by Henk ter Heide on Tuesday September 23, 2008
After the problems I had with my new PC last week I went back to using my old computer. Which worked nicely for a few days. But Saturday windows tried to install the new windows xp sp3 upgrade. After that I started getting blue screens of death.
My dealer advised my to install a pro version of windows xp on my new PC almost guaranteeing that all problems would be solved. But it seems his guarantee isn’t worth very much.
The last few days I’ve been busy installing windows xp pro. But almost immediately I ran into a familiar problem: Windows won’t recognize the usb ports. The same problem I had when I tried to install windows xp on the new PC.
Only this time the problem is even larger. Last week I only had problems when I tried to use my usb mass storage device (external backup harddrive). Now I’ve reach the point where I can’t even use my wireless modem. I can’t connect to Internet to find the right driver.
The funny thing is that about 15 years ago I would have loved a problem like this. A real challenge to get my PC working again. But nowadays a PC is kind of a tool I need to do my work. It should just work.
But anyway I’ve reach the point were I’m willing to through my towel into the rink.
I don’t want to spend more time trying to find a way to get a PC working with windows XP where it is so clearly meant to work with windows Vista.
Using the save mode I’ve set my old PC back to the last working configuration and turned the automatic updates off. That means that I have a limited time to get my new PC working with windows Vista before the old PC gets so buggy that it won’t work anymore.
That could mean that I’ve have less time to work at this blog then I would like but… Since backups are never perfect, I would like to be moved before the old PC runs out of steam.
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by Henk ter Heide on Sunday November 18, 2007
Windows vista comes with a few useless safety features.
New PC
I have a new PC. Birthday present by my father.
The new PC came with windows Vista pre-installed. I’ve been thinking about formatting the hard drive and staying with windows XP. But that would only postpone the inevitable. I’ll have to move over at some point and it will probably be less of a hassle if I have a running PC to render assistance.
Networks
On Wednesday I’ve taken a day off to deal with some personal business. Which gives a perfect opportunity to start with the installing of my new PC.
The first order of business is installing DSL. If I can get that running I can at least consult the Internet if I run into problems.
Sadly enough installing DSL presents me with my first problem. It’s seems that my administration account doesn’t have enough clearance to install the install CD I got from my local phone company.
At 7.00 AM I can’t call in to get some help.
Next on my list is installing the network between my two PC so I can start copying my programs. But that also doesn’t work because I have the wrong cable.
Playing around
That leaves me with nothing to do but to play around and see what kind of changes Microsoft has made to this new operating system.
The new screen looks very nice. There are a few new games. Windows still has the annoying power save configuration that turns your screen of when you walk away for a while. Microsoft has found a way to deal with home users who forget there password.
Never again forget your password
That’s interesting. Not that I’ve ever forgotten my password but I never had a password. I always felt that it was to much of a hassle. But with windows vista the advice is to install two accounts. One to make changes in your configuration and one to work. That way virri will have less of a change to install themselves.
The procedure for recovering from a lost password is very easy. You only have to make a recovery floppy disk.
There’s just one problem. Over the last ten years files have become bigger and bigger and people use less floppy disks. So when the builder of my PC had room to only install three out of four devices; Floppy disk station, DVD station, memory card reader and hard drive. You can guess which one he left out.
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by Henk ter Heide on Saturday May 19, 2007
As you maybe know the famous Dutch painter van Gogh never sold a painting in his live. Apparently people didn’t like his paintings. Or maybe he didn’t know how to approach his public. Anyway he painted his whole live creating piles and piles of paintings and nobody cared.
He must have really loved what he was doing.
A few days ago my PC died on me. An ongoing problem with the memory causes some problems. Sometimes my PC just won’t start.
Sunset on crooked sea
So I pulled the memory chips and swap them and pulled them again and swap them again. Gave it up, did something else for a while and suddenly my PC worked again. At least that’s what happened the last two times it occurred.
I’ve been wondering if swapping the memory chips had any result at all.
This time I thought I just leave it and do something else for a while. Just wait for the miracle that makes my PC work again.
I was right in the middle of a picture I was drawing and I thought I’d just finish it.
But I didn’t. I coudn’t. If my PC would never operate again, I wouldn’t have a way to publish my picture. If I didn’t have a way to publish my pictures it would be like giving a speech to an empty room.
It never occurred to me but drawing is my way of communicating.
Talking is a weapon to defend yourself in a talking world. If you don’t talk people tend to think that you don’t think, that they don’t have to pay any attention to you. But it isn’t communication.
When I look someone in the eye I make contact. When I show him a picture I tell him something.
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