# Fucking Radio Shack **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [December 9, 2006, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482 "2006-12-09T17:26:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2006, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/21 "2006-12-09T22:30:09Z")
Ooo, count me in. Radio Shack has the worst goddamn customer service I have ever seen. If they’re not following you around like damn crotch-sniffing dogs they’re being hoity-toity and ignoring you or scorning your choice of battery. Sometimes they are the only people around who sell a given thing - unusual batteries is a good example - and I groan every time we HAVE to go there. Fucking Radio Shack. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2006, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/22 "2006-12-09T22:31:22Z")
Cables & connectors! That’s what they have lots of. ---
**Author:** ![Common\_Tater](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/common_tater/32/13846_2.png) [@Common\_Tater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Common_Tater)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2006, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/23 "2006-12-09T23:01:09Z")
Radio Shack used to be geared towards the nerdy electronics hobbyist, guys like me would drool over 150-in-1 kits, all sorts of kits, capacitors and resistors and the like. The Archer house brand actually had some good stuff, if a bit weak in the styling department “Rich simulated wood grain panel”. Their focus today is completely different, because kit electronics and the like is practically comatose, so they had to shift gears - apparently cell-phones. If you want to have some fun with the staff, bring in a couple of Radio Shack’s “Lifetime Guarantee” vacuum tubes, (it’s printed right on the tube) and ask for warranty/replacement. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2006, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/24 "2006-12-09T23:22:10Z")
[QUOTE=pkbites] And to make all this worse, I fucking HATE Chuck E Cheese’s. [/QUOTE] Never been there. Never will. From the sign of the rat and the name, I imagine dozens of young children spewing chunks of cheese all over…everything. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Fritz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c57346/32.png) [@Fritz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fritz)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2006, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/25 "2006-12-09T23:31:51Z")
[QUOTE=Rico] Radio Shack. You’ve got questions, we’ve got cell phones. [/QUOTE] Radio Shack. You’ve got questions, we’ve got answers: “No, we don’t have that.” ---
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2006, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/26 "2006-12-09T23:51:18Z")
[QUOTE=pkbites] I don’t know if they’re still doing that. The guy didn’t ask me for nmae/phone#, and I paid cash. [/QUOTE] I’m certain they stopped. I used to get _Christmas_ cards from the sales lady at the Hartford store. I, for one, welcome our leg fucking overlords. 'Cause I NEVER go to an RS to browse, it’s only when something specific is needed and I appreciate the quick visits. Just two days ago I had to run into the Radio Shack in Brown Deer and I was delighted that the salesperson ran up to me when I walked in the door because I needed ONE thing and I needed it NOW. I was out of there in four minutes. (we had a presentation at work and the Big Chief wasn’t going to have an operational micorphone without said part) ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2006, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/27 "2006-12-09T23:51:22Z")
I worked for Radio Shack about 25 years ago. It was a great place then. Walls and walls of electronics parts, and they hired staff that actually knew what they were talking about. I was studying electrical engineering at the time, and worked there part time. I can remember standing at the counter with a customer and drawing schematic diagrams for circuits they needed. Or answering questions about the differences between TTL logic and CMOS. We had TRS-80 computers, and we let customers come in and program them. We also ran a ham radio rig, and the manager and I were members of a homebrew computer club. We constantly had other members coming in to buy stuff. We had a coffee machine, and we’d serve coffee and stand around and chat about electronics. Now, Radio Shack is just another boutique store. The electronics parts are reduced to half a wall, the staff knows nothing about anything, and the place us just packed with kitchen gadgets, clocks, cell phones, and toys. You can still find cool stuff there from time to time, so I occasionally drop in. But I really miss the old Radio Shack. ---
**Author:** ![Uncommon\_Sense](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Uncommon\_Sense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uncommon_Sense)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2006, 11:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/28 "2006-12-09T23:58:43Z")
A micorphone is similar to a microphone only spelled differently. And I hate the Chuck too. Our family got [what we suspected was food poisoning](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=370699&highlight=food+poisoning) after eating there. We now collectively frown upon that place. ---
**Author:** ![Uvula\_Donor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/e19adc/32.png) [@Uvula\_Donor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Uvula_Donor)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2006, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/29 "2006-12-10T00:07:26Z")
[QUOTE=pkbites] And to make all this worse, I fucking \*\*:mad:HATE:mad: \*\* Chuck E Cheese’s. [/QUOTE] I only go there for the band. They fuckin’ _rock._ ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2006, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/30 "2006-12-10T00:46:59Z")
Haven’t been to RadShack much lately, but was going to them fairly often a few years back, when I was doing stuff like connecting a big attic antenna to the house cable wiring, and running wires through the walls to have an in-house ethernet network. (Connecting home computers by wires? How old-fashioned! :D) If I had a problem with the service, it was generally in the direction of, “Hey, if you didn’t have to type in your customers’ names and addresses, maybe you’d have more time to help out the next customer.” But they were always willing to let me browse when I wanted to browse, and were usually helpful when I needed help. ---
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2006, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/31 "2006-12-10T01:11:35Z")
[QUOTE=pkbites] Radio Shack has all the cables and connectors I need and decent prices. [/QUOTE] Decent prices? Where’s that Radio Shack located? Last time I was there, they were selling $3.50 blue LEDs that weren’t even half as bright as the ones I get for 20 cents apiece online. As far as the salespeople go, the stores I visit must be anomalies. I usually just say “I know what I want” and they leave me alone. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2006, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/32 "2006-12-10T01:19:40Z")
[QUOTE=RTFirefly] running wires through the walls to have an in-house ethernet network. [/QUOTE] I had to connect ethernet between two buildings on a Sunday. Bought some twister pair from Radio Shack. One end of the roll was twisted, one wasn’t. To be fair, it wasn’t labeled Cat 5. ---
**Author:** ![Common\_Tater](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/common_tater/32/13846_2.png) [@Common\_Tater](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Common_Tater)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2006, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/33 "2006-12-10T01:19:40Z")
Thre really annoying thing about retail places - the “how are we doing today can I help you with anything” is just boilerplate, and everyone knows it. In some establishments, it’s also a kind of check against shoplifting. When one actually _needs_ help, there is nobody around. I tend to only go shopping when I actually need a specific item or items, I know what I want, and if they would quit moving everything around, I could probably find it without help, which again, mysteriously disappears. Maybe the employees can read facial expressions well enough to know when to take a break. On the other hand, I would be out of a job before noon if I had to put up with some of the morons walking around unsupervised. It’s also de rigeur to pump a knowledgeable, helpful employee for all the skinny on a given item for a half hour or so, and then buy it somewhere else cheaper. Those people should be banished to a desert island with only pepto-bismol and saltine crackers for subsistance. ---
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2006, 1:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/34 "2006-12-10T01:31:40Z")
[QUOTE=carnivorousplant] Bought some twister pair from Radio Shack. One end of the roll was twisted, one wasn’t. To be fair, it wasn’t labeled Cat 5. [/QUOTE] Eh? Twisted pair wiring is called that because the wires contained within the outer jacket are tightly twisted together to reduce interference. I think what you’re trying to say is that you attempted to buy a regular, straight-through Cat 5 cable, but got a crossover instead. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2006, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/35 "2006-12-10T01:45:25Z")
[QUOTE=carnivorousplant] Never been there. Never will. From the sign of the rat and the name, I imagine dozens of young children spewing chunks of cheese all over…everything. 🙂 [/QUOTE] Oh, it sucks the snot out of a dead mans nose. Lousy food (though somewhat better than it was years ago.) **SCREAMING** , running, yelling, rude, awful tempered children. Even the otherwise best behaved kid becomes a poster child for free abortions when he get’s into C.E.C.. This “mob rules” mentality takes over every kid in the place. The roar of noise becomes a hum in your ear drums and you can’t even think. Your head starts to pound, vision blurs. Like having a god damn stroke. But when you have as many nieces & nephews as I you end up there every so often. All 3 of my kids are adults now, and only 1 ever asked for a Chuckie party, when he was 6. He got the party, but I threw him out of the house on the very day he turned 18! God forgives, I don’t! 😛 ---
**Author:** ![monica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a183cd/32.png) [@monica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/monica)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2006, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/36 "2006-12-10T01:48:03Z")
I had a similar problem in Victoria’s Secret once. The sales people practically pounced. There were about a million of them, and all of them wanted to know if I needed help, one almost immediately after the other. I didn’t end up buying anything. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2006, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/37 "2006-12-10T02:03:46Z")
[QUOTE=neutron star] Eh? Twisted pair wiring is called that because the wires contained within the outer jacket are tightly twisted together to reduce interference. [/QUOTE] Right, the pairs were twisted together at the beginning of the roll, but not at the end. ---
**Author:** ![neutron\_star](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/51bf81/32.png) [@neutron\_star](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neutron_star)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2006, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/38 "2006-12-10T02:11:23Z")
Huh. Now that’s just _weird._ Must have been a manufacturing defect or something. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2006, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/39 "2006-12-10T03:55:58Z")
[QUOTE=carnivorousplant] Right, the pairs were twisted together at the beginning of the roll, but not at the end. [/QUOTE] Did your ethernet even work? How many pairs were in the cable you bought? ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 2006, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482/40 "2006-12-10T04:33:37Z")
[QUOTE=Sam Stone] Did your ethernet even work? How many pairs were in the cable you bought? [/QUOTE] Yeah, it worked fine. Novell 3.1 and Windows 98 between two portable buldings ten feet apart. Doom II, internet sharing and some files on the Novell server. Four pairs. It was labeled “twisted pair” but I think it was intended as phone wire. Maybe it was failed Cat 5 and therefore cheap. All I could find available on a Sunday. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/fucking-radio-shack/383482.md?page=3)