RIP

I think I had better more explain the “RIP” quote post I uploaded yesterday. It all started last week when I could not not boot my computer, here at the office, when I came in the morning. I did not think too much of the issue since I was busy with some other projects. but I was a little irritated since I was not able to track my data. So by late Wednesday so last week I had had enough frustration and I did open up a ticket with State Information Technology (IT), which means I make a call to the “trouble line” an usually with in an hour someone calls me back and asks some question and if they cannot fix the issue they will send out one of the IT people, who usually doe a good job of finding the problem and getting me back in the game of work. By ten o clock the next morning, Cindy, our tech support person was out and went through the whole bit,”as the system plugged in”, “Are th drive free of materials” and on and on all the things I have learned may prevent my computers from booting up over the year and none o these thing worked.

Cindy had been watching me go through the boot up process over my shoulder and what she saw interested her to the point that I knew I needed to power up my chair and back away from the system Cindy was taking the challenge. With me safely out of the way Cindy dived into the ritual of saving the system. Was using all her secrete signs and codes on the little computer, and nothing seemed to work. Cindy worked the little CPU over for about thirty minutes and announced she was going to have to “bench it” meaning she was going to have to physically take the system over to her office where I guess things are set up for the heavy duty work: brain surgery. Cindy did assure me that something was definitely wrong and she feels the hard drive may have crashed. Really, this did not alarm me too much, I really did figure that if Cindy could not figure out what how to reboot the system surly she had a way to access hard drive and harvest data I have been compiling for years. I really, Cindy is state IT they can do anything computer related. So my little HP was headed to CPU hospital and I found out later to CPU heaven.

Luckily I have a back up system, literally a back up system, in fact, I have two, I have a little Compaq which was used by Tory—or the other operator—before she left and I also have the lap top we got a couple off years ago but has only been used for broadcasting our INTERNET interview show. So the lap to is basically new and one of the better machines in the office. Cindy plugged in the Compaq and I was back in business sorta. A computer like shoes or glasses is something a person has to get used to, especially a computer. Each system is different and doe things their own way and since we though the computer switcheroo was only temporary I did not think to have the printer installed or the “Groupwise” ( State- E-mail system) configured to work off this computer, my stored passwords are gone and my bookmarks too!! I can access my State e mail if I come into the Groupwise via the INTERNET and I can at least read my emails and write emails but I cannot access my “Address books” I can store appointments to the calendar and other little things. Late Thursday Cindy called and let me know that my CPU had “pass on” the hard had crashed and there was nothing she could do and could not access any of the store data but her supervisor had ordered some special software and the supervisor wanted to try to glen some of the data if possible.

It was late in the day on Thursday my Friday so I figured what the heck I'll wit till monday to get back up and running and maybe if they can save some of my number I'll be OK.

This has been a busy week and I have had meetings away from my office forcing me to spend a good bit of time on public transit and I was half expecting to get back from my meetings Tuesday to have resolution to my issue but no Cindy, I called left a message and a little before closing Cindy called and let me know that her supervisor's “hail Mary” had indeed failed and my little HP was indeed flatline and we just better move on.

So here it is on Thursday and I am waiting for Cindy to show up and we can do th grand switch to the laptop, install Groupwise the way n it is supposed to be and , yeah, Cindy was all “let's get you a docking station for the lap top, she thought she had some laying round from employees who have”moved on”. I have calls in for her and hopefully she'll turn up later today. I really need to get some work done—this waiting is getting real old.