The Incredible Journey Of Lost Things
from the where-are-my-keys dept
As the average gadget load that the everyday person carries with them increases, the amount of data stored on these devices makes losing them more and more painful. While the gadget itself may be replaced, this crucial data is irreplacable; luckily, many lost items actually do find their way back to their owners. Airlines, hotels and cabs seem to be the most common places to lose things, and it's comforting to see that in these places the staff are directed to actively look for items left behind. It seems like most reunions happen by a few routes: looking in the last place you remember it, or checking the "Lost & Found". That said, most items still never make it back to their owners. There are a few new companies and services popping up to try and help the return of lost items. However, most of these tactics rely on some sort of registry and therefore depend on the kindness of strangers (and perhaps the blessing of St. Anthony, the patron saint of lost things) in order to reunite the lost objects with their owners. I sense an opportunity here. Google Lost & Found (BETA), anyone? Considering that Google has already helped a man find his own memory, it's not a huge stretch.
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
Reader Comments
Subscribe: RSS
View by: Time | Thread
No Subject Given
[ link to this | view in thread ]
No Subject Given
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Beware Continental Airlines L and F
Days later I get a call from a CA employee who found the device and managed to figure out it was me.
When I commented that CA's Lost and Found did a great job, the employee said, 'Oh no, we never submit these things to lost and found, that's a black hole. Nothing we turn in to them ever gets back to people. We finally just decided to track people down ourselves.' She said that that CA's L and F was a black market of goods, a moneymaker for those that worked in it.
I sent her a box of brownies. She was part of the plane's cleaning crew, and she'd done the right thing. She'd looked past the corporate-approved den of thieves and taken initiative, to the risk of her own job, to help the customer. I'll never forget it.
I vowed I'll never fly Continental again until it was run by people like her.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Lost & found
Elsewhere, Google announced that it was taking its search technology to a new level by introducing a new service that would enable users to find their car keys.
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Why use google...
... When you can use ebay? Seriously, I hear all the time about people getting their stuff back via ebay - so why would google duplicate that service?
:-)
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Last Place?
Didn't find what I was looking for, since that was already found, but I *DID* find some other items I had NOT been looking for! Amazing!
Moral? Don't always find things in the last place you look! Keep Looking!
Sorry, just couldn't resist.....
[ link to this | view in thread ]
Re: Beware Continental Airlines L and F
cathie
[ link to this | view in thread ]
CONTINENTAL AIRLINE LOST AND FOUND
[ link to this | view in thread ]