MOTM

I much prefer USPS, it is a lot cheaper, and I have never had any problems with it. I don't need my gear to arrive the next day, I just want a cheap reliable service, which is what I get using USPS from the USA to Australia.

USPS does provide a little more detail than what Paul describes, as it tracks it into and out of customs as well...
Track & Confirm 
Shipment Details
Your item cleared customs in AUSTRALIA at 12:50 pm on February 21, 2005. Information, if available, is updated every evening. Please check again later. 
Here is what happened earlier: 
ARRIVED ABROAD, AUSTRALIA, February 21, 2005, 10:25 am 
INTO FOREIGN CUSTOMS, AUSTRALIA, February 21, 2005, 10:25 am 
INTERNATIONAL DISPATCH, LOS ANGELES AMC, February 18, 2005, 1:52 pm 
ACCEPTANCE, February 17, 2005, 4:57 pm, EL SEGUNDO, CA 90245 

Simon
Canberra
AUSTRALIA

-----Original Message-----
From: Paul Schreiber [mailto:synth1@airmail.net]
Sent: Monday, 21 February 2005 5:13 PM
To: MOTM litserv
Subject: [motm] More on foreign shipping

c) there is only *1* way to "track", and I use that term loosly, USPS packages. 
That is a service called either 'Express Mail' (delivery in USA) or 'EMS Global 
Mail' (foreign). The reason I say "loosly" is that the package is NOT tracked 
station-to-station in great detail like say Fed-Ex. Rather, all you get is 
really 3 possibilities:

the package was mailed
the package left the US and entered country XYZ
the package was delivered

you DO NOT see Fed-Exish detail like "it's on the truck in Berlin scheduled for 
delivery at 4:11PM". 
  
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