welcome to the Internet
Sun Nov 3 22:07:17 EST 2013
I spent most of the afternoon at (Ad-Hoc Singers' director) Louise Lee's apartment.
Another disappointment of the laptop was the tap-click trackpad. It doesn't have the proper driver installed to control disable this. (Gee, just like my work laptop. It's not like the people manufacturing the computer don't know exactly what drivers it needs....) This will be a project for another day, but I explained to Louise that if she seems to get unintended selections, clicks from the trackpad are probably what's going on.
The Internet setup was more of a challenge. The WiFi set up went well enough, using the CD that came with the router. Of course, it all should have been doable through a web browser using the router's admin screens, except I didn't see anything in what little printed documentation came with the router to tell you its default IP address and account/password for access. But anyway, once the laptop and the router established a rapport, the router couldn't see the Internet. Eventually the browser loaded a page from Comcast (the ISP) about activating the service. (Doesn't it seem scummy that Comcast's been charging her for this for months, even though it's never been activated?) It wanted an account number and phone number, but Louise didn't have an old bill or any other paperwork with the account number. It did take her phone number, birthdate, and the last four digits of her Social Security Number as an alternate identification. With that she could create an account (login + password). (Again, if she didn't have an account, what have they been charging her for?) And with an account, she could activate her Internet service.
She's got her Nook (tablet) on the Internet, and her laptop, which I hope she will start using, since a bigger screen and a keyboard will make a lot of things much easier on the web.Then Louise took me out to dinner at the Lebanese Taverna a couple of blocks away. We both had nice (but very different) lamb dishes. The menu had the humorous explanation that the owner was an immigrant who bought the Athenian Taverna, but when he changed the menu he could afford to change only half the sign. Business has prospered since.
[This entry was originally posted as http://syntonic-comma.dreamwidth.org/636069.html on Dreamwidth (where there are
comments).]
I spent most of the afternoon at (Ad-Hoc Singers' director) Louise Lee's apartment.
- removing her old (analog) TV
- setting up her new TV stand (really easy, sturdy; very nice)
- setting up her new HDTV
- setting up her DVD player/VHS recorder
- setting up her new/refurbished Windows (ugh) Lenovo laptop
- setting up her WiFi router and (Comcast) cable internet
Another disappointment of the laptop was the tap-click trackpad. It doesn't have the proper driver installed to control disable this. (Gee, just like my work laptop. It's not like the people manufacturing the computer don't know exactly what drivers it needs....) This will be a project for another day, but I explained to Louise that if she seems to get unintended selections, clicks from the trackpad are probably what's going on.
The Internet setup was more of a challenge. The WiFi set up went well enough, using the CD that came with the router. Of course, it all should have been doable through a web browser using the router's admin screens, except I didn't see anything in what little printed documentation came with the router to tell you its default IP address and account/password for access. But anyway, once the laptop and the router established a rapport, the router couldn't see the Internet. Eventually the browser loaded a page from Comcast (the ISP) about activating the service. (Doesn't it seem scummy that Comcast's been charging her for this for months, even though it's never been activated?) It wanted an account number and phone number, but Louise didn't have an old bill or any other paperwork with the account number. It did take her phone number, birthdate, and the last four digits of her Social Security Number as an alternate identification. With that she could create an account (login + password). (Again, if she didn't have an account, what have they been charging her for?) And with an account, she could activate her Internet service.
She's got her Nook (tablet) on the Internet, and her laptop, which I hope she will start using, since a bigger screen and a keyboard will make a lot of things much easier on the web.Then Louise took me out to dinner at the Lebanese Taverna a couple of blocks away. We both had nice (but very different) lamb dishes. The menu had the humorous explanation that the owner was an immigrant who bought the Athenian Taverna, but when he changed the menu he could afford to change only half the sign. Business has prospered since.
[This entry was originally posted as http://syntonic-comma.dreamwidth.org/636069.html on Dreamwidth (where there are
comments).]