CA's 'Hand-crafted' Computing

We received an e-mail from the Columbia Association this week updating us on the progress of the organization's new Computer Service System, set to launch in mid-2010.

As a brief overview, CSS is a top-of-the-line, hand-crafted computer system set to replace CA’s current software, which team members have used for over 20 years to manage day-to-day customer service...

...The following list details the benefits you can look forward to with the implementation of CSS in the coming year.

* The new CSS web portal is easy to use, convenient and allows for efficient communications between CA team members and customers
* Photos can be taken at CA fitness facilities and the Membership Service Center
* Increased customer satisfaction through the practicality and functionality of the e commerce web portal:
o You can load money onto your membership cards online or at MSC to buy concessions, tickets and make other purchases at CA facilities
o You can book tennis and racquetball reservations online
o You can signup online for Package Plan Plus and Group Fitness classes
o You can schedule tee times online
o You will have a more efficient and faster check-in when arriving for classes, tee times, etc.
* Members’ photographs will be stored in the new system, so if you forget your membership card, a front desk associate can access it via the check-in screen at CA facilities. This will also lessen the possibility of someone using your membership card fraudulently.

This all sounds very cool. There was just one problem with the e-mail. It thanked us for having "actively taken steps to upgrade" our membership cards so they work with the new system. Apparently, this has something to do with getting our photo taken -- which, umm, we haven't done for many, many years (when one particular member of the Talk team still had all his hair!).

Unless there's someone out there impersonating Team Talk, we're guessing this is what CA means when it says the CSS is still in its testing phase.