Don,

I can find at least three vendors for each of those items
within 3 miles of the house

My closest store (for anything) is at least 10 miles away. The "mall" is
about 15 miles away.

Our malls don't really carry anything but clothing anymore. I used to
visit the mall to look for books, cooking supplies, tools, and unique
foods. Now it's just a hangout for teenagers. Sears is about the only
thing left in the mall I even bother for, when I need hand tools or
tires.

For hardware stuff, ACE beats the big boxes hands down. I've bought
all sorts of bronze fittings "off the shelf" that you would probably
expect to buy on-line. Even the plumbing stores can't compete (esp
on price).

We have a couple of local hardware stores like that. They have every nut
and bolt you could imagine. Much better selection than the home centers.

Still, there are plenty of things they don't carry, like a Grundfos
stainless submersible well pump, 2 inch stainless pipe fittings, hand
planes, bandsaws, etc.

My last purchase from Amazon (an add-on to a book order SWMBO had
placed) was for a "down angle" USB A M-F cable. They shipped an *up*
angle part, instead. Had I been able to hold it in my hands before
purchasing, I would have told the "clerk": "No, this is the wrong
item. Go back and find the one that's the opposite of this!"

Yes, there are times it is nicer to hold an object in your hand and check
it out before buying it. You can't really judge how a hammer or saw
"feels" in your hand, regardless of the specs listed online.

I recently bought a monitor online based on specifications and good
reviews. When it arrived and I hooked it up I thought it was horrible,
like staring into a headlight even when fully dimmed. So I had to return
that and order a different monitor (none of the local department or
computer stores carry anything but the cheapest TN based monitors).

I had the same problem with the monitor stand. It looked great online and
was well built, but when I attached it to my monitor the feet stuck out
six inches in front of the monitor. I returned that and ordered a monitor
arm instead. That too was a bit of a disappointment, as it didn't fold up
the way the pictures made it look. I ended up modifying that one to make
it work the way I wanted.

Still, those situations are more the exception than the rule. I very
rarely need to return anything I purchase online.

I didn't even bother trying to get the problem "fixed" through Amazon.

I bought my monitor arm through a third-party seller on NewEgg. The
return shipping cost was almost as much as I paid for the arm in the
first place. No way I was going to pay to ship it back.

I looked at Digikey yesterday

Wow, I haven't used Digikey in over 30 years. I didn't know they were
still around.

Anthony Watson
www.watsondiy.com
www.mountainsoftware.com