For all intents and purposes this is a venting post over the most ridiculous of topics.  I hear and comprehend how crazy I sound.  I do.  But I need to put them out into the universe so that they no longer exist in my head.  I mean, isn’t that what a blog is for?

For the past year I have been up Microsoft’s ass.  Pretty much since I invested in their stock.  I switched my ipad to a surface, I exclusively use bing (even though honestly I think Google is better.  Their maps especially.), and the past couple months I’ve been wanting to switch to a windows phone.  Needless to say I have been obsessed.

I finally got the chance to get a windows phone, the nokia 1520.  I have had it for the past week and I like it but I’m not certain that I want to keep the phone. I’m pretty comfortable with the iPhone and I’m pretty deep in their ecosystem.  So it’s a big deal if I switch.  The phone and software has a few things I love (answering texts while driving over my Bluetooth is aMAHzing.) but I’m not sure I want to switch.  So I have been fighting to make a decision.  Do I go with the windows phone since I’m all about Microsoft or stick with what I know and am comfortable with?

Not only have I been contemplating my switch, almost a year ago I switched exclusively to Bing search engine.  For my job I have to do a number of searches daily.  And when Bing offers you redeemable points for every search you do why wouldn’t I? Up until a couple days ago I had accrued almost 700 points.  I was going for a month free of xbox live.  I love my xbox but I rarely, if ever, use it and getting a month of live would honestly be kind of pointless.  So instead of redeeming them for that I thought I would sit on them and when they offered up a contest for a free nokia phone or surface I would enter.  Then enters the 4G Surface into the picture.

They have an option to redeem 40 points (35 if you have a gold account, which I DID) for 10 entries for a chance to win a surface.  So seeing as how I had 700 points (approximately 20 purchases, equating to 200 entries in the contest) I seized the opportunity.  The first day they went in fine.  The second… with a little hiccup at the end, but the third day… Well my points went down to zero.  My account was no longer linked with bing.  What the heck was going on?

I contacted customer service and inquired to the change.  And as it turns out my account was terminated for violating one of their terms of service.  I reviewed the 6 noted and the only one I could be accused of was having a “bot” enter me into the contest. 

A bot is program that runs on your computer clicking links over and over again.  How I know this is an option is because I have a friend, Aaron Ranney, (if anyone doubts me with the “friend” excuse) that does this precise thing and has explained to me and my other friends in length at our Wednesday night dungeion and dragons game. (yeah, I’m nerd.  I get it.)

I am furious, irrationally so, at my termination.  Not only did I lose my points and my chance at winning a surface (which in reality, who’s gonna fucking bot to win a surface.  Seriously, good try Microsoft.  But you’re late to the game) but I was accused of cheating.  I don’t cheat! I HATE cheating.  I don’t see the point and it destroys my image. 

Because of this whole debacle I made the decision to just go back to my iphone and to ditch my Microsoft stock.  I feel ridiculous now.  Fuck that company.