> What you're saying is that you're willing to trade any sense of assured quality for the convenience of not having to do anything other than do the simplest of processes.

I think you missed my parent comment where I said I devoutly check manufacturer's websites for alternative prices with almost every Amazon purchase I make.

And no, I'm not trading "any sense of assured quality" away. I've had more troubles with random 3rd-party vendors than I have with Amazon. I think people are greatly exaggerating the fault rate from Amazon simply because they order so many packages from Amazon. When it comes to things like lost or stolen shipments, I'd much rather deal with Amazon's liberal policies than go to battle with a random web store.