Got up this AM, tried to check my e-mail, and discovered my computer was dead. After a whole bunch of diagnosing, I finally decided it was not the hard drive (whew!), but that the power supply had failed. So had a ton-o-fun(TM) crawling around under my computer desk, removed the power supply, made a 40 mile round trip to Fry's for a replacement, installed it, and VOILA, I'm connected again. :-)
Man, it's major withdrawal when I can't check e-mail, newsgroups, and the markets. I was really worried that my hard drive had died, and it hasn't been backed up in ages. Well, now it's fully backed up, and I advise all of you to do the same ASAP.
Know the feeling, whenever we have a few days away, first thing, soon as we've checked around the house, have to go online, if only to clear out the spam.
Gets to be a bit like when the motor's in for service. I actually try to plan for a day of odd-jobbing around home so there's no need to go out, but I still feel marooned for the day. It's almost like losing a limb.....
That's an excellent reminder. And good job for replacing your own hard drive!! I'd have to go look up instructions or something to even know what it looked like, once I got the thing open!!
One other idea is to buy an external hard drive, that connects to your computer by USB. I have a 200 GB external hard drive, and I store everything important on that. It's cool too, because you can take it and plug it into any computer you want like your Aunt Edith's or something, and there is all your stuff. You can show her 15 years' worth of archived, digitized home movies!
Another idea is to use only online email like GMail (my fav), and to use an online bookmarking service like del.icio.us.
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You can have all your bookmarks stored there, and access them online from any computer at all.
Backups are important as well though. And I agree, I feel totally bereft without computer access! Sometimes I long for the days when I didn't even own a computer, and "going online" wasn't an option. But then, I'm the type that would happily live without electricity whatsoever. If it weren't for that pesky washing-clothes-in-boiling- water on-the-woodstove-and-scrubbing-them-on-a-washboard thing....she said, getting up to go make herself a latte.....
WTG Beverly! Being able to diagnose the trouble and replace the PS yourself may have saved you a ton a grief. I'm hearing more and more horror stores about inept so-called "repair geeks," even the ones who work at the big box stores.
What's beginning to worry me is the crawling-around-under-the-desk part. All my stuff is connected through a UPS, so there's just one plug to deal with...but the outlet on the wall is behind what I suppose is my desk's privacy panel. Reaching it involves getting into just the right position down on all fours, twisting my neck just so in order to see the darn thing, and snaking one or other of my arms up into the few inches of space to connect or disconnect. I can see this getting to be a problem in the future, and need to think of a better arrangement.
It wasn't the hard drive I replaced, it was the power supply.
I have an external USB hard drive enclosure. That's how I determined it was *not* the hard drive which had died, I took the hard drive, placed it in my USB enclosure, and took a look at it connected to my notebook computer. Once I was able to see all the files on that hard drive, I started eliminating other possible problems, and finally diagnosed the culprit as the power supply. This computer is antique (bought in 2001!), so finding an ATX power supply with all the required connectors was a challenge (I took it with me to Fry's).
Ugh! gmail, IMHO is the worst online e-mail of the lot, they absolutely refuse to deal with spammers. Almost all the spam posted to alt.sewing comes through gmail servers.
I just export my bookmarks regularly, as well as my address book, so those two items are never at risk.
I have been pretty cavalier about backups, but I learned my lesson. I have an external 160Gig drive I'll use a lot, but really important stuff will be burned to the DVD +/- RW I installed yesterday while I had the case open. DVD is much more secure than a HD for backups.
...but the outlet on the wall is behind what I suppose is my
I understand exactly what you're going through Doreen. A few months ago I had to lift up on end of my desk and move it inch by inch until I had enough room to plug in the new power strip. And then move it back again. My fibro loved it. AK in PA
My brother was extremely patient when I got my first computer (in
1989) in walking me through several software/hardware upgrades, and teaching me how to do stuff. I almost never have to call in the geeks. ;-) While I had the case open yesterday I finally installed the DVD RW I've had sitting in a box here for months. Now I'm thinking I really should have added some memory, too. :-(
ROTFLOL! You have pretty well described my whole afternoon yesterday! My UPS plugs into a wall outlet which is equally hard to reach. But my biggest difficulty was having to work on the open tower case *on the floor* (I refuse to disconnect *all the other* cables, so it has to be on the floor). My knees are still complaining. Plus, bifocals which slip down the nose make seeing all those tiny connections really difficult.
Long *heavy duty* extension cord? That way, if the UPS has to be replaced, you would have access to the power without the contortions.
There is something that happens. After a lifetime of getting up and down and spending a lot of time "squatting," one day I found that while I could get down with no problem, I could no longer get back up. No way, no how.
For my cousin, it was more dramatic. She was at a soccer game with the grandkids, flopped down on the edge of the field to watch, and when the game was over, went to get up again. No go. She ended up crawling across the field to the bleachers and using them to pull herself up.
I got some of those butterfly chairs for the patio a few years ago. Decided I'd better try them out - and sat down. Uh oh. Husband out of town, no cell phone to call the fire dept. - I began to wonder if he would come back from his trip to find my skeleton in the butterfly chair. Luckily, I was able to reach the very solid picnic table bench (benches attached to the octagonal table) and use it to pull myself up and out of the chair. *phew*
I don't even want to think about getting to the electrical outlet behind this heavy oak desk. Thank goodness for APC backup boxes.
LOL! I can no longer get *up* from a sitting-on-the-ground position either. I have found that if I roll from my backside to my knees, I can usually push up enough to get upright again. And I avoid chairs/sofas with no arms, because I need to be able to push-off to rise from a seated position. DAMN OLD KNEES!
As much as we all depend on our computers, I believe it behooves us to learn all we can about how to keep them running smoothly. Your brother obviously was/is a good teacher!
My tower used to be on the floor, but I find it stays much cleaner inside since it got moved to the top of the desk...plus it's easier for me to see how to insert CDs. :)
That could be the solution...thanks for mentioning it. I unearthed my APC UPS user's guide to see if specifically forbids use of an extension, and it doesn't, exactly. Just says, "Plug the Back-UPS ES power cord directly into a wall outlet; not a surge protector or power strip." I may look for a 'Contact us' link on APC's website and send an email asking about using a heavy duty extension cord. If that isn't recommended, perhaps there's a UPS that comes with a longer cord.
This happened with my mother, and thinking about it really got to me. A few years ago I invested in some dumbbells in a series of graduated weights, and some ankle weights, and was very faithful about working out with them for exactly 14 weeks. Not too good, huh? I'd better re-read "Strong Women Stay Young" by Dr. Miriam E. Nelson of Tufts University...she's a very good motivator and has the research to prove that strength-training is extremely beneficial.
It is such a relief to know the hard drive isn't dead when there's a problem with your comptuer.
If I may, another way to insure data protection is to partition the hard drives. This created two or more 'virtual' drives on the same physical hard drive. For example, C:, D:, E:, etc. I have up to "F" on my one hard drive.=20
On C: go all the programs inc. Windows. The other drives are designated for all the files, pictures, etc. created or used by the programs on C:
Recently my mother board died and I had to replace it and reinstall Windows. All I lost was the data on the "C" drive. Once I reinstalled the programs, all the other files were there and accessible.
After two weeks with a virus, I finally felt better, and caught up on a lot of "deferred maintenance." Mistake. My right knee is doing imitations of a football. At least, I don't think it's supposed to have that swelling on the side of it, and make me sing in a new register when I try to use it.
Try not to be too disappointed if it's not a sure-fire preventative. Muscles are great. But there are some other parts that simply wear out from use, and over-use. Thumbs go. Knees go. Hips sometimes go. Out. Waaaaay out. Stretched tendons don't help. But bursae dry up, and you end up with bone-on-bone in some joints.
My surge protector has a heavy duty power cord about three feet long. We plugged that into the baseboard outlet, then mounted the power strip itself up on the wall to one side of and slightly above the desk. Everything within easy reach. Also, I have never had the tower on the floor - too much dust 1n this 1917 house with all hardwood floors. It used to perch on a concrete block until I bought dh a new end table and took the old one, which is just under two feet high and measures 11" x
I have my large internal HD partitioned, too, I use Partition Magic. I mostly keep all apps and user-created files on one of the logical partitions. But if a hard drive really "fails", I'm thinking anything on any of the logical partitions would be lost too. That's why I back up to a separate external hard drive *AS WELL AS* DVD media.
I walk some, I'd love to swim, but I'm not about to inflict this saggy old body on the kids at the public pool. :-( I would seriously like one of those swim-against-a-current pools.
Ouch!!! I suppose you have iced it, and elevated it? Maybe it's time for a cortisone injection. I know when my right hip was hurting really, REALLY badly, the doc injected the bursa, and it felt much better, for a while.
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