I Gots a New Computer, "Courtesy" of Best Buy

It was the last straw.

Dec 17, I took my computer to Best Buy because the touch pad wasn't working. After being reassured it was probably a hardware problem and knowing I'd backed up everything that morning, I turned it in for service.

Dec 25, I got a net book. I hooked it up to my external drive and discovered the backup--which both I and Rob double-checked, did not back my files up. All we can guess is that when we double checked the D drive (back-up), the computer pointed right back to its own hard drive.

Dec 26, I called Geek Squad and told them to get my computer back and back it up. They told me "Oh, they just changed the motherboard. No need to worry about the hard drive." I asked them to tell the service center if they had to do anything with the hard drive to send it back first. They agreed.

Jan 10, I was told it was ready for pick up. That's when I discovered they had replaced the hard drive without backing up my data. To add insult to injury, the new hard drive failed in the store--and the only reason we knew was because I asked them to check it. (I was hoping against hope the ticket was wrong.) They said they'd fix it in store and get it to me the next day.

Jan 13, they're still running checks. They'll call me.

Jan 15, I called them. They said it was ready. I said, "Are you sure? Are you really sure?" They agreed to double check and call me back in half an hour.

An hour later, I called and find out they were going to return it to the service center because "there's a crack in the palm pad that's affecting the touch pad."

At this point, I asked to speak to the manager. The gentleman said, "I'm the supervisor; you can talk to me." I demanded a new computer. He said they couldn't. I said they would. I outlined again the whole FUBAR story. He said he was sorry and they were going to fix my computer. I said it was too late for that--I lost 6 weeks of work and the tool I need to do it and the work of the month in the next 2 weeks is the one they want to send back tot he shop. I didn't have time to wait or confidence that they'd get it right this time. He offered a loaner. I refused. I needed one I can put my data on. He said, "Let me get a manager."

At this point, I laughed.

Fortunately, the manager was not only nice and apologetic--as everyone I'd talked to had been--but he also authorized me to get a new computer.

Icing on the cake: the supervisor warned me that if I got a replacement, my warranty on my old computer would be void.

I found the people at Best Buy/Geek Squad invariably polite, friendly and sympathetic. I found their working relationship and communications with their service center stinks. I think their service center stinks in general, frankly, and got the impression the manager agreed. I am glad thankful that the manager finally agreed to put an end to this fiasco and was very gracious about it. I'm grieving the loss of my data, and am very stressed out at the amount of work ahead of me in the next six weeks, but at least I can accomplish that work on a new computer.

(Incidentally, I have a new Toshiba Satellite E105-S1802. It's got 500GB memory and 4GB of RAM and a backlit keyboard which will come in handy at night when inspiration strikes. We're still putting software on it, but I'll let you know how it works. I intend to put it through its paces in the next 30 days!)

A chance to start clean

Most of you may already know this but the service center ended up replacing everything on my computer. Here's the long story short:

--touchpad was not working
--I backed up the files, checked to make sure the backup was successful
--turned it in to Best Buy, where I have a warranty. They sent it to the service center.
--discovered that for whatever reason the files that were backed up no longer showed on the external hard drive
--called service center in a panic, was told they did not need to mess with the hard drive; told them if they did, back things up and I'd pay
--they replaced the hard drive and did not back up
--I can do nothing about it. I suggested several avenues and they tried a few themselves. The data past Oct 26 (my last successful back-up) is gone.
--I am establishing a triple-redundancy back up plan for the future.

Please do not give me any well-meaning advice. I double checked my back-up and did everything I could. Someone in service did an idiot move, probably out of ignorance of my request. Now, it's time to move on and consider this an opportunity instead of a tragedy.

Last year, I had determined that I was going to simplify my writing and marketing life, cutting out things that weren't effective but that I was doing out of habit, reducing my on-line work time, and focusing on the things that matter. This tragedy had enabled me to get a clean start. Since I no longer have the clutter of bookmarks, I can begin again, this time better organizing them. Ditto for my files--I can pull off the external hard drive the ones I really need on a daily basis and leave the rest in storage (although I plan to back those up on a second source.)

My e-mail list was full of people I barely spoke to, but who had written me once and thus got into my contacts list. Now I can begin again with that, organizing them into groups so that if I want to write all my friends, I have one group; all my business contacts, another, etc.

I had a task list that numbered past 500. Now I don't have that pressure. Instead, I can port over the ones that really matter and ignore the rest without guilt.

The irony is that I lost 6 weeks of data, but it will take me several months to rebuild. I lost a year's worth of newsletters for 30-Mintue Marketer. Those I need to rebuild as a group, as I have a plan I'm following--and thank you, God, that I didn't throw the handwritten plan away. I've lost the most brilliant changes to Discovery, but I'll just have to trust that God will help me recapture that brilliance and maybe even take it to another level. Gapman is also lost, but, thankfully, I wasn't too far ahead and I should have all the fun scenes I developed during MuseCon. The worst is the loss of the data for the Catholic Writers Conference, but I can get that back from the original sources--and I think the e-mail files (which were backed up a different way) might be saved.

Believe me, I cried bitter, anguished tears over this, and I may cry again, but I also know that in the scheme of life, this is minor. I have a loving, supportive husband. My children are smart, intelligent and happy. Yesterday, my teenage daughter announced that her friends think we're the geekiest cool parents they know. I live in a lovely house, have plenty to eat, have great friends, and am blessed with an overactive imagination. Now, I have a chance to do something I've wanted to do--start fresh.

Time to get to work.

I Gots a Netbook!

My wonderful husband bought me a netbook for Christmas. It's small and super light, and just what I wanted.

This past year, I've been on the go a lot. I've gone to conferences and out-of-town signings, plus just running the kidlets around. I've been lugging my laptop everywhere, and despite the durability claims the salesman at Best Buy made, it's definitely shown the wear-and-tear. That's probably why the poor thing is in the shop right now. In addition, my shoulders are just sore from hauling it and a copy of each of my books around. (I never travel without copies to show off in airports, etc.)

So Rob got me an Eee PC Seashell for Christmas. The whole thing is almost as light as a paper notebook, and lighter than the 3-ring-binder I use as an organizer. In fact, I think this thing would fit in one of those big zippered organizers if I were so inclined. However, the keyboard is just right for my hands--in fact, I'm noticing fewer typos on it. The memory and processing is sufficient for my needs, which are writing, e-mail and word processing, with Yahoo IM in the background. It lacks a CD drive, which is weird, but I hardly need that, anyway, except to add programs, and I don't have a lot I want on it, anyway.

I'll be putting it through its paces until I get my laptop back, then taking it on the road. I'll let you know in a couple of months if it's living up to its promise, but right now, I just have to say...

EEEEEEEE! I gots a netbook PCEEEEEEE!

Where I've Been

Haven't blogged in a week, and while there's really no excuse, I do have reasons:

#1. I've been busy sending out copies of Infinite Space, Infinite God to reviewers and those who pre-ordered from me. If you would like a pre-release promotional copy of ISIG, signed, please e-mail me using the Contact button on the menu. I've also been trying to get some book signings.

#2. My computer is freaking out again. I have decided I am indeed some kind of computer jinx. This time, the problem (in addition to a return of the keyboard and DVD door problems) is slow run time. After it took over an hour to do a 10 minute cut-and-paste job on my Virtual Book Tour blog, I gave up. I tried to tackle the problem—cleaning the drive, getting rid of old programs and running virus and other security scans. Each new thing just made it worse, it seems. It's now at HP and I'm on my husband's laptop. Pray I don't "curse" it, too. Of course, this means that, even though my data is backed up, it's not easily accessible until my old computer is back from the shop and everything is re-installed.

#3 and best of all, I got a manuscript request from a publisher. A couple of months ago, I proposed a novelization of my fantasy mystery serial, Magic, Mensa, and Mayhem. The publisher is intrigued by the idea (which I hope means something along the lines of, "ROFLMAO! This is such a riot. I can't wait to see what happens next!") So for the next couple of months, I'm on a NaNo-style typing quest. I need to have the full manuscript done by the end of July and remember, in the intervening months, I'm

--homeschooling the kids
--selling our house
--planning a move to Minot
--attending Commander's Wife school in Colorado

So anyway, life is busy and fun—except for the computer trouble. I can't even come up with a good theme song. Maybe something will hit me later.

Code Filk III

Well, what's a major computer accomplishment without a filk on all the trouble I had getting it done?

This week, I got doubly "blessed," as Yahoo had a glitch in its e-mail program that caused it to repeatedly send the same messages time and again. Some folks were mad; some thought their particular group was being attacked. The rest of us took the Douglas Adam's "potted plant" approach. ("Oh, not again.") I'm moderator on two groups, so I deleted the repeats and sent a notice that Yahoo was freaking. Naturally, that message was sent seven times. Yahoo also sent a notice about the problem. I didn't get the message, but I know someone who did.

No more caffeine for you, Yahoo!

As far as the movie trailer, it went fairly easily, though finding royalty-free music is hard! I was stoked to find the extra photos, especially the one of the girl pushing on the fence. It said "Little Madeleine" all over it. The music came from White Beetle and is a Gregorian chant. We has some problems with ordering, too, but the customer service folks at White Beetle got us the download, and the timing on the song was near-perfect.

Then we tried to post it.

I'd saved it as a project, not a movie. I didn't know there was a difference. So when I loaded it onto YouTube, instead of it telling me .mswmm was not accepted, it just sat for hours, "processing." In the meantime, I tried to post it elsewhere, but it had to be in .mpg or .avi to be downloaded. So we downloaded conversion software and tried to change it. It converted about half the time, meaning we got video or audio but not both. The one conversion that did both sped up the slides, cycled through the last four three times and wrecked the timing. We never did figure that one out.

In the meantime, Rob realized YouTube was trying to process the wrong file, and we finally got the movie onto YouTube. Once there, YouTube is very kind in offering .html code. (Later, Rob was playing with the Help files in YouTube and came across "What does .mswmm mean?" Like I would have thought to ask.)

So here's the Code Filk. It doesn't scan as well as I'd hoped, but, hey, it's not like I'm going to make a YouTube movie out of it.

Sing to Don Henley's "Dirty Laundry"

Something is freaking out on Yahoo groups
Messages repeating, by dozens or two
Does this improve e-mails for you?
Need clear communication

Well, I made a trailer for I-S-I-G
Cut-and-paste and music, how hard can it be?
Then I tried to post for all to see
But there's not publication

Give me M-P-G
Give me A-V-I
Give me M-P-G
Why do I even try?

You'd think I was a dumb blond from
Out in the Sticks
When downloading a movie's
Something I can't fix
Tell me now what's wrong with this?
I need good conversion

I saved it as a project
Not a movie yet.
YouTube doesn't bother
To mention it.
It let the file just sit and sit
Give me some clear directions.

Yes, I see the Help sign
But what do I ask?
Why would I think mswmm
Wouldn't do the task?
It's such a pain in the a&%
Without more clear directions.

Give me M-P-G
Give me A-V-I
At least give me a clue
Why do I even try?

Silly little programs
Silly little tricks
I learn the silly secrets, but they just won't stick
Programming makes me go, "Ick!
I need more directions."

I call my techie husband. He's such a card.
He fixes up the problem without laughing to hard
Not bad for a dwarvish bard
He gives good directions

Got my M-P-G
Don't need A-V-I
It's on YouTube now
Happy I can die!

Computer: 4 stages of grief

Rob's Alienware computer has passed on from our world to the great VR in the sky. Rob has undergone the stages of grief:

Denial: "NOOOOOO!!!!!"
Anger: "Why, oh, why did I think I knew how to modify the RAID array! And where the $#^%! Are the files in this so-called recovery disk?!"
Acceptance: "It's dead, Jim. I am the proud owner of a $2500 paperweight."
Hope: "Ooooo! Hey, Kitten, look at this cool Digital Storm System I can order! I wonder if I can upgrade to...."

There's one more stage of grief, not often discussed in the brochures--Aqusition. That's when I start going through the first four stages.

Postscript: Rob loves his new Digital Storm and was able to cannibalize his Alienware for its RAM and hard drives (for use as external memory storage systems). Now the keyboard on my two-year-old Dell is going kooky. Please don't make me go through this again!