Two-Part Rant

1. Why does PayPal work like a giant guessing game/scavenger hunt? All I wanted to do was reset my password. The automatic email they sent me told me to follow a link that led to a page with a message telling me to call customer service. I hadn’t used my account since a few moves ago, and I couldn’t remember my old apartment number when the operator asked my address. I guessed 109. She told me I was close. I guessed 110. She told me to guess lower. It was 108. She offered to close my account and then have me open a new one. However, since I have the same credit card, they would have to charge me $1.95 and put a secret number in the description of the charge. I could then use this secret number from my credit card bill to open the new account. I told her that was ridiculous. Then she told me that although she couldn’t reset my password, I could keep trying to guess my old password.


2. I had to convert a file to Microsoft Word format for some non-LaTeX users. Why does Word refuse to highlight the exact characters I select? Why does Microsoft software refuse to let the operating system handle keyboard input and instead try to do it itself, mysteriously garbling command-keys for users of alternate key layouts? Why are there so many people in math departments who use Microsoft Word with Equation Editor instead of LaTeX?