I've Been AWOL

I haven't been around for a while. Several weeks back my laptop died. Well, it didn't actually die but it did become very ill. Something went wacky with the LCD screen. When I booted the computer the screen came on but the image of my desktop was divided into quarters and there were four tiny desktops where there should've only been one. Everything else worked fine but since I already need to wear reading glasses when I'm on the computer seeing the image at one fourth the size just wasn't going to happen. I researched the problem and and as near as I can tell it needs to have the LCD screen replaced. The good news is that it's something I can do myself, the bad news is that I need to pick up a new LCD screen.

I explained this to my wife and her reaction was...why don't we just get you a new computer? How do I love her? Let me count the ways. So about a week ago the computer stork dropped a box off at my house with a shiny new Dell Inspiron 1525.

 

It even has racing stripes. Cool huh? Maybe it'll help me type faster.

 

I'll eventually fix the old one, clean off the disk and pass it on to my daughter who is a senior in high school. It'll at least get her started with college. As you might expect I've been spending time trying to transfer my old files and programs over to my new computer. This unfortunately involves connecting my old laptop to an external monitor so I can see what the hell I'm copying and moving. The process is further complicated by the fact that the new computer has Windows Vista. Contrary to what I'd heard it doesn't seem to be terrible. It's similar enough to XP that I can find my way around but different enough that I have to be careful where I step. So far I actually think I like it but I'll reserve the right to bitch about it the moment something major happens.

This is actually a test post on my blog. I downloaded Windows Live Mail to use as my email program and in the Windows Live family of free downloads they also have this nifty blogging program called Windows Live Writer. I thought I'd give it a try. It seems to give me a bit more flexibility than Blogger but the true test will be when I publish and actually see how the two talk to each other. I guess you'll find out how it works when I do.

There certainly has been a lot of crazy shit going on with the election and the economy, etc and it's not that I haven't had anything to say but more like I haven't known where to start. Or where to stop. I'll be back with more substantial posts but for now I'm playing with my new toy.

Happy By A Factor Of Ten

Well I managed to fix my laptop over the weekend. What happened was this. I was surfing along last week minding my own business when all of a sudden I found myself staring at a black screen. I did the old reboot and several other standard things that one tries when their computer isn't doing what it's supposed to (including cursing) but all I got for my troubles was the brief flash of the Dell logo at start-up then an instant inky darkness that felt as if it was closing around me. A cold black endless void that drew from me the very essence of my soul and left me adrift and alone. Well, maybe that's exagerating a bit but the screen WAS still black.

I love the internet. I also hate it and I'll get into the reasons why another time but in this particular instance I love it. I researched my problem (with the laptop) on our old slow office desktop and discovered that what was happening was a fairly common occurance, especially in laptops, especially in the particular Dell model that I had. Who here knew that the LCD screen in your monitor had a light bulb behind it? Go on. Raise your hands. I confess that I did not. I do now however. It's actually a very thin flourescent tube that when lit provides a backlight which shines through and provides illumination for the screen so that you can see it. When it's not lit, you have a black screen. One of the ways to diagnose it is to shine a flashlight on the screen while the computer is on. If you see the image of your normal desktop well then, you know it's a problem with your backlight. Only it's a little more complicated than that. In addition to the bulb there's also this thing called an inverter. In a laptop it's a little narrow circuit board somewhere in the lid near the screen and it shoots a pretty sizable voltage up to the bulb to power it. So the problem could be either/or or even both.

Following Dell's assembly/disassembly instructions for my model I commenced surgery. The inverter is the easier part to get to and replace and all the advice I read said to try that first. Once I had extracted said inverter I headed to the one place where (almost) anything in the world can be bought. EBAY! I said I love the internet. I also love Ebay. After spending some time trying to match part numbers and pictures I purchased what appeared to be the correct part. I had it in my hands in about three days for a total cost of right around $30. I repeated the surgical procedure in reverse and before completely closing the patient, uttered a prayer to the Goddess, God and the Universe, then pressed the power button. Houston We Have Liftoff! Happy dance and an utterance to aforementioned Goddess, God, and Universe.

If that had not solved the problem, the next step would've been to track down a replacement bulb (hello Ebay!) and install it. That procedure would not have been as straight forward and would've involved soldering and a few other things that I was happy to not have to perform.

The whole process, once researched, was actually very easy. Once I knew what I had to do, it honestly took me longer to track down the correct part on Ebay than it did to remove the old one and replace it with the new one. If I would've sent it in somplace for repair it would've cost close to $300 and I would've seriously had to consider whether it would've been smarter to put that money towards a new one. Instead I paid $30 and invested a little bit of my time. I like to try to fix or build things myself if I can. I'm not the type who can't admit that I'm in over my head but on those occasions when I can truly do-it-myself, it's very gratifying when it actually works out.

Long story short. I'm back on line at home. Of course that doesn't solve the problem of what to blog about.