Jul
26
iPod touch finally has a use
July 26, 2008 | Comments Off
At last using the iPod actually has a meaning. If I can write blog posts like this then maybe it might even work well for commuting!
Mar
14
Testing iPaper
March 14, 2008 | Leave a Comment
One of the key problems with PDF is the very complex and extremely expensive security system involved. Yes it’s easy to password protect individual files, restrict certain use aspects such as stopping printing, and so on, but to use PDF as a means to distribute propriatary information that ties individual files to individual computers, an enterprise level server is required, meaning hundreds of thousands of Yen in investment. As a result, its always good to see alternatives appear. This entry is a test of iPaper which looks like it could be a very useful solution.
Mar
12
Death in Tokyo
March 12, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Oh what a depressing place Tokyo must be. Almost every time I happen to be unfortunate enough to use the JR lines before midday there’s news of yet more train delays due to Jinshin Jiko which JR likes to translate as an “accident involving human beings”. While, I’m sure, this could be someone who slipped on a dropped fag end (for which Tokyo is rightly famous) or, even more likely, someone who got too near the edge of the platform during the horrendously crowded rush hour and was accidentally nudged over the side, most of these euphemistically named events probably involve people jumping (after a brief search, I couldn’t find any specific figures). Suicide by train is a problem in Tokyo.
Every single police box in the city has a little noticeboard that dutifully records the number of injuries and deaths caused by road accidents the previous day, and it’s always good to see one of these proudly announcing a figure of zero next to deaths the previous day. Sadly, it seems that it wouldn’t be out of place for JR, and the multitude of private railways around the city, to make a point of similar noticeboards recording the number of deaths on their tracks each day. Based on the number of times I’ve waited on platforms over the past year, often with the number of other people also waiting swelling rapidly around me, the number seems that it could be unnervingly large to me and certainly makes a morning train journey subject to delay on frequent occasions.
It even happens on the subways. I’ve had no choice but to be on the Yurakucho Line before 10am on two occasions in the last month (yes, my convictions as a non-commuter must have slipped a bit), and on both occasions the train was late – by no less than 15 minutes on the first occasion, although that, the announcement informed us, was due to a plastic bag on the line during some particularly windy weather. The other time, it was for, yes, Jinshin Jiko.
In any case, it was interesting to spot this picture on the subway the other day. Clearly, I am not the only one who’s noticed an up-swing in suicides recently with the Tokyo Government issuing his poster. Roughly, it says:
“Let’s all of us make life important”
And then:
“LIFE: that important person is waiting”
All well and good, but political practicality then ruins the message somewhat by making the yellow tagline at the bottom:
“Let’s reduce suicides in Tokyo”
Reduce? Don’t we want to completely stop suicide? Is a certain level of suicide acceptable and unavoidable? Even with this rather worrying finish, the poster doesn’t actually make much of an impact. Although it makes it clear that this is the “Stop Suicide Tokyo Campaign” run by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, there’s no contact number, no suggestion as to where to turn if you need help with your suicidal tendencies. Just a simple (and unforgivably cheap) graphic, and the hope that emphasizing the importance of ‘loved ones’, even indirectly and through vague hints, will deter potential jumpers. It might have been better to remind the depressed that their families will be charged the full cost of any disruption to train services, and there have been cases where families have been charged hundreds of millions of Yen to pay for scraping their ‘loved’ ones from the tracks.
Of course, this isn’t a matter to be cynical about. Too many people are lonely and depressed, just as in any big city, but the assumption of homogeneity and uniformity here makes outlets for depression somewhat fewer. Japan has plenty of doctors specialising in illnesses of the heart, but society is often less sympathetic, and the lengthening and unrelenting work ethic that everyone is so keen to cling to certainly doesn’t help. For the poor commuter, forced yet again to embark on another 12-15 hours of often poorly paid and uninspiring work, there aren’t enough ways to cry for help. It’s good to see Tokyo Met making some effort, but you can’t help think they could do a whole lot more.
Tags: Japan, society, suicide, advertising, print ad, subway, commuting, JR, trains
Feb
24
Book Off, Rip Off
February 24, 2008 | Leave a Comment
I finally got rid of almost all of my old VHS tapes the other day. I decided to ’sell’ them to Book Off, a very prominent Japanese retailer that deals in second hand books, DVDs, tapes and games. It’s a huge chain of several hundred stores and, despite its name, very popular. Like many similar chains, it has a clear locational policy, opening stores near major stations.
In the end, I sold off 130 VHS tapes, about 30 DVDs, and 20 books of various sorts. A bloke from the local Book Off store came around, loaded them all onto a trolley, using recycled boxes that had been in use for sometime, and I waited patiently for a call from the store to say what they valued my little collection at. The tapes were mostly British comedy, all genuine commercial copies mostly bought on Amazon.com. Title included the full set of Red Dwarf, most Carry Ons, quite a few Laurel and Hardy, Britta’s Empire, A History of Britain, Life on Earth, and so on, so quite a collection.
Total price: ¥4,200! I must admit I was surprised it was so low, but, hey, it would have been such a pain to put all these onto eBay and even then most probably wouldn’t have sold. So, off I trotted to the store to receive my payment. Not overly impressed by the price, but not totally unhappy either.
It is only at Book Off that you realise the way they work. Despite paying only ¥10 for most of my tapes and no more than ¥100 per DVD, it is amazing to see the store stocked to the gills with secondhand junk all selling for at or near full market prices for new copies. We checked out a couple of DVDs that Ministop, our local convenience store is currently selling as new. Hotel in MInistop is ¥2,500. In Book Off, ¥1989 for a secondhand copy that cost them, presumably ¥100. Ministop is selling Bourne Identity for ¥980. Book Off ¥2,498! Admittedly, the two DVDs are not identical editions, with the Ministop DVDs being the bare bones with no special features, but it’s clear that Book Off expects to sell secondhand copies at as near to list price as they can. Who buys these things? Does anyone actually shop there?
I believe that their main market is actually books, especially limited edition manga and comics, but even so, it seems to be an unworkable business model relying on customers who don’t shop around and don’t know the genuine prices available. This is a common tactic in Japan. Real Estate Agents, travel agencies, and, to a large extent big electronics chains, have relied on this same consumer myopia for a long time, over pricing goods and then giving ’special’ discounts to more informed customers.
In this day and age, with the ease of finding information on the Internet, such tricks surely cannot last. Interestingly, Book Off rejected 10 books and one VHS tape. The tape, Toy Story 2, had had its case thoroughly chewed by Wilkie, so fair enough, but I was intrigued as to why they rejected the books. Was it because they were English? Would there be no demand? Not at all. In every case it was because the cover was in some way damaged or slightly faded from sunlight.
So, having taken quite a few books and tapes from me that few people are likely to want, how are they going to sell them? Surely, Book Off as a company as a huge database, accessible online, to sell off all this junk to the tiny minority who might actually buy it, right? Not at all. I asked at the store, but the manager said the books he bought would sell only in his store. No online database, no wider market. So, I suppose they are banking on someone who lives within about 1km of where I do also loving Red Dwarf so much that they’re willing to pay almost as much for a secondhand tape as you would for a new DVD! Very, very unlikely in my opinion. Next time I’m nearby, I plan to go in and see just how much they’re selling my ¥10 tapes for.
Blogged with Flock
Tags: Japan, retail, secondhand, Book Off, Red Dwarf, DVD, games, manga
Dec
9
The 2nd Worst Starbucks in the World
December 9, 2007 | Comments Off
The second[1] worst Starbucks Coffee outlet in the World is in Ikebukuro. The third is here too, but to be overly fair, my guess is both are managed by the same person/people because their key faults are the same.
Whenever you visit our most local Starbucks, you’re stopped at the door with the question:
“Eat in or take away?”
There’s only one Starbucks this side of Ikebukuro station in Tokyo and it’s small, so it’s often full, but if you’re foolish enough to want to eat-in at times like this, you’ll be directed to a waiting area and, unbelievably and incredibly annoyingly, not allowed to order. Japan being Japan, with queues of 5-10 people and waits of 15-30 minutes, sitting about waiting to be allowed to order must be incredibly annoying. The majority of people we see generally just walk out without buying anything.
Yesterday we went there (early in order to get seats) and, even though I had my seat, I was still asked three times, “Have you found your seat yet? Please don’t order unless you have a seat.” Even at the cash register, I was asked again. We then saw four elderly (and I mean very elderly) ladies scolded for taking seats in the back of the store without permission from staff, and physically moved back to the holding pen so they didn’t jump the line. Totally ridiculous and very bad management.
Note [1]: The worst Starbucks in the world is, of course, the one in Gatwick Airport in London. Not only do they constantly and aggressively try to up-sell every single order, but they never, ever give full measures, so short-changing you as well. I went there many times before finally giving up and deciding that the watery coffee across the concourse at Cafe Nero was better than being cheated.
(Starbucks; Japan)