So last week I was in vacation in Seaside Oregon with family. I found my iPhone to be invaluable. I used it to look up information on the web, find the nearest restaurant and directions. The phone did great. Plenty of bars, and Edge was not too bad.
Until I needed the phone number for The Resort at Seaside. I was able to locate it on iPhone Google Maps application no problem. The phone number that Google shows for The Resort at Seaside turns out to be one of the rooms, that was a fun conversation…
“hello.”
“Is this the Seaside Resort?”
“Yes..”
“Can you connect me with room 6699 please?”
“what? we are just one room here…”
You can image how it went from there. So after figuring out that number was no good. I decided to try AT&T’s 411 service for the first time. I asked for the “Seaside Resort by Wydham or Trend West” notice that I called it the “Seaside Resort” instead of “The Resort at Seaside”.
The 411 operator says here is your number. I get a recording saying that the info will be sent as a text message to my phone and then computer voice reads the number off and connects me.
I get connected to the Seashore Resort Motel. OK close enough. I understand the complexity of this problem. So I dial 411 again. Tell the operator that my last call was the wrong number. He does some digging, and says — here it is, and hands me off to the robotic voice again. This time it rings and rings, no answer and I hang up. I have now received two SMS messages. The first one with Seashore Resort Motel. Followed by the second attempt – which turned out to be the “Seaside Moose Lodge #768” WTF? How could you even confuse the phrase Seaside Resort by Trendwest or Wyndham with the Seaside Moose Lodge #768?
So I call 411 back again. Explain what I am trying to find, this guy spend a little more time and says he can not find anything. At that point I hung up, giving up on 411 and did some searching on the web with the iPhone, found a non-flash web site for the Resort, taped the number with my finger and was connected to the front desk. I’ll know better next time.
So bottom line, Love the iPhone, hate AT&T.
