Recent Spadina/College retail experience

[Lennart Sorensen]

On Wed, Jan 03, 2007 at 10:38:25AM -0500, Alex Beamish wrote:
> Hi TLUG,
> 
> I upgraded my wife's computer from Windows 98 to Windows XP for Christmas,
> with the unexpected side effect that the motherboard audio stopped working
> (CMI something or other -- it doesn't matter now). After flailing around and
> trying to fix it, I decided to visit Spadina/College for a new PCI sound
> card card.
> 
> I usually patronize Sonnam[1], but their web site suggested that they were
> out of stock of the $40 PCI sound card that I wanted, and Hardware Direct[2]
> seemed to have a suitable card for $20. So, I love a bargain, and headed to
> Hardware Direct.
> 
> Well, the place was crowded as they were still dealing with their extended
> Boxing Day clearance, so I sidled up to the counter and waited for a staff
> person to help me out. While I waited, and waited, and waited, I observed
> that three of the four guys behind the counter were spending a lot of time
> searching through the counter displays and shelving units for stock that
> didn't appear to be there. Lots of stuff, just not what people were asking
> for. A customer asked about different payment options, which lead to some
> discussion between him and a staff member.
> 
> After about fifteen minutes I finally got served (they were busy), and I
> asked for a specific sound card (their web site said they had one in stock,
> and I had the flyer in front of me) and his response was "I can't find it."
> I asked if they were out of stock, and he repeated, "No, it's in stock, I
> just can't find it."
> 
> Well, I asked, do you have any PCI sound cards that work under Windows XP?
> Wordlessly, he handed me a small box containing a sound card. Reading the
> fine print, I saw that it was for Windows 95/98/2000/ME. Not Windows XP. I
> pointed that out, and he just shrugged. So that was the end of that retail
> experience.
> 
> Next I went down College and hit A Plus Software[3], spending about five
> minutes scouring the walls, looking for any kind of sound card, while one
> staff member served a customer and another yakked with what seemed to be
> either a friend or a long time customer. There were no sound cards on
> display, so I asked the cashier -- at least he couldn't ignore me -- and
> found out that they didn't have the inexpensive card I was looking for.
> 
> So I ended up back at Sonnam where there were two staff members behind the
> counter, both busy with customers. I took a good gander around the store and
> finally found the sound cards offered, and pretty soon had a staff member
> ask me what I was looking for. I told him and he immediately pulled out a
> $15 sound card, with installation CD, and explained the drivers were for
> Windows 98/2000/ME, but weren't needed for Windows XP. Plug and Play. I
> bought it, got home, plugged it in, set is as the default sound card and it
> just worked.
> 
> So .. I think the next time I go looking for computer parts, I'm going to go
> straight to Sonnam.
> 
> Does anyone else have stories about shopping at Spadina/College? Is my
> experience unusual?

I almost never go to that area.  I do all my shopping at logic computer
house or canada computers.  I have been moving more and more to canada
computers over tha last few months, especially since they now seem to
have the lowest price of the two and more of the products I want.  I
don't know anywhere else I would bother to go.

As for sound cards, well any sb live or audigy card would be a decent
choice, and most stores should have an oem version of one of those for
not too much money.

No chance that there was a driver for the cmi chip/card for XP?  Not
that cmi had any insentive to write a driver for an old chip.  They want
you to buy a new one of course. :)

--
Len Sorensen
--
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