Dear silicon.com... Tax crash, mobile driving, eBay feedback, Vista woes…

What's got silicon.com readers reaching for their keyboards this week? Reader Comments of the Week showcases how our users are responding to the latest tech news and views on the site...

Tax crashing out
Self-assessment tax site crashes out on deadline day

Did they not think to increase their capacity/resources available for this time of the year! This is what betting websites etc. do when it comes to major events as you have to expect a surge!
-- Richard Davies, North Yorkshire

Tax payers have had ten months to complete their self assessments. I did mine in good time and with no problems. However inadequate the HMRC site might be, surely it's asking for trouble if you delay making your return until the last possible date? Check in late at an airport and you might miss your flight; arrive late at the cinema and the seats might be sold out.
-- Anonymous, Oxfordshire

Editor's choice

silicon.com editor Steve Ranger flags up his picks on the site this week...

♦ The Naked CIO: Time to wage war on home users

♦ Minority Report: MacBook Air - slim chance of success?

♦ Peter Cochrane's Video Blog: Wi-fi field tests

♦ Microsoft changes M&A strategy with Yahoo! bid

♦ Photos: Accenture gets touchy feely with its interactive wall

I too did my return a little while ago, but I left it until the last day to pay the bill - i.e. to be able to pay it out of this month's pay packet rather than the overdraft. As far as I'm concerned, I'm entitled to keep hold of my money for as long as the rules allow, and I see no reason to pay a penny before it's due.
-- Simon, Cumbria

I agree with the previous Mr Anonymous, just do it earlier. You don't wait until your car runs dry of petrol to pay your fuel tax do you (sorry fill up with petrol).

Come on be sensible, do your tax return earlier, you have had plenty of time already.
-- Anonymous, UK

To those who say 'do your tax return early' let me say that filing on the last day has - in the past saved me £11,000 in one year. Had I filed early I would not have been able to take advantage of a court ruling that came into force on the 12 December one year. All of the 'anal' folk who did their returns early were unable to claim significant amounts of money from trading share options.

Always file on the last day, not because you are lazy but because sometimes there can be significant advantages.
-- Roger Huffadine, Worcester

Dangerous driving
Motorists told: Switch off mobiles when switching on ignition

I find all this talk and statistics regarding mobile phones while driving getting boring and annoying. There are far greater distractions which have not been banned.

How about banning smoking while driving, how about banning passengers from talking to drivers?
-- Anonymous, UK

I have to work for the tax money the government wrestles off me. This is a disgraceful misuse of funds.

How about a similar campaign:

"Burglars, please stop stealing"
Or
"Please stop spamming, its bad!"
-- MusicFan, UK

Why can't motor manufacturers install a device inside the car or cab of a lorry, to prevent a signal from a mobile being received or sent? I am sure that if this can be done in some supermarkets and other buildings, it is not impossible for a device to be installed.
-- Norman Offield, Southend

Mr Offield - nice idea but how are you going to get one installed in every vehicle currently on the road, then how are you going to prevent the owners of those vehicles from disabling the jammers and finally who will pay for the device and its installation?
-- Karen Challinor, UK

Just play nice
eBay bans bad feedback as customers scared off by nasties

I totally agree with eBay's stance on sellers negative feedback. I posted negative feedback after a seller failed to deliver within her preset timelines which meant that I had to purchase the same item elsewhere for my niece. The seller then went completely overboard and posted negative feedback on me! It put me off using eBay for more than a year and I am still wary of using it.
-- Anonymous, Edinburgh

Bad move eBay! I thought that everyone knew the rules. If you have a bad experience then don't leave feedback. If the merchant has already left positive feedback and you have a really bad experience then feel free to leave negative feedback. In general always leave positive feedback if your experience ranged from OK to marvellous. Why would eBay change the culture of a decade?
-- Roger Huffadine, Worcester

While this resolves the issue of tit for tat feedback by sellers, it does not solve the problem of skewed feedback ratings, in fact it makes it worse as it skews the whole feedback system against the seller.
-- Guy Reynolds, Letchworth

Vista woes
Vista-XP downgrade software launched

The reality is that a lot of existing software people have will not run on Vista. So people want a solution for their existing software to work as well as any new stuff, i.e. Vista itself is a "downgrade" - not the other way round. Most of us buy software so our machines will run faster, more reliably and as a practical benefit to us. That does not seem to be vista for most users.
-- Richard Davies, North Yorkshire

Microsoft seems intent on aggravating its customer base over this XP/Vista issue. We use both, but see no real gain from Vista. Maybe it is time for us to properly trial Desktop Linux and SaaS solutions. Certainly the Google office type of internet-based tools are looking promising. They might even save on the support costs associated with the MS Products.
-- Charles Smith, London

Please note, comments may be edited for clarity, grammar, spelling, punctuation and style. The views expressed are not necessarily the views of silicon.com. You can write to silicon.com by posting a Reader Comment below, or emailing editorial@silicon.com.