steven n fettig's Jitterin' Thoughts

    I have to applaud UPS for the reliable and inexpensive package delivery they offer in my area of the States (x,y,z). I greatly dislike FedEx, only because it takes two days for items to get from Chicago to where I work - overnight, they are a star. It occurred to me today, however, that the tracking systems the likes of UPS and FedEx offer to us on the web are sometimes more infuriating than helpful. Case-in-point. I bought a new lens for my Nikon D100 off eBay that is being sent to me from Richmond, VA. It is supposed to arrive tomorrow, but knowing how FedEx operates in Milwaukee, I'm just not sure it's going to make it:

I sometimes find that not knowing is better than knowing. I have gone through more nights of frustration waiting for something important to arrive the next day, finding that the tracking system on UPS/FedEx's site is showing that it is unlikely it will reach me when I had originally expected, only to have it [thankfully] arrive at the dock or on our doorstep on time. I know I'm nit-picking here, but there is a lesson to be learned. Inaccurate information is usually worse than no information at all - positive or negative. This doesn't fit all situations or nor is it the norm for either of these companies to be wrong - but it does indeed happen. When the mistake is made, I often find myself wondering if I should have known anything at all in the first place. What do you think?