 for 24 hours!
On top of that there's a 'reasonable use' policy - if you download too much they'll cut you off. Looking forward to testing and demo'ing my video streaming site this afternoon that's for sure.
Stamford Plaza that is outrageous. For the cost of this room the internet should be free.
Sandy's new playground
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Sunday, 28 September 08 - 10:53 PM (GMT +12:00) By Sandy Mamoli in General |
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As by far most of my friends, i.e. this blog's readers, would be bored to death with me writing about professional or geeky stuff I have abstained from using this blog to write about anything than our private life and random stuff.
To make sure this blog remains as eclectic as it is I have found another playground for anything that occupies my brain professionally. In particular this will be Agile and some Ruby on Rails/iPhone/random geek stuff.
Check it out at: http://www.nomad8.com
(If you don't know what Agile and RoR means don't bother checking it out - you'll be bored :-)
best stats in a while
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Saturday, 27 September 08 - 08:49 PM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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In the midst of statistics and more statistics, sometimes there's a gem. This is one.
Best pie chart ever.
Rolling in icecream
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Wednesday, 13 August 08 - 08:59 PM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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A couple of years ago my sister Rachel and a couple of others bought the NZ Mr. Whippy enterprise - not just a truck, but the whole kit and caboodle, complete with about 52 trucks, 13 shops and a brand with 98% recognition nationwide.
When we were working in Amsterdam it became a bit of a mantra in times of stress "moving to NZ, working in an icecream truck, always having happy clients .... " it had a lot of appeal.
Rachel and her colleagues have done a lot of work - bringing the brand into the modern era, revamping the website (we helped a bit, but Salted Herring did the design and most of the work) and revitalising the business. But it's now time for them to move on and they're selling up.
Rachel gave a lovely interview on TV3's Sunrise programme this morning (can't embed it, but you can go there to see it):
But aside from that, if you're looking for a change of career - you could do a lot worse than buying and nurturing a national treasure! (Auction closes on the 15th of August).
More online coverage
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Sunday, 10 August 08 - 10:26 PM (GMT +12:00) By Sandy Mamoli in General |
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Thanks to Alan we're now watching TVNZ's Olympic online coverage directly through Quicktime.
It's wonderful to bypass their crappy user interface and Windows Media Player (in)compatibility issues and to finally enjoy good streaming. (For urls and detailed instructions see Alan's blog)
fabulous online coverage ... not
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Saturday, 09 August 08 - 08:43 AM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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I really needed to go to sleep last night so headed off knowing that I could watch the spectacle of the Olympics opening ceremony on TVNZ today.
However this is the dog's breakfast that is the video viewer on that site
Sound, no video, this screenshot from halfway down the page, layout all screwed up and the only thing that could play was the 10sec promo!
I guess macs don't factor in TVNZ land. And yes, I tried 3 different browsers.
mouths of babes
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Friday, 08 August 08 - 10:17 PM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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KID: This camera is dumb, it makes me look like I have bags under my eyes
SANDY: True, you don't have those. But look, it does that to me too.
KID: But you do have them.
SANDY: Oh.
Heeft meer hmmm
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Monday, 04 August 08 - 08:52 PM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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From the discussion on Public Address it seems that Starbucks are largely universally hated in NZ. Primarily because they are trying to push an inferior coffee product in a market that has a taste for quality in coffee and can tell the difference.
In some European markets (the Netherlands for example) or in the USA the coffee is in general so crap that Starbucks is acceptable, but not here.
So why then does Moccona have huge billboards in NZ advertising instant coffee - Instant Coffee (!!) - and have a catch phrase in Dutch. There are so many things wrong with this concept:
a. instant coffee
b. dutch on the poster - how many kiwis know what "Heeft Meer Hmmmmm" means?
c. dutch coffee is largely awful anyway
d. strange sultry exotic-looking girl in a boat to sell the concept
why?
nice quote bad starbucks
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Friday, 01 August 08 - 08:07 PM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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I've never liked Starbucks.
Today I'd like to thank Russell Brown over at Public Address for a wonderful Starbucks-related quote:
"Starbucks has never been cool in New Zealand, except perhaps to kids who should really still have been drinking milkshakes. It might play its role in more meagre coffee markets, but here it's strictly for dorks and tourists. Its competition isn't Mojo, it's McDonald's."
Brilliant.
and it's back
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Wednesday, 30 July 08 - 09:51 PM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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I take it all back.
After an initial slow start, the guys at mob.co.nz came through with the warranty and I have an iphone again! Even all nicely updated to 2.0 without me having to go through hacker pain.
Sometimes it's a wonderful thing when things work out as they're intended.
Facebook ... settling down to a purpose
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Sunday, 27 July 08 - 05:49 PM (GMT +12:00) By Brenda L in General |
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It's been a while since I joined Facebook. I've been through the various phases of Facebook-ness - they're well documented in the realm of the internet.
I've given up on the whole vampire thing and for a long time now I have only used Facebook to play Scrabulous. Lots of games of Scrabulous. Scrabulous is great and
I've culled down my friend list to keep the people who I am interested in knowing about, and who don't drive me crazy with ridiculous status updates every half hour (or more frequently). I even have my mother as my friend - you know it's mainstreamed when your mother is your online friend.
But I've realised that I'm liking the little status updates that my 'friends' make. I like knowing that Omid went sky-diving, that Al is in Barcelona, that Sappho's up late drinking vodka, that Simon saw the Black Seeds in Amsterdam last night, that Zef is finally going to San Fran. It makes me feel like I'm in touch, with people who have interesting lives, with random useless details of lots of people who I do actually know and like.
So in that sense, Facebook is pretty damn cool.
... More items are available in my News Archive
