marcicat | Entries tagged with computers

Me: 'Ah, yes, now that I have received our new account number and am seeing it for the first time ever, I'll follow these simple steps to set up an online account.'

Website: TELL US ALL OF YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION.

Me: 'Yes, fine, I've gathered all the information, here you go; please make my account now.'

Website: NO. YOU ALREADY HAVE AN ACCOUNT. GO LOG IN.

Me: 'But I don't have an account? I've never been here before!'

Website: IF YOU DON'T KNOW YOUR PASSWORD, YOU CAN RESET IT.

Me: 'Well, okay. I'll just go back to the start and try to log in, and then reset my password.'

Website: NO. YOU CAN'T RESET YOUR PASSWORD. YOUR SECURITY QUESTION HASN'T BEEN SET UP.

Me: 'Because I don't have an account!'

Website: YOU DO.

Me: 'Then let me access it!'

Website: I CAN'T DO THAT, DAVE.

So, my computer's power cord did a thing that is not optimal, and when I say "it did a thing," I mean it was definitely my fault. Though I am not unwilling to share the blame with the manufacturer!

Right next to the bit that plugs into the computer, the cord has gotten bent, and the plastic coating has split. So obviously this led me to the internet to search out some answers.

Problem 1: If the cord suddenly stops working, how much trouble am I going to be in?
*Not that much. In theory, any USBC cord could be plugged into the computer and be used to charge it. Maybe not as fast as the original, but, you know, maybe faster, given that the original is now sort of broken.

Problem 2: If I want to replace the cord, what am I looking at in terms of cost?
*Shockingly, also not that much. About $19, probably. I'm boggling at the fact that apple made anything that is A) interchangeable (the cord detaches from the outlet thingy so it can be replaced on its own), and B) costs less than $20.

Problem 3: Is it dangerous to keep using the cord as is?
*Eh, it's hard to say. Probably not very dangerous? Like, don't lick it? But likely safe enough that it makes sense to not bother replacing it until after the move, because I'm having a hard enough time keeping track of all the various cords and chargers already.

Here is the story about my phone call with IT. They "upgraded" my work laptop right before we were all set away to work from home, and the screen flickers. It's annoying. I found some suggestions online. I emailed the workplace IT team because A) they insist everything be done using their ticket system because solving easy problems that way makes their stats look better (totally legit!); and B) I'm *possibly* technologically capable enough to seriously screw something up when I'm trying to fix it.

Instead of an email back, I got a phone call. Which I answered! (#1 change in my life recently -- now I answer my cell phone when it rings? WHAT IS HAPPENING?)

It was the newest IT team member, who I'm sure has been extremely stressed by everyone trying to suddenly work from home, and who clearly thought that my 'screen flickering' issue was not important. (I agree! That's why I just wanted them to give me the yes/no on trying to fix it myself!)

ANYWAY, as the IT person remotely took over my computer and started pulling up the updates, OF COURSE the cat decided that was the perfect moment to throw up. And I was like 'hey, I'll just dash over and move her to the easily-cleaned tile floor of the bathroom; no problem.' Except I was still holding the phone, and realized I was accidentally treating my IT coworker to the soundtrack. "Ahaha, sorry about that," I said. "My cat is throwing up."

They seemed unmoved by this declaration (not a cat person, maybe?) but I was pretty distracted at the moment, which is my ONLY excuse for then completely forgetting (AGAIN!) that I was on the phone, and saying (TO THE CAT!), "It's okay, babe, you're okay."

CUE AWKWARD SILENCE. I immediately apologized and explained that I was talking to the cat, which the IT person may or may not have believed. SO. ANYWAY. THAT HAPPENED.

This is why I put my headphones on when I'm on calls for meetings -- it puts me in the right mental headspace for talking to workplace adults (and not to my cat).

After a phone call that really should be its own post, the IT team at my workplace suggested I install some updates on my work computer. (Okay, they mostly implied I was imagining the problem, and said I *could* install the updates if I really wanted to. But hey, that's super close!)

Yet when I attempted to update, after a looooooooong period of waiting where it LOOKED like the computer was doing something, I received this message:

"A separate installer has launched. You may need to perform necessary actions to complete the installation."

[not a progress bar, just a working symbol]

"Some installers may not be visible, please be patient for it to finish."

Oooooookay. And then when it did "finish," it popped up a window saying the installation failed. Probably because I didn't perform the necessary actions on the invisible installer.

*Day 1 of 'work from home.' Really hoping IT wasn't wrong when they said 'oh, yeah, the power cord for your old laptop will work for the new one.' (Sounds fake, but I guess? I heard them tell someone else the same thing, so at the very least it wasn't just me.)

*I'm spoiled at work by having the joy of multiple monitors. At home I get the hilarity of having two laptops side-by-side and repeatedly failing to drag and drop files and tabs from one to the other.

*To get split screen on a Mac: hover over the green 'full screen' button in the top left of the window; a drop-down option to tile the screen to the left or right appears.

*For split screen on a Windows computer: Window key plus the right or left arrow key. (Thanks,

starandrea!)

*I am seriously considering getting a coffee-making device. (The coffee at work is free! Why would I make my own? Apparently, the answer to that is 'because someday you might not be allowed to go to the office, and you will be sadly coffee-less.')

*On the other hand, it's not like I don't have caffeinated tea here.

*Good luck, everyone!

Me: ::sends an email to myself, clicks away to a different tab::

30 SECONDS LATER

Me (genuinely 100% surprised): "Oh, I have an email!"

(Not even kidding -- this morning I opened an email I'd written to myself, sent a reply, looked away for a few seconds, and when I looked back, thought to myself 'I have a new email! What could it be?' YOU JUST. SENT IT. YOURSELF.)

I learned an AMAZING thing during nanowrimo. (It's possible I already posted about this during the haze of November...anyway, it's worth multiple posts!)

AMAZING THING:
On a mac, fn+delete makes the delete key work like a delete key!

(aka, mac's delete key is a backspace key, and I'm still shocked that I put up with not deleting ahead of the cursor for so many years before I learned this amazing thing!)

[*from the xkcd comic Ten Thousand]

So you know how it seems like every year during nanowrimo, someone's computer experiences a disaster? That was me this year! My trusty macbook pro from ye olden days (aka 2010) crashed and refused to restart. Tried all the tricks, tried to reinstall the OS, all the usual stuff -- finally called tech support. (A PHONE CALL! I KNOW!)

Tech support walked me through doing all the same steps again (understandable! I also do not believe me when I claim to have done something technology related!) And then our conversation went something like this:

Tech support (with the hesitation that comes when many people have not liked this answer): "How would you feel about erasing your hard drive?"

Me (with enormous relief): "Great! Haha, I thought you were going to say the only thing left to do was buy a new computer!"

Tech support: "...Well. This is the last step before that one." (Except they said it in a nicer, customer-service kind of way. They were really very helpful!)

Me: "Ah."

Anyway, it turns out that when your computer can no longer find the hard drive, that's bad. But thanks to immense family support and assistance, nanowrimo-ing continued (thank goodness I was writing in the cloud!), and now I have a new computer. (If anyone was wondering if the butterfly keyboard keys were as loud as all those reviews said, I can confirm the answer is YES, VERY. I mean, I love it, but it's probably good that the cat isn't bothered by noise.)

For reasons that will either be detailed in a future post or possibly banished from memory entirely, i was doing some nanowrimo writing yesterday in WordPad. Yes. WordPad. In many ways, WordPad was as delightful as I remembered it. The uncluttered toolbar! The enormously wide default margins! As a blank white page experience, it had much to recommend it.

However, there’s one thing WordPad doesn’t have: WORD COUNT.

Did that stop me? No! Did I hand count words instead? Yes, yes I did.

At work, we have these computer docking stations, so you can connect your laptop to a larger monitor. And sometimes when you dock, it doesn't work, and you have to turn the computer off and turn it back on. I figured this was normal? I mean, it doesn't take long; it's not really a big deal.

Apparently, for some people, it is A Big Deal. I just learned recently that some people have been putting in IT tickets *every time* this happens. IT has been over at our building constantly, replacing various bits and pieces of things to see if they can "fix" the problem.

One of them actually came over and gave me a suspicious look and asked if I'd noticed any issues. I dodged and said, "It seems to be working just like usual to me." When they pressed and asked if I'd had the 'fail to dock' issue, I was struck by the spirit of contrariness and said, "I don't remember." (Why am I like this? I don't know.)

But my home computer is a laptop from 2010 and the touchpad is hit or miss when it comes to the 'click and drag' thing at this point (I've gotten so much better at keyboard shortcuts!), and it's fine. My work computer is fine too. I've bonded with it now; don't take it away! It might be a little quirky sometimes, but that's a feature, not a bug!

ELECTRIC BILL: PAID

Now that I’ve achieved one thing today, I’m ready to relax! Or go to work, I guess. That should probably be step one.

Mirrored from The Marci Rating System.

I have f.lux on my computer (I love it! highly recommend!), and I use movie mode when I’m watching things (::cough:: Guardian ::cough::). It’s great; zero complaints.

And then this week I went to click ‘movie mode’ and accidentally clicked ‘darkroom’ instead, and had a moment of panic that my computer had been taken over by the forces of evil. Very alarming.

Good news, though — apparently that’s how it’s supposed to look in darkroom mode! So that’s my new thing that I’ve learned this week.

Mirrored from The Marci Rating System.

*I got my current laptop in 2010, and I’ve been semi-planning to replace it pretty much since 2015, but it’s still working, and computers are expensive, so I’ve been putting it off.

*And a while back I had to switch all my tumblr-ing over to my phone, because if I try to access the site on my computer, the screen starts pixelating, which is Really Something.

*But I just got my online advent calendar, and of course I went right for the ornament smashing game, because that’s just the kind of person I am. And after one game, my computer was so hot I became genuinely concerned.

*The game is playable on my phone, but it’s “not optimized for mobile” (aka it’s very small).

*How important is it to me to 1) play the game; 2) have a more enjoyable visual experience? This is a dilemma.

*I use asterisks when I really just have a few vaguely connected sentences rather than a post that’s actually thought out, because it makes things look more organized.

Mirrored from The Marci Rating System.

Reasons why if you are right-handed, I recommend learning to mouse with your left hand

1. Learning new things is cool.

2. It baffles co-workers.

3. When you are using the mouse with your left hand, it leaves your right hand free to do other stuff. Like writing, or holding a slice of pizza.

4. It means the critical real estate to the right of your keyboard can be used for more important things, like a mug, or your phone. (Or pizza!)

Mirrored from The Marci Rating System.

It is possible my cat is better at using my computer than I am. For years, he has mainly found it useful for the screen — he can rub his face on it, what’s not to love? But recently he has started walking over the keyboard more and more, and has now progressed to sitting on it any time he wants my attention.

He is exceptionally good at getting itunes to open. About 50% of the time, he actually manages to get a movie to start playing in itunes. I find this astonishing. It’s not like he walks on the touchpad — this is all just from him mashing the keyboard keys.

Full disclosure: I have no idea how to open itunes using the keyboard. Is there a shortcut? Does any random keysmash do the trick, or is it some specific combination of keys?

At least I know that if the touchpad ever stops working, I can just leave the computer on the floor, and the cat will make something happen. Maybe a movie!

Mirrored from The Marci Rating System.

Passwords are so prevalent these days that I can barely keep track of the ones I use all the time, let alone the ones that are like a once-a-year login. For the super important ones I have various reminders set up, which would hopefully keep me from being locked out if I ever got amnesia. (Like quicksand, amnesia is one of those things that has turned out to be a much less significant risk than it seemed in my childhood.)

But for the one-off logins, I’ve reached a point of mostly giving up. Now I just pick whatever pops into my head, and reset it every time I need to get back into my account. (Note: this works fine as long as you never, ever change your email address.)

I can only guess that technology will eventually move past the password era. It’s possible that I won’t like whatever comes next either. But cell phones are pretty cool (a tiny computer in my pocket!), so who knows?

Mirrored from The Marci Rating System.

Look, I realize tumblr has a rep for being sort of the fanfiction.net of social media, but both of them have their benefits. I mean, seeing ff.net’s list of fandoms let me get a trivia question correct in eighth grade French (21 Jump Street, thanks ever so much brain for keeping that bit of info!) And yesterday I sat down after work, opened up tumblr, and thought ‘at last, a style of communication I understand!’

1. EXTREME HYPERBOLE

2. everything is a joke. and everything is not a joke. that’s the funny part.

3. there’s a meme for that (“thanks, I hate it”)

4. punctuation is for conveying The Mood

5. scrolling is like: cute animal pic, life update, tv/movie gifset, joke, art, reaction gif, cute animal pic, serious questions about existence, funny quote, lifehack about clothespins, baby sloth vid — it’s my brain, on the screen!

Mirrored from The Marci Rating System.

Work! I am going there today!

This picture has nothing to do with work, or Wednesdays, although I suppose an argument could be made that safety is always important.

But hey, check it out — wordpress is properly crossposting to dreamwidth again! That time-honored strategy of ‘do nothing and hope it fixes itself’ has come through yet again!

Mirrored from The Marci Rating System.

Good news: computer has returned to life! Bad news: still not entirely sure what the problem was?

What I do know is that at some point in the process, the problem became a lack of internet connection. Of course, instead of just saying that, my computer gave me the Everything Is Ruined Now And Forever screens of doom. (My computer is basically Sadness from Inside Out.)

Anyway, for future reference:

*Power off computer. Turn it back on and immediately hold down the Command and R keys. This gives you a window thing. (Google informs me it's called MacOS Utilities.)

*One of the options is to get help online. Clicking that one let me access my wireless internet thing in the top bar, and then I had to figure out which of the codes was the password (I just tried them all twice, and eventually got it right).

*Once I was back online, I finagled my way back to the Utilities window and did the Re-Install option that looked the least like it would erase everything on my computer.

*Hours later, success!

Argh. It’s possible I’ve bricked my laptop. It said there were updates available, I told it to install them overnight, all very standard stuff.

Then I woke up this morning to a message saying the updates failed, and to restart my computer and hold down the D key to run a diagnostic. Did that, message said the diagnostic failed, computer turns itself off.

Turned it back on, got a spinning globe and a message saying it was attempting an internet reset or something, followed by a message saying *that* failed, with an apple support code that the internet doesn’t think exists. (3403D)

Thank goodness for internet-connected phones.

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The Marci Rating System

Entries tagged with computers

oh, technology

survey says 'no one knows'

workaday Wednesday

technology! ::shakes fist::

Monday, Monday

every time

one of that day's lucky ten thousand*

November catch-up

for great justice

computers

achieved

I panicked, but then I handled it

oh, technology

(we have to find some way to amuse ourselves until everything upgrades to a holographic interface)

caturday

not sure this counts as a plan

thanks, internet

workaday Wednesday

my computer lives!

must be Monday

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June 2025

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