It's me!
I didn't fall off the face of the Earth after all! The last anybody heard of me was that I had purchased a defective (to be nice) computer and I wasn't sure that I could get the money back, but I did. Now, backwards to May--first I bought a new computer at Wal-Mart. (Of course it had Vista. The newest thing, don't ya know?) That copy of Vista on that HP was so full of bugs! Between them (computer and Vista) they gave me a fit (I never wanted to see either one of them again. I threatened the computer. I said to it "If you keep behaving like this, I'll pick you up and throw you out the front door, only I really won't because you're too expensive." My threat didn't work. The computer was just as obnoxious as ever.) I couldn't work but 5 or maybe 10 minutes at the time online because the computer would shut down and I'd see the BSOD--I haven't seen one of those since Windows 98. I remember thinking "Oh, so the blue screen still looks like I remember." There was always a message on the BSOD about a memory dump. I did like the look of Vista with the pretty pastel colors (I love pastels.) The first two computers behaved just like what I have described above. Both of them were taken back to Wal-Mart and I got my money back. After I received my economic stimulus check, I asked Mama if she would mind driving me to Office Depot. She said "No" and off we went, with the $300 from Bush and some other money that I had saved. Mama and I had a deal--she would lend me some money so that I could have a computer again. We went to the Office Depot parking lot, got out, walked in the nice cool store, and Mama saw a display of office furniture. She stayed there. I, on the other hand, walked farther back so that I could find the perfect computer. I saw the large red signs that hang above each aisle and I read them as I walked and there wasn't one that said "Computers". There was "Software", "Printers" and lots of other things, but there was not a sign saying "Computers". I just thought that they'd have one because I definitely know that Office Depot sells computers. Now as I walked toward the back of the store, I passed a great looking high-end unit. I read the specs on it and took a slip of paper with the model number and the specs on it. I also picked up a paper for the 24" monitor, but I had made a deal with myself since Mama had been nice enough to loan me the major part of the price of the computer. I wanted another 19" monitor (I had a Gateway one. That really was nice. So is the HP I bought three weeks ago today.) I continued going to the back wall of the store where they have the books. I had determined to purchase a book on Vista. I had made up my mind that Vista wasn't going to beat me--I had too much fun on computers, plus I used them to work too. I found three books on Vista and I looked through all of them quickly. For my level of expertise, I selected the correct book. It is one of the "for Dummies" books. The name of it is "Vista Desk Reference for Dummies". There is a lot of material contained in that book. I took the book and headed back toward where I saw that computer and I was also looking for a clerk. I did find one. I gave him the paper with the model number, manufacturer, and specs on it and said to him, "I want that computer and I want a 19" monitor." He showed me the 19" monitors and I picked one out and he got the stock number and model number of it and said that he'd have to go to the back to get both the monitor and the computer. I said that I'd be up in the front of the store. I walked up to the front of the store to find Mama. She was sitting in what looked like a canvas backed office chair to me. I told here that the clerk had gone to get the computer. I asked her if she wanted to see the display one and she said that she did so I walked with her to the spot where I had seen the high end HP. The clerk was gone for quiet a while and so we had some time to look at other things besides computers. I noticed that we were next to a display of three ring binders and sheet protectors. The binders were plastic. Mama has been wanting to put the love letters that Daddy wrote to her when they were engaged into an album, but they are so old that the paper flakes off if you touch a page. David (my brother) had told her to put the letters in sheet protectors and to put the sheet protectors in a three ring binder. She has the letters, the sheet protectors, and the pink binder. Now all she has to do is to find the time to put the three together. While Mama was looking at the sheet protectors and the 3 ring binders, I saw a display of flash drives. After I discovered what I was looking at I couldn't take my eyes off of this display. At first, I was helping Mama to select a nice binder that was big enough and was sturdy and yet pretty. Then, I was free to look around and when I did I looked to my right and I thought that I was looking at a display of cigarette lighters (I don't smoke, by the way, but I've seen cigarette lighters). This did not make any sense to me. Then I thought "Flash drives--that's what these are!" I moved over a step or two and picked one off the rack and sure enough, the card said that the item was a flash drive. I looked at it and put it back. However, I looked some more since the clerk still hadn't come out with the computer. When I did, I discovered that there was a 1 gig flash drive and a 2 gig flash drive. I wondered,"Now which one do I want ?" I wanted the 2 gig, but the price was above $12. The 1 gig was either 8 or 9 dollars. The clerk finally came out to the front of the store near the cashier (we were standing there not realizing that the clerk would be a long while.) He told me that they had one that they could sell, but it was the display model but he himself had opened it and put it out the day before. He gave us a great discount for purchasing it. The cashier was a little confused, because I had the Vista book and the flash drive and then the clerk came with the computer and the monitor. The cashier was going to add everything together and give us the total of all of it. Mama explained to the cashier that I had some cash and that I was going to pay what I had and she'd give a check for the rest. The clerk asked Mama if she had an Office Depot credit card because if she did she wouldn't have to give a big check, just a small(er) amount over several months. Mama was approved for the Office Depot Credit Card and I signed up for their Rewards card and there's a great rebate on that computer. Now, we are in the process of checking out, but before we do, I ask the clerk if he would mind attaching the monitor cable to the computer. I can never get that cable attached! I used to be able to, but I'm losing the strength in my hands, I guess. The clerk did attach the cable and put everything back in the box and then he brought the computer and monitor up to the cashier, but before the cashier rang up the computer, I paid for my Vista book and my flash drive. Then Mama paid for her 3 ring binder and her sheet protectors. Then came the computer and the monitor which the clerk loaded in Mama's car for us. We thanked him very much and went off to eat lunch at Chick Fil-A. We both like their chicken sandwiches. Both Mama and I had Cokes to drink. When we got home, I took the boxes out of the car (one by one) and gradually I got them in the house. The monitor wasn't bad (must not have been --Mama carried that for me, but that computer was heeaavvyyy!) I finally got everything inside, thanked Mama, greeted Little Bit (my dog) and collapsed in the easy chair. Later that night, I began reading in my Vista book (I read it aloud to Little Bit. I did that so she'd hear my voice and be satisfied. It worked.) The next afternoon I finished the Vista book. That night I decided to take the computer into the office and unpack it and set it up (nothing to it, right? Wrong! At least that night.) I carried the computer little by little into the office and set the box on the floor. Then I sat down in my office chair and rolled my chair over to the box and began to open the box. I finally got the box open and the contents out, but that box is not in one piece any more. I tried to keep it in one piece, just in case the computer misbehaved and had to be taken back, but no luck. I had to tear the box on one of the sides. I tried to open it from the top, but either HP or that very nice clerk sealed the box a little too well (I vote for the clerk. He did great! Nobody wants a computer that has things missing like cables, etc.) Anyhoo, maybe the box being destroyed is a good sign. I unpacked the computer and read the books HP sent. I read the books before I got the computer out of the box. My Daddy always told my brother David and me "When you get something new always read the instructions before you use it." That's what I always do and I'm sure that David does too. Again, back to the computer. I had finished the four books. I unpacked the smaller boxes first. The first one that I opened contained the mouse and other things. The second box that I opened contained the keyboard. Then I started to get the computer out. It wouldn't budge. At all. I tried several times and several positions (for me) but this new computer wanted to live in its box (at least it seemed like that to me.) I tried one last time and a piece of styrofoam broke. I thought, "This is the key. Get the styrofoam out and you'll have no trouble getting the computer out. Before I was finished, there was not a whole piece of styrofoam in that box, except for one. "This is good," I thought as I began to try and lift the computer out of the box. No luck at all. By this time I was getting frustrated (just a little 
with the box. I tried one last time to get the computer out with the styrofoam piece inside, but again the computer wouldn't budge. I tried to get the styrofoam out, but that sucker seemed glued to the bottom of the box (I know it wasn't.) I tried to break off some of the styrofoam. I thought then the I could start to lift the computer out of the box, but the styrofoam wouldn't break. This is when I tore the side of the box (one of the sides.) I was careful to tear the side that did not have the serial number. After tearing the box I lifted the computer onto my desk here and began to search for the setup poster among the many books and boxes. I found the set up poster and read it. I know how to set up a computer without it, but I figure that they've put the poster in the box, and I've paid for it, so I really should look at it. After that, I decided to go on and take the monitor out of the box so that I could hook it up to the computer. When I lifted the computer out, I noticed that the cable that the Office Depot clerk attached was still there. All I had to do was to hook up the other end to the monitor. I read the documentation on the monitor. It was easy to get out of the box. (the monitor.) For that matter, so was the documentation. After I had both the computer and the monitor on my desk, I set about the task of hooking them up and going online. The monitor shipped with an unattached base. I guess a lot of them do. Putting the base on was no problem. However, putting the screen on the base and getting it to stay was something else again. Finally after 30-45 minutes I had the monitor assembled. Then I started to attach the other end of that pesky cable that the clerk had attached to the computer for me (the cable that comes from the monitor to the computer). When I bought my Gateway computer, I was able to attach the cable to my monitor. However, HP and Gateway put their connectors in two different places. The HP connector for this cable is upside down (at least to me it was) so this took quite a bit of time, but I finally got it attached. I got the monitor positioned and it was ready to go online, but the computer wasn't yet ready. I set about my task of hooking up the mouse and the keyboard first, but these two jacks did not want to go to their connectors. I finally gave up and called HP and asked them which way these two jacks were supposed to go in their connectors. The tech told me and I had one, but when I tried the other one, I couldn't get it in, so I took the first one out (the one that I was able to get in--don't ask me why I did that. I know that I was tired and I was frustrated and the silly jack was supposed to go into the connector like the lady said.) I finally decided to forget about the mouse and the keyboard for the night, but to hook up everything else. I did get everything else hooked up. I had decided to call the ISP the next day and ask them to send Tom (the tech). They did, but back to the night before Tom came. After I had everything hooked up but the mouse and the keyboard, I was almost going to go back in the living room, but I wanted to see Vista (just a little.) I pressed the power switch and the computer came on and I wished that I had been able to get the mouse and keyboard connected (I had checked--the pins weren't bent.) The next day when Tom came, I led him to the office and he connected the mouse and the keyboard in under 5 minutes. Then he pressed down on the power switch and--------Nothing Happened!!! He tried again. Still no power. He told me that the power supply was dead or the computer was asleep. I had told him that I had turned it on for just a few minutes the night before and it was working fine and then I shut it down. He asked me how I shut it down and I said that I pressed the power switch. He checked something inside the case and he told me that I should contact HP and let them know what happened and tell them what he had said about the computer possible being asleep and they would be able to let me know what to do. I did contact HP. Several times. The reason for the many calls is that I called their tech support number and the answering machine wants a credit card. I don't have a credit card. I don't have a debit card at the moment. I am an impulse shopper, so I do not think having either a credit card or a debit card would be a good idea. I finally called an HP number that did not have anything to do with tech support and I told them that I had called their tech support but I got no farther than the prerecorded messages each time because I was asked for a credit card and I didn't have a credit card and I had a brand new computer that was completly dead. As in doornail. The nice young man said to me, "Did you call 1-800-HP-Invent?" I told him that I had not called that number and he advised me to use that number, because if you used that number, you did not have to have a credit card. I called this number and spoke with a tech and he sent out a power supply to me. I received it in four days. I thought that was great because now I was going to be on the Internet. The tech had assured me that I could install the power supply myself. He said that all I would have to have was a screwdriver. I said that I had one. The tech also said that he was sending instructions on how to install a power supply. The instructions would be in the box. When the box came from FedEx, I signed for it and then later that day I openedthe box. When I saw all those cables attached to the power supply, I got scared that I couldn't install it by myself and I began to look for the instructions. All that was in the box was a packing slip, a "Thank you for choosing HP" letter. (I read all of it--no instructions) the power supply, and the styrofoam or whatever that was. It was gray and easy to fold, but it would protect something. I called Tom again and he told me that he'd come the next day (that was three days ago now) and put the power supply in. He did and the computer's working fine. Tom told me that Vista and dial up don't work well at all. He was right. Next month, I"m getting broadband. Thanks for reading this (very) long post. It's good to be back.
