Submitting a manuscript.

I feel a little stupid. Recently, I wanted to submit a manuscript to the European Respiratory Journal (ERJ). I went to the ERJ website but, rather bafflingly, did not seem to be able to find a reference as to how one could submit. After Googling I found http://mc.manuscriptcentral.com/erj. But there the system immediately defeated me. I had to sign in with a name and password. Not being aware of having the required login details, I tried the Help button by providing my e-mail address, and then enjoyed the bliss of eternal silence. In all fairness, a message actually arrived after about 30 minutes, but I had given up all hope before that time. Whilst I was waiting, I noticed that there was a facility to register, so that is what I did. But I was immediately stopped in my tracks because the system said it already knew me. I tried the Help button again by submitting my e-mail address, and received a password within a reasonable time, together with my first request. Now, though, the system would not let me submit a manuscript without filling in keywords and the like. I dislike systems that collect unnecessary information about individuals. I only want to submit a manuscript and there is no reason why a system should demand that I provide this information; I might do so if politely asked. Eventually, the system said that all had been accomplished and that I could now submit a manuscript. Forget it, it just did not work. By this time I had spent an hour or more in futile activities. So, in desperation, I rebooted my computer and tried to establish contact again with Manuscript Central. I have now submitted the manuscript. It took about 5 hours from the start. I had to copy information that was already provided in the manuscript, such as author names and affiliations. In a number of cases, I did not want to accept what the system forced upon me, such as ' in addition, the latter's affiliation was omitted by the software. The system said that I was not allowed to change the information. I also had to copy from the manuscript the abstract text, the legends to the figures, etc. In the old days you printed the text, wrote a cover letter, put it in an envelope with address, licked a stamp and affixed it to the envelope, …