In a message dated 1/6/01 3:47:56 AM, reid@DCCNET.COM writes:

<< I definitely won't use UPS because they will arrive broken at
least 95% of the time- no matter how well I wrap them >>

Trevor,

Either this is hyperbole or else you are really missing something.  Without
exaggeration, over the past 20 years I have received certainly more than a
thousand packages via mail order.  They have been all manner of things and
the bulk of them have arrived by way of UPS.  Some of the items, once again
without exaggeration, were precision instruments insured for $10K-$30K and
shipped via UPS.  In all that time, I am hard pressed to enumerate the
instances of shipping damage at the hands of UPS.  If I were to characterize
it, I would have to say damage occurred less than 0.1% of the time.

Also, I live in PA (aka, God's Country) and I have shipped some rather
ungainly items to members of this list as far away as Hawaii.  I imagined
what these items would have to endure en route and I took the necessary steps
to insure against any shipping damage.

So, don't kill the messenger because of the message . . . a problem
recognized is a problem solved . . . an ounce of prevention is worth a pound
of cure . . . or any other maxim that applies.

Rich