Today I also went to eBay, to do a "usability study." They had me sign a non-disclosure agreement, which means I don't get to talk about the secret wonders or horrors they're about to unleash on their customers, but they gave me free Coke and I got to see one of those fabled one-way mirrors they use to spy on police suspects and eBay usability study people.

eBay is high tech. When I did a focus group for the Rosicrucians ten years ago, we got to sit around a council table and make merciless fun of their ads. The ad agency guy was terribly embarrased, but the head Rosicrucian was pleased to find out which ads were terminally lame. The lamest was one that said, "Is there something missing in your life?" with this woman in a dingy cubicle staring at an ADM3A computer terminal. We answered, "Yeah, a new computer." But the Rosicrucians gave us all $40 cash.

eBay gave me a $50 gift certificate, which I will probably use for books.