Hi Virginia. Thanks for writing.. What a story.. I envy you. that you have such a great attitude about things.. I do mostly..(but sometimes, I do tend to get upset. and then feel.. Woe is me... LOL..
But you're right.. This has been a learning experience... If you would've told me.. just over 5 years ago( with my divorce). that I'd be putting my computer together.. MYSELF.. and also... Moms computer.. and learning all this stuff..(with the help of PC Works, and all the great people here).. I would never have believed it... And now.. 5 years later.. I have another new computer. and I'm putting that together.. as well as learning a new OS.. I had Windows 98 before. and XP Professional is different..(also.. I was a Netscape user.. for everything) and I've switched to IE. and Outlook Express.. so I'm learning all that too.(and that has been fun. I have to admit). I have to take it all in stride. and just go with it.. I know that.. and just realize - that things can happen, BUT, as long as they're FINALLY willing to make it right.. Thats okay... But I guess I just didnt' like being lied to.. That bothered me alot.. and I found the trust - in Dell.. was a bit diminished... But then again, it's with any large company. I guess. Thank you so much for sharing your story.. You are an inspiration to me.. Helene ----- Original Message ----- From: "Virginia Da Costa" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Tuesday, October 14, 2003 7:27 PM Subject: PCWorks: Re: Dell Story > Helene, I've been following your Dell story with great sympathy! The first > computer ( a 486 with 66Mhz CPU,4 Mb RAM) I ever had (Xmas 1995) when I was > a complete and utter technophobic newbie, came from a mail order company; > Within 3 months I had gone through FOUR hard drives, a faulty monitor and > video card, a cracked case after the tower had been damaged in transit, dead > battery which caused loss of all the CMOS settings and umpteen other > problems. Tech support was utterly useless; I wrote complaints to the Trade > Standards Association, all to no avail. However, I was lucky enough to have > a genius of a neighbour who helped me patiently through all of my problems > and got the machine up and working again. I still have it in use today, same > spec but upgraded to 32 Mb RAM, running Win 3.1 and OS/2, and it's the most > reliable machine I have -- never crashes, never susceptible to V*rii, and > just perfect for many everyday tasks. > > The moral of this story is this: If I hadn't had all these problems, I would > probably never have learnt anything about the inner workings of computers > and the vagaries of software programs. Every time you have a problem you > learn > something new -- if all goes smoothly all the time, there is nothing to > learn. > So take courage and learn from all your trials and tribulations. > It may be a hassle to keep reinstalling things, but life isn't half as much > fun > if you never have problems to solve! > > Another thing I have learnt is that it's better, if possible, not to buy a > packaged system. If you build your own, you choose your own components, > customise your system with the OS of your choice, learn how everything > works, and know what to look for (mostly) if things go wrong. The new parts > are all sealed in the manufacturers' packages, so no danger of being fobbed > off with refurbished stuff; if a part is faulty it is immediately replaced > under guarantee. The only downside is that this is probably more expensive > in the long run than buying a ready-made system. > > Look on all your troubles as a learning experience and before long you will > know so much that all your friends and colleagues will call on you for help. > It happened to me -- from clueless newbie to amateur "geek" in > just a few years (always with the help of our friends from PCWorks!) ============= PCWorks Mailing List ================= Don't see your post? Check our posting guidelines & make sure you've followed proper posting procedures, http://pcworkers.com/rules.htm Contact list owner <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Unsubscribing and other changes: http://pcworkers.com =====================================================
