Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1999/07/12
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]In a message dated 7/12/99 7:40:15 AM Central Daylight Time, horst.schmidt@actek.com.au writes: << I don't Think you got the gist of it. Its the tone that makes the musik, Bernhard!! Horst >> >> Dear Horst: I posted the following in response to another Leica woes post - So you see Horst, there are a cadre of Leica apologists just waiting to attack anyone who posts a legitimate complaint relative to Leica workmanship, product or service. It is often referred to the "stick in the ant hill" reflex. Push a stick into an ant hill and see the workers scurry to defend the queen. One would almost think this cadre owned stock in the enterprise and was on the attack to protect that investment by stifling criticism rather than demanding their company get the lead out and start producing merchandise that worked the first time out rather than the customer being forced to do the trouble shooting and quality control work for the company. Keep up the good work Horst, and do not let the "cadre" stifle your posts. It may be the new "Solms Bean Counter" will turn around the company and insist on top quality products being marketed and "on time" but "bean counters" normally have one job and that sole job is to sweeten the corporate bottom line with little if any concern for the customer regardless of the company's propaganda line spouted in the literature. The customer is entitled to expect a $2,000 camera body will work right out of the box and it is nonsense to give a company a "free ride" when it keeps missing the mark with the quality control for which E. Leitz was so well known. E. Leitz proved for years that a Leica camera could be produced and inspected to the extent the customer could expect the camera to operate rather than fall apart in the midst of a vacation. A Leica camera body is not a "computer" or "computer software" that the customer has come to expect not to work without many calls to the manufacturer and replacement of the product. I have carried on too long, but this "attack the customer" and "god forbid posting anything the least bit negative regarding the NEW Leica company" attitude is still alive and well like an immune system lurking in the background to attack an unwanted entry. If Leica understands the Leica users expect top quality cameras, the quality control problems will be rectified; however, if Leica is watching the LUG posts and notes that the "apologists" are happy with the quality being placed on the market by Leica, the same quality problems will continue to persist. It is the opinion of this writer, the LUG attitude should be one of encouraging Leica to improve quality control and its products so they solve photographic problems rather than becoming part of the photographic problem. Otherwise, this product quality problem will only get worse.