The Great Computer Debacle

It's late at night and once again, I am sitting in a PC bang, when I should be home in bed, writing in comfort, drinking hot green tea instead of cold orange pop. I am desperately trying to remedy this ailment, but as with most things in life less commonplace than clearing my bowels in the morning, getting a computer is proving to be just this side of worth it.

You might be wondering why I don't just buy  a computer here. After all, I am in east Asia, and therefore, the computers should be cheap, right? Well, no--not in Korea, anyway. I would spend about three-hundred-fifty dollars more for a computer than for a similar model back home. It seems like the only brands of computer available here are Samsung, LG and the occasional Apple. There are, it would seem, mega-tariffs keeping cheap Taiwanese and Japanese computers out of the country.

As if I weren't frustrated enough while looking at Samsung's prices, I went into the LG store to discover that there were no prices on the machines. What, was I supposed to ask what the price is for each one? Haggle? Way to make computer shopping super-stressful, Korea. Anyways, even if I decided it was worth it to throw down the extra couple-hundred, I would still have to deal with replacing the Korean OS, and worry about hitting the Hangul button all the time. No thank you!

So, after many hours of searching for a website that would deliver SK, I found a United-States based company called Provantage that would accommodate my needs. I found the computer I wanted-- a 14" Asus with a 3i processor, and 4Gs or RAM. My colleague had agreed to pay for it with credit in exchange for cash and I was all set to go. Turns out that Provantage would only accept payment from American Express or by wire transfer. Glenn didn't have an American Express card (who the heck does anyway), but I figured, no big deal, I'll just wire the money.

So I transfer some cash from my Korean account to my Canadian account. The money comes through the next day, and I go online to set up the wire transfer but...it turns out that I can transfer money from one of my accounts to another, I can pay bills, I can set up an Interac E-mail Transfer (whatever that is), but I cannot set up a normal wire transfer to another institution.

Right. So, the next step, my banking website informs me, is to call the international service line. I try calling it and I get an out of order message. So, I call Korean information. They tell me to dial "001" before the number. So, I think to myself, okay-- instead of 1 then the country code, then area code and then the number, I will dial 001, then the country code, then the area code and then the number. I do, and I get another out of service message.

Right, so I decided to e-mail my bank. The following is the resulting e-mail thread:


From: bradyehler@gmail.com


Sent: 09 Oct 10 00:52:57


Hi, I'm trying to phone the international number to set up a wire transfer, but I'm getting a message saying that the number I'm calling is out of service.


The number I'm trying to call is 1-416-223-0263


I'm trying to call from South Korea.


Dear Sir or Madam,


I apologize for the inconvenience.


If you know your 5-digit Telephone Banking password, please call 1-416-223-0263. Collect calls are not accepted. After you have keyed in your card number and password, please select 0 and your call will be transferred to a representative.

If you have forgotten your Telephone Banking password or have not selected one and require assistance, please stay on the line. The recording will repeat a few times and your call will then be transferred to a representative. Assistance is available seven days a week, from 7:00 a.m. to midnight local time across Canada.


Thank you for visiting www.pcfinancial.ca.


Sincerely,
Ewan


Internet Communications Specialist
 
Ewan (or whoever),



As expressed in my previous e-mail, the problem is that when I try calling the international number (1-416-223-0263) I get an out of service message.


So, if I was able to call the international number (1-416-223-0263), asking the representative how to get on the phone with a representative would be redundant.


Imagine a similar scenario:


You are hungry and want a banana. You look for a banana for a long time, then finally you find a banana.


Do you...


A: Eat the banana


or


B:Ask the banana where you could find a banana (to eat)


?


I hope this rhetorical question has helped to clarify my problem.
Again, I am calling from South Korea.


Regards,
Brady (Mr.Ehler)

As of yet, I haven't gotten a response. Fortunately, another colleague (a Korean) puzzled out the riddle in the meantime. Turns out I had to dial 001 and THEN 1, the country code, area code and number. Stupid me! Anyways, so I get on the line with the representative, and it turns out that the the mailing address is screwy and the money I transfer over might "bounce back"--costing me up to a hundred dollars for nothing. Oh well. Even if all goes swimmingly, between taxes, duties, shipping, wire-transfer fees and long-distance charges, it will have been almost as cost-efficient to have bought a Korean computer. Oh well, at least if this works out I wont have to worry about hitting the damn Hangul button.