Comments | aeron_lanart: Computer Woes AGAIN

aeron_lanart

Computer Woes AGAIN

May 09, 2010 19:15

My boot drive has failed, taking some wip fic with it (not much thank goodness). I think I now need to subsist on bread and water for the next 6 months so I can get a new desktop PC, or at least another drive. Can't live with just Victoria, though she does a sterling job of making do. Annoying thing is I needed to do some stuff for work and now I ( Read more... )

waffle, wtf

Comments 11

padawanpooh May 9 2010, 18:30:57 UTC

*hugs*This happened to me a few years ago and I feel your pain.

*sends cookies*

aeron_lanart May 9 2010, 18:36:11 UTC

This is my 3rd drive failure in about a year. The first I recovered everything except emails, the second I lost everything but had it mostly backed up. This one? I'll have to see - it's a physical failure of the drive so I doubt anything will be recoverable mores the pity. I haven't done a back up for about 2 months either. Ack.

The computer is nearly 3 and a half years old - the current drives are older than that and the graphics card and memory are younger. About time for a new one I think. Bloody money.

padawanpooh May 9 2010, 18:50:14 UTC

Can you buy one secondhand?

Also, I email important docs (like coursework) to my webmail account - would that be something useful for you to do?

aeron_lanart May 9 2010, 19:21:50 UTC

I have about 9 different email accounts, 3 of which are webmail only and the others can be accessed as webmail until I download the messages. None of my stuff is mega-important except to me. The work stuff is mostly backed up, just the emails I sent myself from work will have to be sent again.

(The comment has been removed)

Re: *delurking from fic stalking* aeron_lanart May 9 2010, 19:13:17 UTC

I have a useful ex who will see if he can do the data recovery - it was him who managed to get all the files from the previously crashed drive. Thing is, this drive is not spinning properly so I don't know how much he will get. I haven't lost much as I hadn't written much recently so my last back up has most of my fic.

I'm in a better situation than last year when I thought I'd lost *everything* as I got myself a 1Tb external drive at that time and put all the rescued files on it - that's the one I back up to on a monthly basis usually.

merucha May 9 2010, 19:09:35 UTC

Crap. It seems to be the time for things just going ppppfffffttt. I had the air-conditioning go (and when you live in Florida, and your parents are in their seventies, you need to bloody thing!). Then the water heater. Then one of the ceiling fans. Even with my rather healthy salary, it's going to be tight for a few months...

aeron_lanart May 9 2010, 19:17:56 UTC

Ack! That would be like my heating not working in the winter of 2008/2009. Not good.

I have 2 options a) just get a HD for now or b) invest in a new barebones package PC (with the same hd that I'd buy on its own) which will give me greater system stability but costs a lot more!

In either case I'd have to install the OS and any software I wanted myself, but that's no biggie, just time consuming and I've done it plenty of times before.

merucha May 10 2010, 04:09:49 UTC

I recently had to replace my beloved HP laptop with a new one. I went for a basic ACER Aspire 5532 with Windows 7 Home Premium. It has turned out ok, although the HP still has backup/bedroom duties. (I had a technogeek friend of my sister give it a thorough overhaul. It has issues with internet connectivity but otherwise does ok).

I'm putting together enough $$$ for a good photography laptop, but that will run me in the thousands, and these days all I do is a little photo processing and some embroidery design besides my writing, so I'm not in the market quite yet and can take my time saving money.

The ACER was the fastest/least expensive solution. Sometimes that's the best you can do!

aeron_lanart May 10 2010, 06:02:48 UTC

Just getting HD for now. Rest of the PC will come later, after I've been paid. It's less than £30 for the drive. I have Victoria the eeePC so wouldn't consider getting a laptop as well - I like the expandability and upgradeability of desktop PCs and I'm using the desktop monitor/keyboard/mouse anyway as my set up for the desk minimises any problems I get from my carpal tunnel syndrome.

rustydog May 9 2010, 20:18:35 UTC

Gah! I went through a series of hard drive failures a few years ago, and it really sucks. I'm sorry you're having these problems!

aeron_lanart May 9 2010, 21:09:41 UTC

It's more annoying than anything else as since the last one I've been keeping fairly regular backups. Ordered my new drive and even splashed out on a genuine copy of Windows XP, which is still what I prefer to use so I can get the PC back up and running without involving my ex, though hopefully he will come in useful for getting the old files off the dead drive.