This pilot fish supports a couple of clients that use satellite internet. Fish has used his own email address to set them both up with the small service provider, and it’s not a problem because the login is by client number.

But then that small service provider is bought by a bigger one, which gets bought by an even bigger one, which in fact is one of the tech behemoths. That company sends fish an email saying he has to re-register.

Actually, it sends two mails, one for each customer fish represents. Fish goes to the registration website and inputs all the information for Client 1. No problems, but he suspects the account login is now linked to his email address.

When he tries to register Client 2, he finds out that is indeed the case. He can’t do it because the username is already taken. But he can set up a new email account pretty quickly and associate it with Client 2.

That would have been the end of the story, except that Client 2 decides this is a good time to ask fish to change its price plan for the satellite internet. And when fish does that, the tech behemoth decides that the thing to do is to create a new client. That’s when fish gets a third email from the tech behemoth. No way around it; he has to set up a third email address.

Sharky has one email address that you can use to send me your true tales of IT life: sharky@computerworld.com. You can also subscribe to the Daily Shark Newsletter.