Poxy Radiocommunications Agency Site (rant)

[tcm]

Boat has just transferred to UK registry so time for a licence for the radio and the epirb. But after entering all the stuff which took ages, the site blew up with an error. Very poxy indeed.



<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[jhr]

C'est domage.

The two likeliest explanations are:

1) The website has taken umbrage at your refusal to refer to it as OfCom and has stalked off in a huff

2) Mike Martin has had a little piece of software written into the programme which reacts to the words "Diana 2" or "Leopard 23" by leading you through the entire registration process before crashing when you hit the "submit" button.

My money's on Number 2.

/forums/images/icons/wink.gif

<hr width=100% size=1>Je suis Marxiste - tendance Groucho

 

[Steve Clayton]

Tend to agree as I'm in the process of registering EPIRB and PLB.

The field to enter 15 char hex code won't accept 15 characters!!! (it truncates at about character 6). I called then up and was told - we know about this; use the serial number field instead.

Mind you the Ofcom print and fill in forms are even worse. There are lots of anomolies and at least 3 forms you could use for registering an EPIRB - and one of them is the one for recording a change to your handheld VHF!!



Steve



<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[Mike_Martin]

Not a lot I can say either in defence or against.

It's not just our site that has such problems it is an inherent risk with internet forms and as a very regular Internet user I speak from experience. You will notice that from the Ofcom Maritime page here http://www.ofcom.org.uk/licensing_numbering/radiocomms/maritime_licensing/?a=87101
it offers two options either to print-off or fill in online.

Mike


<hr width=100% size=1>Team Executive,
Maritime & Aeronautical Team, Ofcom

 

[rickp]

Yeah - my whinge was that I had to use Internet Explorer on a PC, rather than anything I've got on my mac (not even IE on the mac would work). It seems it takes more budget to take these non-standard browser specific websites and make them standards compliant. *sigh*.

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[Mike_Martin]

Now this is our fault!

I am afraid that it is a very definite reflection of a cut-price service. Not enough people use the on-line service to be able to justify spending any real money on it, this fault in the page has been there since the beginning (over 2 years) but you are only the third person to report it so it's very hard to justify the money to correct it. However, the Hex ID will fit into the serial number field and RLC staff will recognise it as a Hex ID.

Mike

<hr width=100% size=1>Team Executive,
Maritime & Aeronautical Team, Ofcom

 

[Mike_Martin]

BTW It's Ofcom.

As if I would chuckle.

Mike

<hr width=100% size=1>Team Executive,
Maritime & Aeronautical Team, Ofcom

 

[Mike_Martin]

mentioned below!

It's also not likely to get any better under the new Ofcom way.

Sorry in advance!

M

<hr width=100% size=1>Team Executive,
Maritime & Aeronautical Team, Ofcom

 

[andyball]

I kept having similar agg with online cg66 registration....took the details all through 5 pages & then did nothing with it. Supposedly "no-one else has complained", so that's ok then.

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[Jools_of_Top_Cat]

I did, still waiting for a reply on another thread!

Gonna go and try the CG66 again, see if I can get it to work!

<hr width=100% size=1>Julian

<A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.topcatsail.co.uk>Top Cat Homepage</A>

 

[jfm]

I used it recently and it worked ok. however, the licence hasn't actually turned up......

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[BarryH]

Just to balance things up a bit. I had a "red" letter from them stating that I'd not payed the fee and the call sign would not be assigned to my boat anymore. Gave them a cal and explained that sent cheque etc etc. They said "Very sorry, disc in the post etc etc".
One phone call to sort it out with someone who actually knew what they were on about..........That don't happen much nowdays!

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[PhilF]

They told me they couldnt send me the license cause they were waiting for new headed paper and they had thousands to send out. Gave me the call sign and MMSI over the phone. License arrived the following day!!!!!

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[terryw]

I used the Internet method earlier this month. 8 days later disc arrived, so I cannot fault the service

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[Mike_Martin]

Sorry it's alright moaning about my service but I can only pass things along to MCA regarding their services.

Mike

<hr width=100% size=1>Team Executive,
Maritime & Aeronautical Team, Ofcom

 

[Mike_Martin]

All fixed, thanks to my trusty sidekick Matt at the RLC.

Blimey now that's customer service, I can hear you all thinking, rolls eyes and smiles contentedly.

M

<hr width=100% size=1>Team Executive,
Maritime & Aeronautical Team, Ofcom

 

[tcm]

Customer? Service? - it\'s still busted tho!

it says

ADODB.Command error '800a0d5d'
Application uses a value of the wrong type for the current operation.
/ShipApplicationAdditional.asp, line 32


We seem to have different definitions of "fixing the software".

I also have a different definition of what a "customer" actually is: whereas I am a customer of a restaurant or a shop, I am not really a "customer" of you nor of the inland revenue. Likewise, a convicted criminal isn't a "customer" of the prison in which he resides - he has no option about where he spends his time, and in the same way I have no option about where to get a radio licence. It doesn't matter how rubbish your software/website, i won't be able to go somewhere else to get a radio licence will I? No.

But I agree with the eyes rolling bit!


<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[Mike_Martin]

Re: Customer? Service? - it\'s still busted tho!

The bit about the error code is fair and I have forwarded it to the PO IT bods to look at.

I was going to comment on the second bit but decided it isn't really worthwhile to do so.

Mike



<hr width=100% size=1>Team Executive,
Maritime & Aeronautical Team, Ofcom<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by Mike_Martin on 25/03/2004 17:23 (server time).</FONT></P>

 

[tcm]

Re: QED

Think that demonstrates the point tho dunnit - you can say anything, sigh, shrug shoulders, and make tsk comments like "it's not worthwhile" and I'll STILL buy the licence. People who need to attract actual real "customers" don't have that luxury.

However, i didn't mean to cause massive offence, and be horridly personal.

<hr width=100% size=1>

 

[Mike_Martin]

Nah Ipso facto

No I'm afraid it doesn't, I didn't reply as it would have seemed personal and a put down, (you know the kind of thing quotes from the Dictionary about what the word means etc) that is just not my style.

When I joined this Unit 5 years ago (from what I might add was a cushy job elsewhere in the RA) I did so as I had a real and personal interest in the sector. When I assumed managership of it nearly 3 years ago I changed the way it did things and how it communicated with licensees. Most long-standing customers (and I might add the Boating Press and the Industry) have seen that it has gone from "you do it because it's the Law" to "this is what the Licence actually does for you and UK marine safety"

Don't worry about personal offence I went from being "thick skinned" to being "armour plated" after about 6 mths in the Unit. There is only one group of radio licensees that complains more than Ship radio and that's Amateur radio. However, due to the "informative" stance that my unit adopts, the complaints (substantive ones not just moans) figures have really dwindled away to maybe 5 a year (something that I'm quite proud of really with 65,000 customers) and Ship radio licensees know far more about the licence and its actual purpose, as evidenced by the responses to the deregulation topic.

Mike

<hr width=100% size=1>Team Executive,
Maritime & Aeronautical Team, Ofcom