New Tech Era at the Lovestead

I'll be making two trips to town today.  This morning's version will involve taking my printer, scanner and computer tower to the wizard's workshop.  

I call Joel at Laser Image  "the wizard" cuz he figures things out for me, tech-wise.  Sometimes what he figures out for me doesn't involve much wizardry, but in my mind, any time I'm in a techie fix, a call to Joel will solve the problem.

In one case, it involved the remote for our TV.  He knew immediately what button I should push after I had already pushed every button possible on the remote and had even reset the satellite button on the "unit"  a dozen times trying to revive my signal.

Well, it wasn't the signal that needed reviving.  The signal was there.  I had inadvertently pushed a wrong button on the living room TV remote, causing a dead screen,  and Joel knew it.

Within seconds of his brief instructions over the phone, the TV was working just fine. Best of all, there was no need to make an appointment and wait around for several days for a technician to show up.  

Fast Forward.  There was no magic button to push with my desktop computer.  

I had been aware for months that its age and its glitches were aimed at each other head-on and that when the collision of those forces occurred, I'd be an unhappy camper and that my "life," of pictures and writings which I've amassed on the computer could be in jeopardy.

So, I hauled the tower down to Joel.  He kept it for a few days and then called, telling me it was full.  Yes, I could get rid of a few more items, but the same problem would continue to bug me. 

Besides, I'd already gotten rid of more than a few items, removed some programs and had the thing down to the bare essentials. 

Well, Joel has built me a new computer with much more space and get-up and go.  So, today he'll transfer "my life" to the new computer, test out the communications skills of the printer and scanner and computer.  When all is in concert, he'll send the ensemble home with me this afternoon.

I'm thinking that if all goes well, there won't be nearly as much cussing up here at this desk in the mornings while I'm trying to load photos for the blog.  I also won't have to be working between two computers just to finish a blog posting.

And, my friend Helen and her newly named assistant Cherry could be out of their morning responsibilities:  letting Marianne know immediately when gigantic photos are bleeding off the screen or when she's just plain screwed up with word choices or omission or other inadvertent mishaps which can happen during that hour or so of blog production time.

Certainly I'm not going to lay them off, but their duties could be less demanding, and I may be in a better mood.

I think back on the computers I've had.  After working with Apples at the school for years, I bought a PC.  It lasted for several years.  Then, came the used Mac Performa from Laser Graphics.  

I bought a Hulett-Packard somewhere around the turn of the century (most recent one, of course).  

That model definitely suffered domestic abuse because trouble shooting was just that----big-time trouble, making me want to shoot myself or the machine.

I recall distinctly one day when I DID bring a hammer inside and threatened to kill the computer.  

Turned out it needed new guts, and after Hewlett-Packard happily replaced its innards, I happily kept my life and all my thoughts stored on that machine for a long time until Annie brought me a newer model Dell freebie.

In between those desktops, I've owned two laptops.  My most recent was purchased on a whim from Staples when the screen went black on the Gateway----just the screen, not the computer.  The techs told me it might cost about $600-plus to get the screen fixed.

Well, I was going to Maui the next day, and by that time,  I had begun the era of taking laptop and a heap of cords and adapters on trips.  

So, knowing I'd spend my time in Paradise in total frenzy without a computer for sharing the fun, I plunked down a good fee, learned a few basics about the machine and went out the door of Staples with my Hulett-Packard laptop. 

It was a quick learning curve with that computer,  but I managed a personal crash course in how to use the new machine in time for pictures from Paradise to fly across the sea every single day.

How did we get to this state of techno insanity?   Why are we so obsessed?  I have no answers; furthermore,  I'm not going to apologize for being a bit crazy when any of my technology won't work "this instant."  

Bottom line, it's really a barrel of fun, sharing our lives and our pictures with our family friends and whoever else wants to enjoy what we put out there.  Yes, a little voyeurism from others but also great personal satisfaction in the sharing.  

I'm betting even Ben Franklin would give up his feather pen for a computer once he saw the possibilities.  

I'm also betting that anyone who depends on their technology would likely skip over the feather pen when given the choice of downgrading their communication methods. 

Today signals a new era in my technological journey, and I'm excited to see how the wizard's handiwork performs.  

Guess tomorrow's blog posting will tell the tale. 

Happy Friday.  Stay warm.