I Shall Now Rant About an Electronic Superstore

Today we brought our reasonably new camera back to Paramount Purchase to see if they could "fix" (i.e. exchange for another) it. It has the ability to record video and recently the ability has been waning. The video plays perfectly on the camera but the video playback on the computer is about triple speed, no sound, pixilated, with great square blobs of green throughout. I downloaded the video onto 3 different computers (yes, we have 3 computers for the two of us), used different methods of file transfer, removed the memory card and recorded directly onto the camera hard drive, blah, blah, blah. I am not so electronically challenged that I don't know the basic tests the "professional" will do.

We pack up the camera and trot on down to Paramount Purchase - extended warranty in hand. To the service desk we stroll. The girl at the desk takes one glance at our problem and refers us to the Nerd Posse. We go over the issue with Nerd Posse Employee. He stares blankly at us and mumbles something about needing to ask if he needs to "send it in". He toots off to ask Nerd Posse Member Two in the back room. He strolls back and asks, "So you say the playback is fine on the camera but not fine on the computer?"
"Yes."
"You need to bring the computer in."
"We have tried it on three different computers and it does the same thing."
"It is a data transfer problem not a problem with the camera."
"We have transfered the videos off the camera using multiple modes of transfer and it does the same thing." (i.e. not using the camera at all, and pulling the file right off the disk using a card reader; using the dock as a drive rather than a transfer port, etc, etc)
"You'll have to bring the computer in."
"We have the dock. Why can't you plug it into one of the 10 computers I can see right there behind you and test it out right now?"
"I can't, we don't have your software."
"But we just told you that we have moved the files directly off the camera without using the software to make sure the software wasn't the problem."
"You need to bring your computer in."
"So, you are telling me we have to go home, pack up one of the three computers we have tested it on, bring said computer into the store so you can try what we already have tried."
"Yeah."
"Oooh-kaaay."

We calmly walk out of the store before I start shouting about how disgusted I am. I haven't used the video on the camera since May because we haven't had time to take it in to the store. We are going to the zoo this weekend and I wanted to have the option of taking video.

So, we storm home - stopping at Culver's to pick up some custard to sooth our nerves. I release the hounds and follow them out to take a video. Craig takes the video off the camera and watches it. Tech junky that I am, I have about 4 different video players on the main computer. It plays poorly on Windows Media Player, but it plays fine on another program I bought to convert video from my cell phone.

The big question is: Will our videos that I take at the zoo play fine or will they all be corrupt? We shall see. Needless to say, I am still disgusted by the Nerd Posse and if my videos from the zoo are ruined, I will stomp my way back with my camera and my laptop and heads will roll.