Dag said:

Please everybody involved, go private. Little has been added since the first few posts and it's getting boring. Besides, I'm sure as soon as this is a private discussion it dies silently as no honor has to be defended.

I agree. One point (and my addition) from 'Skill with People' by Les Giblin from the section '7 musts for successful criticism' - 1. Criticism should be made in absolute privacy. technical corrections on the list, correction re manners, attitude, etc etc off list

My observation is that on this list criticism of manners etc ALWAYS makes the problem worse, technical discussion gets left behind in favour of a flame war, the exact opposite of the stated intention of the criticism. Dag's comments sums up why nicely. Figure it out already!

For those of you who deal regularly with customers, particularly if you're self employed or paid by contract, I highly recommend getting this booklet. It takes about 15 minutes to read, so can be done regularly before talking to a new client, going for job interview etc. I have no doubt it can cause a sharp increase in income for many people. ISBN 187 682 5278

Since this is already offtopic, if anyone really needs to reply, off list is probably best.

regards Rohan