UW: To b!tch them out by e-mail or not - that is the question

[Tristy]

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This just pi$$ed me off. I think that the UW people are taking us for granted 😡

Not only they make the program java cr@p so that your computer is "unusable" while you're doing questions. I mean, what if I want to look at the freaking time in the computer because I don't have a watch nearby without having to stop the stupid block of q's?

They don't let you print anything from the explanations that would be helpful for later review because of "copyright" issues (sp?) Bo-f*ng-hoo. Like there aren't pirated copies of their qbank floating in the internet!

Give me a f*ing break! So I have to dig through n # of tests to find such and such graph that explained whatever cr@p better than my review books, so they make me waste my time! And it's not like I have lots of time to spare because of their stupid paranoia. It's stupid!

I know, I could have chosen another qbank if I didn't agree to their TOS, BUT, I shelled out the money to BUY the service and they treat me like a potential criminal!

My pi$$y fit is because while I was doing questions, I made an annotation and then I copied-paste IN THE ANNOTATION, and a message popped up telling me not to copy-paste! WTF!!!! I just wanted to rearrange my notes without having to write my entire thing again! Un-f*ng-believable 😡

With Kaplan I can print whatever I want, whenever I want, and I can have full access to other programs in my PC. Jeezzz.

I just want to send them an e-mail and b!tch them out for being so idiotically paranoid. Like I said before, it's not like there aren't pirated copies of UW floating around! I chose to pay for the stupid thing and I can't use it in a more efficient manner.

Oh, yes, I almost forgot. When highlighting you can't highlight more than 20 times in a same question. WTF????

I regret renewing my subscription with them. Arghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Ridiculous.

Should I e-mail them and tell them what I think?

 

[45408]

Go ahead. They're just gonna delete it.

 

[Anaphylactic]

"The lady doth protest too much, methinks".

 

[Tristy]

"The lady doth protest too much, methinks".

😛 Just a bit stressed out and frustrated 😛

 

[Tristy]

Go ahead. They're just gonna delete it.

True, I'm probably not the first nor will be the last one to complain about it 🙄

 

[DOCTORSAIB]

Please calm down.

Have a drink, get laid, or both.

 

[Blesbok]

Why don't you bitch about it?

Oh...wait...

 

[anon-y-mouse]

Not only they make the program java cr@p so that your computer is "unusable" while you're doing questions. I mean, what if I want to look at the freaking time in the computer because I don't have a watch nearby without having to stop the stupid block of q's?

It is *exactly* like the real thing, so there is no point to making it easily multi-taskable. Plus, it's great for most of us who are naturally distracted anyway. You are not allowed a watch in the real exam room, and the only 'timer' you get is how much time you have left in the block, and how much time you have left in the day. The java software is their strength in my opinion. However, what really pissed me off was the self-assessment software which threatened to lock you out if you touched your keyboard more than 3 times (I was used to answering with my keyboard rather than the mouse).

I agree about the printing thing... I mean, if they let you print 20 things max, that would be a good compromise maybe... I'm not sure. I would have wanted a printed copy of some of their excellent biochem pathways, that thyroid drug diagram, or the dyslipidemia drug chart... but to play devil's advocate, they have to protect their intellectual copyright too!

I am actually more interested in who this elusive/secretive "team of 5 doctors" is that owns uworld. No data available on this at all!

 

[nowai]

You agreed to their TOS when you signed up.

You agreed to their TOS when you signed up.

and just in case you don't get it: You agreed to their TOS when you signed up.

If you really hate it that much, you shouldn't have bought it.

 

[Tristy]

You're right in your last sentence: I shouldn't have bought it.

I just want to vent, let me do that ok? I have too much cr@p going on in my life on top of this stupid test prep, and having to deal with UW and their "TOS" . Just shoot me already 🙁

Back to my lovely UW....

 

[Tiger26]

You know it is their question bank even though you paid to use it. Just annotate stuff you think is important into FA or something--you'll probably get more out of this anyway. But seriously, just calm down a little bit, since if you're doing kaplan and UW you're probably going to do just fine on the real thing🙂

 

[doctorFred]

I agree about the printing thing... I mean, if they let you print 20 things max, that I be a good compromise maybe... I'm not sure. I would have wanted a printed copy of some of their excellent biochem pathways, that thyroid drug diagram, or the dyslipidemia drug chart... but to play devil's advocate, they have to protect their intellectual copyright too!

I am actually more interested in who this elusive/secretive "team of 5 doctors" is that owns uworld. No data available on this at all!

their webmaster works at 1122 kenilworth drive in Towson, Maryland.

 

[Anaphylactic]

You're right in your last sentence: I shouldn't have bought it.

I just want to vent, let me do that ok? I have too much cr@p going on in my life on top of this stupid test prep, and having to deal with UW and their "TOS" . Just shoot me already 🙁

Back to my lovely UW....

Gentlemen: Let the women vent. It's not like we are not enjoying this thread anyway.

That said, I think you should send that email to UW, Tristy. It'll be interesting to see their response, if any. If they don't reply, maybe you can start b!tching about their customer service. Yeah, I hate that interface too. Lucky for me though, I was able to download a version of compiled UW questions so I ain't complaining.

 

[Blesbok]

You're right in your last sentence: I shouldn't have bought it.

I just want to vent, let me do that ok? I have too much cr@p going on in my life on top of this stupid test prep, and having to deal with UW and their "TOS" . Just shoot me already 🙁

Back to my lovely UW....

You aren't going to get sympathy from a bunch of people that are going through the same crap. If you didn't want to do it, you should have stayed out of medicine. It isn't like preparing for step 1 is anything new.

 

[Blesbok]

It is *exactly* like the real thing, so there is no point to making it easily multi-taskable. Plus, it's great for most of us who are naturally distracted anyway. You are not allowed a watch in the real exam room, and the only 'timer' you get is how much time you have left in the block, and how much time you have left in the day. The java software is their strength in my opinion. However, what really pissed me off was the self-assessment software which threatened to lock you out if you touched your keyboard more than 3 times (I was used to answering with my keyboard rather than the mouse).

I agree about the printing thing... I mean, if they let you print 20 things max, that would be a good compromise maybe... I'm not sure. I would have wanted a printed copy of some of their excellent biochem pathways, that thyroid drug diagram, or the dyslipidemia drug chart... but to play devil's advocate, they have to protect their intellectual copyright too!

I am actually more interested in who this elusive/secretive "team of 5 doctors" is that owns uworld. No data available on this at all!

Digital cameras are a wonderful thing.

And having a laptop and a desktop or two laptops makes taking notes easier, if you happen to have them at your disposal.

 

[R_C_Hutchinson]

The really funny thing about all of this is that UWorld, with all of its problems, is still the best out there. Given the inherent business softness of the target customer, I would think there would be a ton of people doing a much better job at all of this from both the academic and business sides.

Methinks there's gold in them hills...

 

[Tristy]

You know it is their question bank even though you paid to use it. Just annotate stuff you think is important into FA or something--you'll probably get more out of this anyway. But seriously, just calm down a little bit, since if you're doing kaplan and UW you're probably going to do just fine on the real thing🙂

I know, I know 😳 I guess I was just having a bad day 😳 Well, actually I was having a crappy day/week 😉

I'm just having a hard time with my prep because I have to pretty much study in bed and I hate it, it's not efficient at all. So studying, and also reviewing the answers takes me forever because everything seems important (I feel I don't know anything or that I've forgotten so much)! Kaplan is another story, I don't worry much bc from what I've read here it has ridiculous little details that probably won't be on the test.

Soo, it takes me forever to read through all the answers, and then annotate in FA. Oh yes, and then trying to study whatever system/topic for the day...I either study all day, or spend 3/4 of the day doing q&a's...

I don't know how some of you guys do it (read books cover to cover, do 50-100q's each day AND read through all the explanations, etc), but hopefully I'll figure it out within the next few days, eek! Or I just need 40 hour days, hehe.

I'm taking NMBE 1 tomorrow so that's gonna be fun

Thanks for the reassurance Tiger 😍 I really hope I do well on this thing, well, don't we all? 😀

 

[Tristy]

You aren't going to get sympathy from a bunch of people that are going through the same crap. If you didn't want to do it, you should have stayed out of medicine. It isn't like preparing for step 1 is anything new.

Listen dude, I'm not looking for sympathy, OK? Don't you think I know we are all going through the same thing?

And BTW, it's not like I didn't know what I was getting into. I already did medical school back home 😛 4 years of it, ok? So bafanculo.

 

[Tristy]

Anaphylactic: I don't even know how to respond to you

But I will send them an e-mail and complain. Why not. It's free 😉

Anonymouse:

I understand the intellectual property issue, but IT'S already out there, that's my point. It's being done (the pirated UW), I've seen it, but I chose to purchase it. Your idea is good too, if only they let us print some of the graphs, that would make things easier (at least a little bit). Maybe the UW people could consider doing that.

DrSaib:

👍 for a drink! Thank god tomorrow's friday Birra time!

Blesbok: Boo to you again 😛

 

[peter90036]

thats with a B ! ...(i always thought its vafa'n culo (tho its whatever the ears tell me))

 

[Tristy]

thats with a B ! ...(i always thought its vafa'n culo (tho its whatever the ears tell me))

Ooops, my bad, you're actually right 😉 Maybe I should move this to the lounge and start a cursing contest (i should've also told him stronzo di m****)

 

[Man In White]

I found the measures UW took to prevent taking screenshots to be quite hilarious. Nevertheless, it's far from impossible to accomplish. I eventually found it more helpful to draw out their excellent diagrams by hand anyhow.

And don't regret purchasing it - it's the best out there and whatever frustration you feel now just realize that it is helping you to obtain the best possible score if not by the most convenient path. 😉

 

[It'sElectric]

I think Tristy should send them an email with her original post verbatim. I'd love to see their response to that one...

 

[highyield]

I know, I know 😳 I guess I was just having a bad day 😳 Well, actually I was having a crappy day/week 😉

I'm just having a hard time with my prep because I have to pretty much study in bed and I hate it, it's not efficient at all. So studying, and also reviewing the answers takes me forever because everything seems important (I feel I don't know anything or that I've forgotten so much)! Kaplan is another story, I don't worry much bc from what I've read here it has ridiculous little details that probably won't be on the test.

Soo, it takes me forever to read through all the answers, and then annotate in FA. Oh yes, and then trying to study whatever system/topic for the day...I either study all day, or spend 3/4 of the day doing q&a's...

I don't know how some of you guys do it (read books cover to cover, do 50-100q's each day AND read through all the explanations, etc), but hopefully I'll figure it out within the next few days, eek! Or I just need 40 hour days, hehe.

I'm taking NMBE 1 tomorrow so that's gonna be fun

Thanks for the reassurance Tiger 😍 I really hope I do well on this thing, well, don't we all? 😀

Hey tristy, I also found it difficult to dig through old tests and find some of their great explanations. So what i did was write down the test number (upper left hand corner of UW) and the question number in the corresponding section of FA. that way when you're studying you will have a reference test number to look the information up. also, by doing it this way you don't have to waste time writing things down.

just how i did it.

 

[SupremeSurgeon]

"The lady doth protest too much, methinks".

Just wanna say that I love the Shakespeare allusion.

 

[samnite]

Listen dude, I'm not looking for sympathy, OK? Don't you think I know we are all going through the same thing?

And BTW, it's not like I didn't know what I was getting into. I already did medical school back home 😛 4 years of it, ok? So bafanculo.

http://it.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20061007201117AAozKHc

 

[blake44]

i actually agree very strongly with the poster. it is VERY frustrating to essentially lose every other function of your entire computer while you are doing or reviewing your questions. it might affect some users more than others, but for me, i type up most of my notes and i used a software-based flashcard program all throughout the first two years. or... what if you wanted to google something as you were reviewing something you got wrong? you can't, which is unfortunate.

i DO understand that this is part of the TOS, and that we don't HAVE to use their product. however, that doesn't mean we can't be critical of that policy or be vocal in trying to get that changed. as medical students, a good majority of us would do whatever it takes to get the best preparation, and unfortunately USMLEWorld's got us in a bind. I just think there should be more of a concerted effort in asking them to change their policy. i really think it negatively affects a lot of our productivity, and I think it punishes the "good" customers who have no ulterior motives. i am 100% sure that those who are most interested in breaking the copyright laws of this software will find a workaround. also, the current setup favors certain users (eg. users with dual monitors or an additional laptop or computer can take advantage of having multiple windows open). I'm not 100% sure about this one, but I also believe the mac users do not have the same restrictions as PC users.

just because we have a choice in software and because we agreed to the TOS doesn't mean we have to defend their policies. we should be more vocal and let them know that we do not like this restriction.

 

[DrFraud]

i actually agree very strongly with the poster. it is VERY frustrating to essentially lose every other function of your entire computer while you are doing or reviewing your questions. it might affect some users more than others, but for me, i type up most of my notes and i used a software-based flashcard program all throughout the first two years. or... what if you wanted to google something as you were reviewing something you got wrong? you can't, which is unfortunate.

i DO understand that this is part of the TOS, and that we don't HAVE to use their product. however, that doesn't mean we can't be critical of that policy or be vocal in trying to get that changed. as medical students, a good majority of us would do whatever it takes to get the best preparation, and unfortunately USMLEWorld's got us in a bind. I just think there should be more of a concerted effort in asking them to change their policy. i really think it negatively affects a lot of our productivity, and I think it punishes the "good" customers who have no ulterior motives. i am 100% sure that those who are most interested in breaking the copyright laws of this software will find a workaround. also, the current setup favors certain users (eg. users with dual monitors or an additional laptop or computer can take advantage of having multiple windows open). I'm not 100% sure about this one, but I also believe the mac users do not have the same restrictions as PC users.

just because we have a choice in software and because we agreed to the TOS doesn't mean we have to defend their policies. we should be more vocal and let them know that we do not like this restriction.

I understand your thoughts about how UW disables a computer, as I can't stand this either, but I also understand why they do this. If UW allowed people to make screen shots or print copies of their q-bank, people would do this. As a result, students could more easily make copies, and circulate them. This in turn would lower the number of students purchasing subscriptions and renewals. It would be like a bank leaving the vault open.

Their question bank, in my opinion, is the best out there, and they made my life much easier when I took the step. I am likely going to use their step 2 q-bank as well. If you want to use this valuable tool, you have to accept this limitation as it protects their product, which they have a right to do, as students are the worst offenderes when it comes to violating copywrites, and allows UW to continue to make enhancements without concern that the money they invest will be lost due to students being students and copying something so they dont have to purchase either new subscriptions or renewals.

 

[anon-y-mouse]

what if you wanted to google something as you were reviewing something you got wrong? you can't, which is unfortunate.

Umm, yes you can. There's a little pause button at the top right corner of the screen. It's a bit annoying, but you can pause, then resume your test right where you were.

 

[gostudy]

Umm, yes you can. There's a little pause button at the top right corner of the screen. It's a bit annoying, but you can pause, then resume your test right where you were.

I second this. I don't know what the big deal is about. It literally takes 5 seconds to pause a test and open a browswer. And if a certain image or diagram is great in the explanation it's not like it will kill someone to just copy it by hand. It's probably beneificial to do so. And if someone really really likes the image/diagram well I guess they could just take a picture of the screen w/ a digital camera and then print it out.

 

[Hurricane95]

OMG people...stop whining.

Seriously, it takes too long to annotate questions and such? Deal with it! I worked on that Q bank for about 7 weeks total, going through every single of the 2034 questions and annotating most of them into first aid. That's why you have to dedicate time to study for this exam. You like a diagram and find it helpful, copy it by hand. That's what I did, it won't kill you to do the same.

The truth is (like another poster stated above) that students are pretty much the most rotten ones out there when it comes to copyright violations and doing anything possible to get materials en masse without paying. If UW allowed you to do anything with their materials, it would not take long for students to print the entire Q Bank or digitize it into a massive PDF and start mass distribution. Within a very short period of time customer enrollment in UW would drop tremendously and they lose business.

Either deal with their terms of service and use their awesome Q bank to help you prepare, or go get yourself the inferior kaplan. Their measures don't prevent EVERY method of infringement, but reduces it substantially. If anything look on the bright side - if you feel you have to work on a block to completion before accessing the rest of your computer, you are less likely to get distracted on the internet or fooling around during blocks. It could possibly make you more efficient working.

 

[DrFraud]

OMG people...stop whining.

Seriously, it takes too long to annotate questions and such? Deal with it! I worked on that Q bank for about 7 weeks total, going through every single of the 2034 questions and annotating most of them into first aid. That's why you have to dedicate time to study for this exam. You like a diagram and find it helpful, copy it by hand. That's what I did, it won't kill you to do the same.

The truth is (like another poster stated above) that students are pretty much the most rotten ones out there when it comes to copyright violations and doing anything possible to get materials en masse without paying. If UW allowed you to do anything with their materials, it would not take long for students to print the entire Q Bank or digitize it into a massive PDF and start mass distribution. Within a very short period of time customer enrollment in UW would drop tremendously and they lose business.

Either deal with their terms of service and use their awesome Q bank to help you prepare, or go get yourself the inferior kaplan. Their measures don't prevent EVERY method of infringement, but reduces it substantially. If anything look on the bright side - if you feel you have to work on a block to completion before accessing the rest of your computer, you are less likely to get distracted on the internet or fooling around during blocks. It could possibly make you more efficient working.

Yes these are all excellent points. And you gave a great avatar too. 😍

 

[Tristy]

Hey tristy, I also found it difficult to dig through old tests and find some of their great explanations. So what i did was write down the test number (upper left hand corner of UW) and the question number in the corresponding section of FA. that way when you're studying you will have a reference test number to look the information up. also, by doing it this way you don't have to waste time writing things down.

Hey Highyield,

Thanks for the suggestions! I was trying to do that but I ended up annotating and wasted a lot of time. I will follow your suggestion from now on though. Thanks!

To everybody that's also complaining: 👍

And I agree with the poster that suggested that we make a concerted effort to ask the UW people to consider (or at least think about it) giving us printing rights at least for the graphs (some are just excellent!).

Why don't we all send e-mails en mass for this request? Maybe this way it'll have more weight than just one person asking for it?

To those that tell me to shut up and stop whining/complaining:

I won't. Period. And I will say this again: there's already circulating pirated copies of UW!!!! And even the NBME exams let you print screen! So I think it's a bit ridiculous, that's all.

That's why some things don't get fixed or change in this country (with all due respect as a foreigner voicing my opinion), because you all conform and say "well, that's the way it is, so why bother".

Sorry but we (I'm speaking of South America) raise hell to try change things. Does it work all the time? No. But do some things change? Absolutely yes. Again, with all due respect because this is your country.

BTW, the venting was therapeutic and I know that I'm not alone with issue.

Ciao,

Tristy