When I started using their service several years ago, Dotster was a cool little company with low prices and good service. I manage a dozen domain names with them. Things are no longer peachy. This week I registered a new domain. I spent 15 minuites looking at this:

Please be patient, we are processing your order.

The idea behind these little notices that flash things at you is "Don't worry, we're still processing your order." Except at Dotster. The "Processing Order" sign is an animated gif image. It will keep moving along long after Dotster has crashed: as it appears to have done, for I haven't been taken to the invoice screen.

This is faux-service. It's deceptive. It's poor practice. It's time for me to move on.

Later: Turns out this is what you get if your order is not being processed! After several attempts, I gave Dotster a different credit card number and got what I wanted immediately. I think the "Please be patient..." message is just there to piss people off. It succeeds in that. I would have preferred a message that said "Try another credit card."