Wow, I surprised you could even remember all the different problems you had. Welcome back.
-- Bruce Wednesday, January 17, 2007, 8:24:17 AM, you wrote: Eac> Computer woes kept me away for about 3-31/2 weeks. Think it was the latter. Eac> Some may remember I had just got a new computer, a AMD 64X2. My old desktop Eac> still worked, but I was getting blue error screens (Windows) more and more. Eac> Plus it was only a Pentium III, so it was slow and I was pushing the memory Eac> and that was a problem too. So I figured time for an upgrade. Eac> The new computer is fine, except for not having enough drive bays. I posted Eac> about two days worth of messages to the list before I had problems. I decided Eac> to network my old desktop with my new so I could copy files easier, not have Eac> to format and copy stuff to about 50 CDs. Eac> Uh. I think that took two weeks all by itself. First I tried just Ethernet Eac> cables -- a friend had told me that would work. Nope. Tried a crossover cable. Eac> Nope. Got a USB cable with software that worked. Except the USB cable while Eac> file copying would time out now and then. Eac> I also have an old LaserJet that needed a parallel port which the new Eac> machine doesn't have. A guy at Fry's convinced me I needed a print server thingee, Eac> and that didn't work either. Eac> So I went back to my Belkin router. When I got my router about a year and a Eac> half ago or more, I bought it because it could also be used just as a Eac> gateway, since I did not have broadband. Plugged Eac> everything in that and, bingo, it Eac> worked. Could also network in the laptop, wireless to the router. I had Eac> stopped using it wireless between old desktop and laptop because an upstairs Eac> neighbor complained that it interfered with his radio. Eac> Took back the print server, and finally found a simple parallel to USB Eac> cable. The simple solution to make the LaserJet work. The other had been overkill. Eac> But once the home network worked, my modem no longer did. Trying to sign Eac> onto AOL it seemed it kept trying to go through my network, although I kept Eac> trying to configure it just for phone modem. Eac> So I gave up and ordered a cable modem and service from Comcast. Got the Eac> self install kit, finally. Tried to set it up. Didn't work. Nothing in their Eac> literature/box said that you have to get the service turned on first. In fact it Eac> implied you could set up an account just using their software, at least if Eac> you are an existing Comcast TV customer. Well, finally called them. Yup, you Eac> have to call them to set up service first. Got all that done. Still didn't Eac> work. Called back a couple of times, finally they sent out a technician. There Eac> were filters on the cable nodes that he had to remove. He said they are Eac> supposed to that every time, send a technician out when some starts service, as Eac> this whole area has filters. Duh. Eac> While all this was going on, my old desktop stopped booting up. Have finally Eac> fixed that. Seems maybe I have a bad outlet that tripped the surge Eac> suppressor and it corrupted the BIOS boot up. Pressing F1 Eac> and redoing BIOS setup fixed Eac> that. But until I got around to it, I was a bit worried my board had fried. Eac> Still worried about the outlet. Eac> Well, everything works now. All computers -- new desktop, old desktop, and Eac> laptop are home networked -- cable modem is fast, fast, and now I can get AOL Eac> free. Eac> I should have made this long story brief. Except, frankly, I couldn't quite Eac> believe it -- what kept not working or going wrong -- as it happened. Eac> And if I wasn't pretty darn computer literate, what would I have done? Eac> Geeze. I pity the poor novices. Eac> Sometimes I really hate computers. Eac> When I don't love them. Eac> Marnie aka Doe :-) -- PDML Pentax-Discuss Mail List [email protected] http://pdml.net/mailman/listinfo/pdml_pdml.net
