Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Technology is Weird

Yes, I know. Technology is supposed to be logical, esp. the computer which does whiat you tell it, no more, no less, and doesn't read your mind.

Except when it goes for a very strange walk on the wild side.

Long story. Current Dell is slower than molasses in Janary and won't live forever. S.O. lobbying for me to join the Apple folks. Last Christmas, a relative found a Powerbook on Craig's List for a good price, and I bought it.

The fun begins. My god, how the money goes out. First I got a box to switch back and forth between computers using my nice new monitor. All's well, except that we can't get the old printer to work with the old AB switch box. Remember AB switch boxes. Ye gods, we had three!

So we order a fancy new plug for the computer and the Apple doesn't like it either. I have to say the Apple people told us this wouldn't work, but we thought if we downloaded the right drivers, etc.

All for naught. It becomes obvious the Powerbook doesn't like my old faithful friend that uncomplainingly printed out six of my novels and countless other docs, the HP4 Laserjet. It has been a workhorse, but a sale at Staples, etc., and we bought a new Lexmark printer, although the printer will be hooked up to the old Dell until I decide what to do with Money, the software, which doesn't run on Apple.
I've heard horror stories of converting Money to Quicken and am wavering about what to do. Que faire? As we used to stay in French class.

Yesterday, a day when my writing group meets and I need seven (7) copies of my work, we decide to install the new Lexmark. Stupid idea. Really dumb.

So we couldn't make the Powerbook print, and then we couldn't make the Dell print. It simply would not put the Lexmark into the spot where the printers belong.

Grumbling and swearing, I put my work on a thumb drive and S.O. printed it. We decide to use a new cable to hook up the printer without the damn switch box.

So today, without doing anything, I pulled up a document and absent mindedly hit the print key, forgetting that the printer wasn't speaking to me.

Except it was. For whatever reason, the Dell thinks the Lexmark is the HP. Technology is weird. But that's O.K. with me. At least I have a printer. Now to figure out the Powerbook. Then we're golden.

Grapeshot

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