

SparkFun Free Day Recap - axiom
http://www.sparkfun.com/commerce/news.php?id=322

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nirmal
One thing that was particularly annoying, given the expected server troubles,
was the use of images inside of links for stepping through the checkout
procedure. So even after the page loaded I couldn't see the link until all the
images loaded on the page.

Then to verify shipping, a piece of Javascript had to be loaded. The request
for this file always timed out. So even when the link to finish checkout
showed up I couldn't because the Javascript wasn't there.

In the end, I wasn't able to fill my order and I started wondering if Sparkfun
hosts static assets on the same servers as it's shopping cart software.

EDIT: My cart had: Arduino Starter Kit, Arduino Motor Driver Shield, iPod
Breakout Connector. It came out to a total of $99.85

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devicenull
The server only went down 3 times? I suppose the giant downtime for three
hours while everything ran only counts as one.

I realize it's free, but wouldn't an "Oops! Sorry, we are at capacity" message
have been better then just letting requests time out?

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covercash
I think a "sorry, we screwed up" consolation discount would go a long way in
helping smooth over all of the bad sentiment I'm seeing toward sparkfun after
todays fiasco. Perhaps something along the lines of "If you were unable to get
in on this offer, sign up for our newsletter and get a 20% off coupon code
that expires in 2 weeks."

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tocomment
I wonder how anyone got an order through? Nothing would load for me.

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madh
Cool giveaway, but I wasn't patient or persistent enough to complete my
purchase.

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cjbprime
I got through the mayhem, and am pretty excited; haven't done anything with
Arduino before, but have a free Lilypad and Bluetooth Mate for it on the way.

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mcantelon
Neither me nor the four or five people I know who tried got through. They need
to consult with the Macheist people about how to scale.

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CamperBob
A lot of people seem to be seriously pissed about this. One comment I've seen
on an email list for (very) high-end electronics hobbyists pointed out that
Sparkfun just made a few hundred friends and several thousand enemies.

It got them a lot of publicity, but whether it was the kind of good publicity
that will result in return visits, I don't know. Especially since many of
those valuable first-time visitors never got through to the site at all.

~~~
joe_bleau
Care to share what list this was? (I noticed a ton of gripes on time-nuts
today.)

~~~
CamperBob
That's it.

