Life in Web 2.0: just don't ask for reliability

I'd imagined that the most reliable service in the Web 2.0 world would be Google. This morning I tried to do some work with Google's industrial application deployment and domain registration service, mediated by their premier eCommerce solution (Google Checkout).

Of course, this is what I got:

Google Apps - Server error
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Server error
We are unable to process your request at this time, please try again later.

Much has been made of the millennial generation's lack of concern about privacy. I think another remarkable generational difference is an expectation of unreliability, and a probabilistic strategy for managing unreliable systems.

Geezers like me, who remember when most performance was highly predictable, have more trouble with things that don't work -- especially when we're short of time.

Update: Later the process goes one step further along ...

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