[eskielover]

for a moment....before I go find a good free anti-virus program for my computer & work on some financial stuff that I couldn't get to because my lap top computer crashed & this desk top had the internet card go bad on it awhile ago & I just never got around to fixing it until I HAD TO.....I always work that way for some reason.

Was sort of proud of myself......( more like shocked). My computer engineering from years ago came in handy so that I wasn't intimidated & took the desk top apart & replaced the internet interface card that was bad. Saved me a few bucks doing it myself. Had never taken this desk top apart....so I ended up taking out all the screws on the back. DUH....really only had 2 twistie screws that needed undone & the side of the computer came off.....not the whole outside case. Unpluged the old & pulged in the new. Then I plugged in all the electric & HELD MY BREATH....wondering if I would have internet. Powered it up & bwah-lah it's really working.....wooooohoooo. I always fix everyone elses technical things.....but usually my own don't work the way they should.....feel good that I haven't lost my touch....working with computer hardware. Only thing is hard to get used to is the keyboard.....I used that laptop so long that this really feels awkard & I keep trying to use that laptop touch mouse...like driving an automatic automobile after driving a stick shift all my life.....where's the clutch....where's the mousepad ......oh well....will just have to get used to it as I have no money to buy a new laptop or any other smaller item.

The laptop had been failing for the last 5 months....keys falling off the keyboard. The picture was bright orange where it should have been black. I couldn't get the interface with the printer to work & the final straw was that the interface with the internet QUIT early last week. I do need to take care of some financial things I kept putting off like I knew I shouldn't.....then CRASH & I couldn't.....so will be away for another few days, trying to figure out how to financially handle my property taxes that are due the end of this month & of course, it crashed right before I always pay online, my internet bill & my electric bill.....will get that done today also.

It's amazing how isolated I felt not being able to get onto the internet & expecially here. I had a few doggie medical things I needed to look up & NO INTERNET made it impossible. It's amazing how dependent I have become on the internet for everything from doggie health information, human health information, & recipes....when I want to make something different to eat.

A friend of mine fractured her back last week falling off a horse....same vertebrae (L1) that I fractured earlier this year (also falling off a horse) only her fracture was a burst fracture & mine was only a compression fracture....she was in the hospital for 6 days. Her husband was on vacation last week, but has to go back to work....so I will be going over to her house to help her get lunch, pick up the kids from school & make sure they have dinner taken care of & the horses fed & put up for the night. Her fracture is serious enough that there is still a possibility of surgery. I remember not being able to life more than 5 pounds this year....for 3 months while I was healing & just want to make sure that she doesn't hurt herself in the process of trying to take care of herself alone. Something I would do for my own daughter if she were living this close to me. I also remember being in the same situation after knee reconstruction, fracturing my hip from a horse fall & even this last back fracture. My own mother always tried to help me as much as possible when I really needed help.....& my friend doesn't have any family here, so I asked her if she would like the help & she gladly accepted......we do have a wonderful friend network in this town which is just like family....something I never experienced in my life before now. Not sure if this is how all small towns are like....but I sure love this small town I now call home.

Oh well, need to get off & find a good FREE anti-virus program. I had Norton which the last time they extended the year by 6 months because of some shady business practices I pointed out to them.....but swore I would never buy their program again. It actually caught a virus that came through an email last April....an email from UPS telling me that I had a package coming & the shipping details were attached.....I thought I did have a package coming....so the timing was BAD.....virus caught, but it messed up a few programs & accessing my programs was one of the things that got messed up. Who knows, maybe some of the problems I am having with my lap top might have come from....but it was also getting old (6 years for a lap-top is old for hardward that I kept on 24/7). Hate that this has to be physically connected to the internet, so can't sit in bed & play on the computer.....oh well, maybe I will go to bed at night rather than work on the computer....not as comfortable sitting in a hard wood chair. My back gets sore quickly when sitting in one position for any length of time & in bed, I could lean back on my pillows & work on the computer comfortably. Oh well.....at least I can get on the internet now.

Funny how much more stuff I got done around the house when I wasn't sitting at my computer & on the internet. Will have to keep my working around the house momentum going.....got a lot to do before winter hits. Winter too cold to work in the house & in the summer, it's too hot....only good time of year to get anything done is spring & fall, & I mess up being able to do anything last spring. My house is a wreck.

When I get the anti-virus on the computer, will feel safer getting back on the internet also....don't want to take any chances & mess up the only computer I have working now.....

Does feel good to not be so isloated now....even though it was only last week when it crashed. Getting this computer set up & I lost all my bookmarks........gonna take some time to get settled on this computer also. I don't like Internet Explorer....my laptop wouldn't load FireFox....& Google Chrome was not my favorite, but it did save my bookmarks well.....ah, nothing like starting all over again. Seems when you get everything set up to work easy is when the computer gets old & dies & no reason to put money into a very old computer to keep it running......

Ah, my quick stoping by turned into another eskielover novel.....

[ECHOES]

Good job!!

FWIW, I use only Microsoft Security Essentials and it works great. The local computer guy who writes for the newspaper suggested it.

Hope to see you back again soon!

[Travelinglady]

Hey, Eskie! I'm sure impressed that you know how to work on computers. And good to hear from you!

[gma45]

Glad you stopped by to say Hey! That is great you can fix your computer. I miss living in a small town so much! That is wonderful you can help your friend out when she really needs it. Hope to see ya around soon!

[Sabrina]

Glad you were able to fix your computer. Have you considered one of the free anti-virus packages available on the internet. I use Avast and it works like a charm. Doesn't cost a thing.

[eskielover]

Ok, that was a major process This computer has been sitting here OFF for probably several years.....so nothing had been updated......I was looking through the free anti-virus programs & some were just 30 day free trials....ended up going with Microsoft Security Essentials.....after finding that I didn't have service pack 3 on my computer, I went around to find how to get it on.....but not only didn't I have service pack 3, my computer didn't have service pack 2 either. I went way back & tried to get everything loaded correctly, then for some reason, the stupid Security Essentials program had an application error right at the end. When I tried to get back on the internet.....there was no way I could even access the internet...kept telling me that this program couldn't be found & this other program couldn't be found & there was an error reading several addresses.......ok, I was pulling my hair out by that point & hadn't had sleep & was just ready to throw the stupid computer across the room & I was late for my DBT group after being up all night trying to figure out what I needed to do to get this anti-virus in place so I can finally get to my financial stuff & figure out where the money for my property taxes is coming from & how to get my one last bill paid this month.

I finally got home after DBT & my psychologist yesterday afternoon & found the restore program & went back to when I knew I could get on the internet.....then I went to the little icon that tells me I have updates after proving that I could get back in the internet.....I let it do it's thing.....which went on most of the night.

Woke up late this morning & it all looked good, so I attempted to load the anti-virus......so I didn't have something else which was simple to load & it's taken the last few hours to get the anti-virus loaded & all it's current detection information & do the scan....but NOW MY COMPUTER IS PROTECTED & I can get on with my life.

Now I know I could never go back into computer engineering....my anxiety level hits sky high real fast & have no patience to deal with even simple problems when they hit me......but maybe if I really knew what I was doing rather than somewhat educated guessing, it would be a little easier & less anxiety causing.