September 3, 2008
I have a lappy!
How did you spend your Labor Day? I was supposed to have lunch with the Table of Contents, including two members who moved a while back but are here visiting. Instead I spent the morning at Office Max. That nasty trojan virus I thought I had defeated a week or so ago? That dragon was not slain, merely resting. It came back with a vengence. At one point there were over 2700 instances of it installed on my computer. I kept cleaning & updating virus definitions & running scans, but on Sunday my poor PC had had enough. The hard drive gave up the ghost. I had done a termite inspection of Friday & hadn’t been able to generate the report that two realtors, an escrow company, a buyer and a seller were waiting on. I needed a new computer immediately. Since I’m going to be traveling soon (for the first time since I got online eight nine years ago) the timing was right for me to buy my first laptop.
I didn’t have time to run all over the island comparision shopping. I’d have done some online research before going out, but … oops! … no hard drive! Office Max is where I’ve been buying office supplies for all the years that I’ve owned my business. They know me there & I trust them. They’re also closer to my home, by at least half an hour, than any other place that carries computers. I bought my last computer and my printers at CompUSA (which was in the same shopping center,) but they’re long gone. Office Max is not an electronics store, so I didn’t have a lot of choices. They only carried six laptops. I liked the one above & was ready to buy it.
When my sales guy (who was also the store manager) went in the back to pull my selection he discovered that he still had this bundle available. Very similar laptop, slightly smaller, but with an Intel Centrino processor (which someone had told me I should get) and also came with some other goodies. I decided to go for it. Sales guy didn’t want me to take his picture, but Priscilla, who brought my stuff to the register and pulled the extra USB cable I wanted (she’s on the left) and the gal who gladly relieved me of a large sum of money (right - don’t remember her name) thought that making an appearance on skeet’s stuff was just fine. The price shown on the Office Max promo was not available to me (things always cost more in Hawaii.) By the time I added Office, the extra USB cable and a super-duper warranty (I always go for the super-duper warranty on electronics) I spent almost exactly $1200. Money I wasn’t planning on spending, but what you gonna do?
Since my sis stubbornly refuses to read my blog it’s safe to tell you this. I was buying her a printer for her birthday. Was actually in the process of ordering it online when one of my crashes occurred last week. The printer that came with my new lappy is an upgrade from what I was planning on sending her. I figure that the only way I’m ever going to see pictures of my two great nieces is to make it easy for her to print photos that she takes with her new digital camera (she’s crawling into the 21st century just a little more slowly than me.) Someday soon I’ll buy some premium photo papers in several sizes and pack this thing up for shipping to Texas. I have an HP Officejet for my own use and didn’t need the extra printer, but it was cool to get a really nice one for Sis in my bundle - two birds, one stone.
My bundle also includes a very cool gear bag. This is probably supposed to be a back-to-school bundle for college kids, but I think it turned out to be a pretty good deal for me. I have an attache’ style lappy bag, but this one is nicely padded and has pockets for all the stuff you need when you go portable. Remember I told you I’ll be traveling sometime soon? I want my new toy well protected from bumps & bruises, so this is how she’ll travel with me.
There she is. As you can see, I shoved everything on my desk aside & set her up there. I suppose I’ll add wireless to my service someday soon, but right now she’s tethered to the desk by a power cord, a printer cord and a USB cable connecting her to my cable modem. Some of the clutter you see behind her has already been cleared away, but I’ll finish tidying up today. I was in a hurry to get things set up so I could get my report out. I finally did that yesterday, three days late. It’s a good thing my clients love me!
I’ve been using my new lappy for about twenty-four hours. The tendonitis in my right wrist is screaming, so I’ll have to figure out the ergonomics of using a flat keyboard. The touchpad is a pain in the butt, but I’m sure I’ll adapt after a while. Right now I’m not liking it at all, so I’ll be adding a mouse for when I’m at my desk. I can’t recover all of the photos and documents & other stuff that I lost with the old hard drive, but I’m slowly downloading the programs I need and refilling my bookmarks and address books. I’m still a technophobe & still hate change, but I’m adapting. I’ll give you an update somewhere down the road & let you know how that’s going. Overall, for right now: still bummed about what I’ve lost, but pretty happy with what I’ve found.
[tags]adapting to change, computer crash, computers, laptop, shopping[/tags]
Posted by skeet @ 11:28 am • Shopping, Computers & Technology
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September 3rd, 2008 at 12:02 pm, sassymonkey Says:
I had an HP laptop before I bought my Mac (long story which I think you know anyway). I loved the screen on my HP. It was purdy.
After you talking about your mouse issues the last few days I actually went out and bought one. It’s weird using a mouse with my laptop again!
September 3rd, 2008 at 12:26 pm, Atlanta Computer Repair Guy Says:
I know it’s probably a little too late. But, in the future you should probably refer your computer to a specialist. How I would have gotten rid of your viruses is to actually remove the hard drive, connect it to my laptop, and then run the virus removals from there. It’s faster, and you don’t have to worry about nasty things hiding within windows. I’m 95% effective with getting rid of viruses, but there are always a few that get by me.
I recommend AVG for free virus protection. Malwarebytes, another free program.
Good luck with the new computer.
BTW- you can always recover the data from that hard drive if you talk to a specialists. That usually runs around $200 or so, so it’s up to you if it’s worth it to you.
September 3rd, 2008 at 2:16 pm, chi 42gems Says:
nice laptop! but in the last photo, it looks like you’ve got the resolution on your lappy set wrong. looks like you’ve set the resolution to a standard aspect ratio.
September 3rd, 2008 at 2:40 pm, skeet Says:
Karen, the touchpad is easier today than it was yesterday. I’m sure I’ll be more comfy with it as time passes, but I definitely intend to use a mouse, too. Let me know how the one you’re using works out?
Now go solve my tuesday Teaser! I posted so late that a lot of players are missing.
September 3rd, 2008 at 2:46 pm, skeet Says:
Mahalo, Computer Guy! I usually delete commercial links, but you’ve actually added to the discussion, so your’s stays!
I just bought Trend Micro - I’d been happy with their service in the past. Have the Norton trial on the lappy right now, but will install Trend Micro in the next few days.
I’ve already talked to a local geek about rescuing some stuff from the damaged hard drive. Yep, $200 - but well worth it. Thousands of photos, hundreds of documents, work records and such. I really need all of that, so I’ll pay a pro to save what can be saved.
September 3rd, 2008 at 2:49 pm, skeet Says:
Yep, 42gems, the res is wrong. HP tech had me do that while he was assisting with a difficult install. Need to change it back so I can view full-screen.
September 3rd, 2008 at 5:34 pm, Jade Says:
Now that you’ve got your internet back, it’s time to start researching external hard drives so you can catch a good deal on one for backup!
You can easily copy/paste a backup of everything, including your bookmarks so that if anything like this ever happens again, you can reformat your computer and just drag everything back!
September 3rd, 2008 at 6:13 pm, skeet Says:
Yep, Jade - an external hard drive would have saved my butt. It’s on my list of things to get now, along with a cooling pad and a wireless mouse.
September 4th, 2008 at 12:42 am, An American in France Says:
Yeah, I recently lost a laptop due to overheating… motherboard fried. Anyway, I got this new baby at Best Buy got it for free because it was on warranty, but it was marked for $700. Nice thing, though. Got it home and threw Ubuntu on there right away.. works nicers..
Suggestion for you, have someone format it.. even if you still want Vista… there is a lot of bloatware on that thing.. Google “bloatware” to find out what I’m talking about.
September 4th, 2008 at 4:33 am, allysther Says:
Ohhhh, very pretty! I know it was a leap, but it looks like you landed well.
Hugs to you from us!
September 4th, 2008 at 4:38 am, allysther Says:
Oh, I do have one small request….would it be possible to squish termites with something instead of hitting birds with stones? The phrase always makes me wince, as it wipes out half of my family!
We prefer that you hit deer with cars, smack roaches with shoes, slice centipedes with machetes, take your pick, just please please please leave us birds (or Byrds) alone!
September 4th, 2008 at 5:45 am, skeet Says:
Hugs right back at you, my friend. Thought of you while I was shopping for a lappy instead of dining with Mari & Kurt.
I vow to be nicer to birds in the future. Two flies, one swat?
September 4th, 2008 at 6:17 pm, Whim Says:
That’s a sweet setup you got there. Congratulations!
September 4th, 2008 at 7:15 pm, skeet Says:
I’m getting used to it, Whim. I’ve wanted a lappy for a while, but was planning on a well-researched, budgeted purchase. Ah, well - we play the cards we’re dealt.
September 5th, 2008 at 7:11 pm, Laurie Says:
*droooooooooooooool* It is SO pretty. I would LOVE a new laptop. Even the gear bag is pretty! hehe I would definitely have gone for the bundle too– can’t beat the fun freebies!
Congrats!
September 6th, 2008 at 11:15 am, skeet Says:
Laurie, I put on a good show about decluttering my life, but the fact is that I can’t resist free stuff. I tried to switch to a different kind of bank account last week so I could get another free gear bag that I don’t need. That didn’t work - didn’t like the terms - but I hated walking out of the bank without that bag, lol!
September 8th, 2008 at 1:38 am, corrin Says:
Oh, you had a big weekend! I’m dying to get a new laptop, but mine is chugging along, so I can’t bring myself to spend the money. Yours looks so fast and shiny, it just might break me.