08.14.07
Posted in Hardware at 2:56 pm by webmaster
On Saturday I bought a new computer. Today I returned it to the store. Why? Because Windows Vista and all the little add-on trial programs made the computer so slow that I was ready to scream and throw it out the window. I bought an HP at a great price and was looking forward to using it. I have an old HP that’s been around for years and it’s still working fine, so I was more than disappointed with the performance. And I blame it all on Vista.
Update: The computer store salesperson told my husband that the computer we returned didn’t have enough memory to even be running Vista in the first place. But they still sell it that way - go figure.
Maybe I could have tweaked the programs, but with the new set-up, I couldn’t even get it to remove the Yahoo taskbar on Internet Explorer. I deleted it, but it was determined to stay there.
So I guess I can’t buy a new PC, since they all come with Vista, although I hear that Dell is allowing people to choose. I’ll have to check it out.
If I sound a little crabby today, I am. Thank you, Mr Gates.
Permalink
08.05.07
Posted in Software, Home Computing Tips at 4:08 pm by webmaster
It seems this is the third time I’ve written about organizing my computer files. Every time I think they’re under control, I realize I can’t find a product I bought and downloaded.
This time I took every print-out of a downloaded file or program, numbered it and wrote the corresponding number, along with the item name, description, and price in a notebook. Then I could see at a glance exactly what I had and how much I’ve spent over the last two years. (At this point I was beginning to feel a little sick about where my money was going.)
Since I’m a visual person, the notebook was just what I needed to shock me into finding everything I had purchased. Two hours later, every file was unzipped and put into folders with readable names. I realized that I already had two programs that I was considering buying and had one that didn’t work properly. Had I used the product when I bought it, I could probably get a refund, but not after all this time.
I’m a very organized person at home, but computer files are a little harder to keep under control. Now I’ve got a folder labeled “to read” and another one labeled “to do” that I hope will help me.
Permalink