= Excellent
= Good/Very Good
= Okay read
= Not recommended
= Ugh! Don't waste your time.
Archive for May 2nd, 2005
Monday, May 2nd, 2005Computer Monsters
A dark, ill-humored monster invaded my computer this weekend. He started in the scanner and crept through the hard drive. My virus scan assured me I was free of viruses, but things weren’t working well nonetheless. I dragged out my owner’s manual; followed the troubleshooting advice; re-installed software; cleaned up the disk; defragmented. Finally, with no other options left to me I chose System Restore.
The manual states that System Restore is a last resort. What it doesn’t say is that if you chose this option you will have given up roughly one third of your weekend to frustration and rebuilding your desktop.
The System Restore feature essentially wipes out your computer, then re-installs all the factory settings. It is like getting a new computer again…without the handy Spyware software you downloaded just last month; or the new browser you installed two weeks ago; or the word processing program you adore. None of your websites will remember you (and who the heck can remember every password for every site they visit?). You would think that after all of this, the problem would be fixed. But, my scanner still does not work correctly.
I guess I could stomp my feet, swear a lot and vow to never own another computer. However, in the end I chose to be the turtle in the race against the hare. Slow and steady; plod along; dot all the eyes, cross all the tees. I’m back ‘on line,’ my software is all reinstalled. And I learned a valuable lesson: don’t rip out the kitchen sink just because of a small leak.