Posts Tagged ‘computer’

Build Your Own Computer

Monday, October 13th, 2008

Well, today was the day I built my own computer for the very first time. ^_^ Lets just say, for all the times my blood-pressure soared, it went off without a hitch. Right now, I’m preparing to install Windows XP on it and am about 75% of the way through partitioning and formatting my new hard drive.

As you know from my previous posts, I made a list of the parts I would need a couple weeks ago and placed my order. My goal was a really nice, but not state-of-the-art gaming and graphic arts machine. Basically, I needed it a little more powerful than the standard computer you can buy from the store, but without the several thousand dollar price tag.

So, my case came today. Cue me prancing out to the street in my pajamas to grab this HUGE box from the UPS guy. (Who has actually been really nice about huge box a week thing.) After lunch and doing a little more homework I set to work. (more…)

The Dilemma

Friday, August 29th, 2008

My computer has been acting up lately. Not just the minor errors that you just close the window and try again, but the kind where it becomes all but unusable.

I’ve tried everything I can think of:

  • chkdsk /F
  • Virus Scan (3 different ones no less! AVG, Avast, and Webroot Antivirus)
  • Spyware Scan (4 different ones)
  • HijackThis! logs
  • Defragment
  • Disk Check

Each and every scan comes up clean. The only scan I couldn’t do (which still grinds me) is a ram analyzer. It’s a program I had to burn to a CD and then run during boot-up. I discovered that my boot order is strange: it doesn’t boot the removable disks before the hard drive. So that test won’t work, not without figuring out how to force my Compaq to check the disks first.

I’ve added memory and then taken it back out. Tested with only one stick and then swapped it for the other. It’s been especially bad in World of Warcraft, which I’ve had to uninstall and reinstall several times because various game files wind up corrupted or simply damaged. All my friends, even though in tech jobs, have run out of suggestions.

Of course my mom, despite claiming to be as computer illiterate, does everything she can to help me. Naturally, she’s the one to point out classes start soon and my computer is basically worthless. Will I be able to do my homework? Oh, crap!

She’s also the one to come up with the ultimate solution, “Give up and just look for a new computer.” And then almost as quickly says, “Just no more Compaq’s.”

I mutter something about maybe building my own. She points out what I’ve always wanted to, that it has to be easier by now, and that I’d be getting what I want.

Moms really do know best.

Sonafabitch!!!

Friday, May 6th, 2005

Had a friend come up this evening… the same one I wrote about months ago, whose also taking computer repair classes. Since some of the people reading this might know him, I’ll call him Neil for the sake of his privacy.

I used to be best friends with Neil – or at least I thought I was. Now he’s coming across more a more like a jerk. At first I thought it was me. Back in High School, I was a brainy, know-it-all geek. Maybe I’m just mad because he’s almost done with college or that it was my pride being wounded. Maybe it’s still just me, maybe I’m just imagining things… but he seems to have this whole “you suck” vibe going on since he knows more than me. (Gee, wiz – idiot…. you graduate in a month.) I dunno, maybe he feels like he has to get revenge on me for being a know-it-all.

Anyway – while he he pointed me to this Spyware cleaner, complaining that my computer was “too slow.” So I ran it. Just as he told me to. Took care of some Trojans and Adware that were on, no biggie. I thanked Neil (sincerely) and got on with life. Later, I tried to log onto my ancient version of CuteFTP. And guess what? It got nuked. Absolutely nuked. All for the want of one blasted advert library. And what’s more, the way he told me to use the program left me with no way to recover the lost file.

I don’t think I’ve ever done this before in my life, but I screeched “Sonafabitch” at the top of my lungs. Then I began bawling.

Mom was annoyed, thought I was being stupid. Jass’ reaction was just for me to download a new one. *sighs*

But it was such a NICE program. It was simple, easy to use, the interface was very intuitive, and I could adjust the fonts as I saw fit. The only drawback was a small ad at the top, which had poofed ages ago.

So, I’ve just spent the last few hours trying to find a new one that’s free, has a simple, intuitive interface, and DOESN’T display everything in size 7 font. (Pixel-induced migraines suck.) You can probably guess how that went.

The only one that has an interface like I like is $35 unless I can somehow come up with the money (not likely) OR can find a pirated version of it somewhere. Yes, it’s CuteFTP 7.0.

I just found a beta version of CuteFTP, which also simply uses adverts… but I’m so leery. It’s coming from a Geocities site, of all places. But damnit, I’ve almost filled up my hard drive with freeware FTP programs that I absolutely loathe.

Here’s hoping.

And it works. ^__^; Warning of adverts, yeah yeah… already know. And I’m good to go.

To be honest, I’ve had a crush on him [Neil] since I was 14 or so. Seriously. I even confided in my cousin Brandon back when I was 16 that I was. He had this peer counselor thing going on through the school, so I went out on a limb and told him. Brandon told me to go for it, but I was too shy to do so. I went away to Mt. Pleasant for college and then moved to Ionia, but I still kept thinking about him.

Now… I really don’t know. I try to talk to him about things we commonly like… computers for one thing, school since we’re both in it and it’s like trying to make water flow uphill. I get a lot of generalizations about school and then what feels like an almost superior attitude about computers.

Is it wrong to feel so… so resentful of him? I’ve known him – been close friends with him – since Kindergarten. I’ve had a crush on him for eleven years. I’ve missed him so gawd-awful-much for at least seven. Now I suddenly almost can’t stand to be around him.

*sighs* I don’t know anymore. I really don’t.