If I can trust 2018 OAuth-as-a-service vendor literature, it seems popular to signify "use grant flow X because your app has no backend."

What? USPS is the single largest parcel carrier in the US (dwarfing UPS and FedEx by package volume). That ain't even including the numerous packages that UPS and FedEx delegate to USPS for last-mile delivery (via SurePost and SmartPost, respectively). Hell, a lot of rural communities are entirely dependent on USPS for parcel delivery because they're outside of the service areas of other carriers.

I don't know where this notion of "USPS only delivers letters and magazines" comes from, but it's patently and demonstrably false.

He's talking about junk mail. This is mostly what they deliver.

Maybe by quantity, but certainly not by volume, weight, or dollar value / revenue.

> What? USPS is the single largest parcel carrier in the US

They're the only unsolicited advertisement carrier in the US.

I just got an ad via FedEx from some "growth hacking" company. The main category of mail I get from USPS are bills and monthly statements, not ads, anyway. They also deliver most of my packages from online stores.

Sounds like you've never had a flyer stuck under your windshield wiper, then :)

My point, though, is that the "unsolicited advertisement" functionality of USPS is minor compared to its significance as America's top parcel carrier, and to write off USPS as "just a source of junk mail" is throwing not only the baby, but also the tub and half the house, out with the bathwater.

> Its "delivery confirmation" is outright fraud.

elaborate?

"Hello, merchant? I haven't received my package, but the tracking info says it was delivered at 9:00."

Do you know what the merchant says, because they deal with this _all the time_?

I had a USPS package delivered signature required. They just left it in the mailbox. Unfortunately, it wasn't my mailbox, but one of my neighbors. It took me another 3 days to track it down...

>I had a USPS package delivered signature required. They just left it in the mailbox.

What did the signature show up as? Was there no signature? Did the postman sign himself?

This was about 7 or 8 years ago, so I don't remember. Apparently this is a common complaint: https://sellercentral.amazon.com/forums/t/usps-drops-off-sig...

Throw-away accounts with no identifying information, purposely flaming comments that add nothing to the discussion (nevermind with no citation, sources, or data) are a very non-hn thing. Is there a rule against this kind of low quality participation?

So true. 95% of the mail I get goes straight into the trash. I live in a condo complex with a bunch of centrally located mailboxes. They could save me some time by putting a trash bin right next to the mailboxes.

I'd like to see some data on this. I know a lot of small businesses that rely heavily on USPS Priority flat rate for shipping goods.