Loosely Coupled: Managing availability:

"...most technology users instinctively prefer to endure worse service from their own resources simply because it makes them feel more in control. The only way that third-party providers can compete with this highly irrational and yet thoroughly ingrained sentiment is by surrounding their service provision with as many self-service visibility and control mechanisms as they can reasonably afford....Rather than eking out an extra 0.1% to 0.2% in uptime that will earn them no gratitude, providers should invest more in systems and procedures that allow them to keep their customers informed when things do go wrong." (Notes to self.)