UPGRADE, OR NOT
Thursday June 7, 2018
Like ‘kicking the coke machine’ in days of old, we knew when things were quirky – just needing a nudge, a kick or a thump on the its side …
To the chagrin of appliance repair guys, and shoe repair guys – we don’t fix things much anymore. We buy replacements, we modernize, we upgrade. And mostly most of us are unsophisticated with regard to our malfunctioning technology riddled ‘everything’ to the degree we dare not touch it …
I operate two computers, two email distribution services and six websites – which require I talk to techie people far younger than my own children on a regular basis; they aren’t twelve, but often they sound ‘very young’ and speak far too fast using language I don’t understand. Once I slow them down I often get patronizing instructions that my browser is too new or my email software tool is too old – they aren’t compatible, with the inference that I am too old, that I should upgrade, re-tool and get the bigger better fastest newest thing. No worries, it will be third newest and tenth fastest in about a month … technology is moving at such a rapid pace.
Which brings me to my laptop. It was ‘biggest, best, fastest with enormous hard-drive’ when I got it. It has long ago been eclipsed but lighter, faster, more capable and ½ the price machines. Many have advised me to ‘go tablet’. I’m thinking about it.
I like my ergonomic keyboard and large screens attached to my docked laptop – and when it gets quirky and won’t behave on the third reboot, I know what to do. That’s good. Every ‘OMG’ moment I’ve had with this thing in recent years has taught me not to panic when a shutdown happens for no obvious reason and re-booting triggers a tool that grinds away for 10-20 minutes only to report that Microsoft can’t solve it. Then I turn it off, let it cool off, and re-boot – presto, opens fine and works away as well as, if not better than ever. Maybe it’s time to de-frag?? ..
