Tuesday, July 13, 2010

Another Scorcher

But My Computer's Back!!

I picked up my computer yesterday and spent the better part of the afternoon setting it up.  This was after a rather long session at Staples where one of the technicians checked it out.

My big concern at that moment was whether or not I was going to easily be able to hook up my Internet.  They fiddled around in the store for about a half hour only to find that their connection was down, but that, from all they could tell, my ethernet card was working just fine.  They gave me a contact number in case I had trouble but....

I got home, ate some lunch and then set to work. Remembering my laptop issues, I shut off my cable modem, plugged in all the connections and in a matter of moments was back on line!! Now, they have set me up with Firefox as my browser, claiming that Explorer is far to prone to security issues.  Fine by me, I guess. It seems to work well so far.  But, of course, I've lost all my favorites.  I have tried to restore all the links to my blogger buddies blogs, but if I don't show up at your blog, please remind me that I'm missing in action!!

THEN, I began the effort of downloading and re-installing my 2007 MS Office Suite.  Since I had purchased it and downloaded it originally online, I figured that as long as I had the registration code--which I did--no problem.  WRONG.

The first problem was trying to find a download link on the Microsoft website.  Nope. They have links to Office 2010, but none I could find to 2007.  So, I contacted, via a chat window, a techie.  It took a short conversation but I was soon linked to the download.  BUT my computer did not have JAVA yet, so the download would not work.

I loaded JAVA, but had to shut down my Internet connection before that would work and lost the link to the download.  *sigh*  I contacted a new chat rep and instead of giving me the link, he directed me to call Microsoft support on the phone. 

Off I went on another telephone safari to India....if anyone is a long time blog reader here, you will know there is no love lost between me and tech support in India regarding my Verizon accounts, so you will know I was not particularly delighted.  HOWEVER, I met two lovely gentlemen who were very careful to listen to my specific problem and address it efficiently without a lot of the standard garbage troubleshooting I ran into with Verizon.  The second rep insisted we stay on the phone until the full download was both complete and installed.

Apparently, my cable connection is really fast because the download of the full Office Suite took only about 3-4 minutes, during which time we discussed where my rep was--New Delhi--how the weather was in India, what the seasons there are like, how the climate changes throughout the nation, and how hot it was here--over 100 F.  While weather is a fairly innocuous topic, we were both actually interested as we were so many miles apart. 

Office eventually loaded beautifully, and the rep made sure I had competed my online registration before leaving.  He then sent a confirmation email will all the support information I might need in the future.  All in all, aside from taking up the rest of the afternoon, it was a nice experience.

But I then had to go to one of the local parks to take some campaign pictures for our political website. (When it's finished, I'll give you all a link.)  I indulged in a McDonald's burger and milkshake on the way home and then went out to feed the Boys.

Chance's fly mask was missing.  It took a bit of a search but I finally found it out under the apple tree.  The velcro was open and nothing was ripped, so I guess somehow he managed to rub it off by the fastenings.  I've put it back on this morning, so I will see if its loss was intentional on his part, or just a happenstance. One thing I know about Chance is that if he doesn't like his outfit, he will somehow find a way to take it off!! I've found his sheet/blanket outside, just lying there, more than once with all the straps still done up.

Sometimes I almost wish I had closed circuit TV's out there in the paddocks to see what goes on when I'm not around.  It could be quite a show.

So my desktop and I are happily reunited, although I will still have to reload some programs and my files, but there is no rush.  I am happy for now.  

3 comments:

  1. Anonymous10:02 AM

    Dawn's an expert at ditching her mask, and she even manages to do it without detaching the velcro first, which is a true feat. I had to track down her mask yesterday in the middle of one of the far pastures. Our Norman would never keep a mask (or halter) on in turn out for more than 5 minutes, so we gave up on him.

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  2. At our place Sami is the master of losing (by accident of course) his fly mask and halter with grazing muzzle attached sometimes. Good luck if Chance doesn't really want to wear it.

    Glad you got the computer fixed. I've been through this before but luckily my son is an IT guy so he helps. I've been in contact with India for various things, the most annoying call was for a credit card. I wound up hanging up. It's good you found some knowledgeable friendly techs to help. By the way I have Firefox too and I think it's the best one and of course recommended by my personal techie as one of the safest sites.

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  3. firefox rocks, you'll like it.

    and good to hear microsoft helped!

    as for masks, i've given up putting one on molly, doesn't last 2 seconds..

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