November 17, 2000
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I'm Back!
I can't ever remember being this glad to see a computer screen filled with familiar icons. It was a long time. At least in Internet terms it was. And I missed my readers. I felt as though I had been cut off from part of my world---because I had.
So what did I do while I was offline? Well, I crocheted two handbags and read three books. I cleaned house a bit---not enough, of course, but some. There are several pounds of clutter that no longer share my living space.
And I celebrated my birthday on Wednesday. For the past few years, a tradition is that two friends and I get together for cake and coffee during the afternoon of my birthday. This means a lot to me. Sometimes two of us have a chance to have lunch, too (but not this year; scheduling conflicts for all of us). Sometimes a fourth person joins the party, which was how it worked this year (work schedules determine his plans). These are three people who have been with me through some of the worst times (my mother's last illness), and who have never failed to offer moral support. Because of the vagaries in our lives, it isn't all that often we see each other any more, but we do keep in touch.
The birthday party is always held at a small business one friend owns. I actually met this friend because of the business---he sells and repairs office machines---except computers. I knew I was welcome to use the computer at his store while both of mine were ailing. That's where I was when I did the entries for November 10 and 15.
Oh---the problem with the main computer was its AC adapter. For whatever reason, it quit working. I'll rant a bit about this happening in a later paragraph. The other one had a corrupted operating system file on it. It still had Windows 95, and doesn't have enough memory to run Windows 98. I thought the appropriate thing to do was reload 95. Well, that was a good idea, but in the couple of years since I had needed to do that, something had happened to two of the program diskettes. I will shorten the story and tell you that I wound up having to reformat the hard drive, and will reload Windows 95 when I have a chance.
The newer computer has outlived the manufacturer's warranty, but I had purchased an extended warranty. That meant I spent part of last Friday at the repair center of the store where the computer was bought, setting in motion getting a new adapter. And had that not been such an exasperating experience, it would have been funny. I was dealing with an extremely young geek type. He was cute, and very earnest. But it became obvious very early in the conversation that I knew more about the problem than he did---I had to point out two things to him: one, he needed to check the adapter with a volt meter; two, he did not need to send my computer itself back to Sony. (I had taken the computer itself with me in case he wanted to test anything else, but when the meter showed no juice from the adapter, that wasn't necessary.)
Of course, the store didn't have an adapter in stock. The cute, earnest geek hated to tell me, but it would probably take at least two weeks to get a new one from the company, and the guaranteed date of delivery was December 4. I suggested he put a rush on it, since this was the second adapter that had failed in this calendar year (number one quit working in late April, and the company was out of stock till mid-May), and I was prepared to gripe on my website!
The adapter that arrived today is not the freebie that is still to come...read on.
The other thing (besides the length of time for a replacement) that made me angry is this: back in April when I was looking at the Sony website, I noticed they had quit making the precise model of adapter that was originally used with this computer, and were instead using a different model. I thought I would be getting one of the newer ones when my first one needed replacing. Instead, they sent one of the original ones (model number was the same as the dead one I was returning to them). The fine print in the accompanying paperwork in May said that the company had the right to use reconditioned parts. I was okay with that, as long as it worked. But it should not have quit working a few days shy of six months after I got it. I am not in the habit of torturing computer equipment.
Anyway, I spent some time thinking this week about how I might get yet a third adapter of that same model number, and that based on past history, I could expect it to die within a year. I can't prove there's a flaw in the whole model run, but SOMETHING made the company discontinue it! So I called Sony's sales department on Thursday (the 16th), and asked about the possibility of buying a spare. I don't have the time to wait on a part that might not arrive for four weeks. So I asked the sales clerk about availability and price, and how fast could I get it. Yes, it was available, at a price less than that quoted on their website in April (a hundred dollars less), and if I were willing to pay for overnight delivery, I could have it by noon today.
Since I had been prepared to spend a hundred dollars more for the adapter, I still wound up saving money after the delivery fee was added.
Now for a comedic moment: I thought I knew what time FedEx started making deliveries. I was wrong, and the driver came twenty minutes before I got up. He left a note, saying he would redeliver on Monday if I didn't pick it up at the terminal after work hours today. Well. neither option worked for me, so I took a chance and called the FedEx main number. I asked if there were any way on earth the driver could stop back by---I explained that I was here, but had slept through the knock. The gentleman with whom I spoke said it would be utterly no problem, and he'd page the driver. There was no extra charge (I offered!), and the driver came at lunchtime. I was awake this time, and heard his knock---which was a very faint one, by the way. He apologized for taking so long to get back to me. Trust me, that it was past high noon did not make me at all angry! I was grateful he and the company were willing to work with my request.
The new adapter is the new model number.
There are several good guys in this story: my friend who shared his computer; the sales agent (if for no other reason than she didn't make me stay on hold but a minute or so); the FexEx man on the phone, and the FedEx driver.
And when the warranty's replacement adapter shows up, I will be happy to have it, too, and will be curious to see which model number they send.
Today also brought several more birthday greetings, and a visit from my friend Wendy, who brought Robbie, one of her Golden Retrievers, with her. She also brought me two wonderful gifts. I'll tell you about them soon, but a hint is that she gets some good guy credits, too.
Happy Birthday, Bob!