Every so often I get an email to take a survey about products coming on the market, like a focus group. The other day there was one, and I can't remember what they called it, but it was a service to help people with electronic devices get them set up or troubleshoot problems.

The service would charge $20 a month, and for each instance of helping the customer there would be a fee of $49 - $89.

One of the questions was: "How would you describe this service to a friend?"

A: I'd tell them it's a rip-off to pay $20 a month and then an additional service fee.

Another question was: "If this service didn't exist, how would you get assistance setting up or troubleshooting electronic device problems?"

A: If I couldn't find the answer by Google or on YouTube, I'd ask a question on my local community Facebook page about whether anyone has had a similar issue. Or call in a 30-something or younger person to do it because they just know these things.

This question really irritated me: "How would you feel about the technicians from this service calling you proactively to help with your devices."

A: It would irritate the hell out of me, especially if they were going to charge me $49 to $89 for that phone call.

The last question was: "If you had a magic wand, what would you like to see this service be like?"

A: I'd like for the people who thought up this 'service' to find a different way to make money.

Here's a photo I saved from Facebook the other day. My mother used to make these baskets from greeting cards when I was a kid. I'd forgotten about them, can't decide if I should try to make one of my own, or just put this photo in my "Catalog of Things," collection of digital images. If I have a good enough photo, I don't usually feel a need to have the 'thing.'