Tag Archives: computer

Restoring My Computer (or Glad For A Backup)

Posted on October 29, 2015 | 1 comment

I’ve had my computer for close to 6 years now. That may not seem like a lot, but considering how much I use it every day (I have to do multiple jobs on my computer every week), it’s pretty impressive how long it’s lasted. I’ve been pretty good about trying to update things as they come up and making sure that I clean out old files when I can. And of course, I have an external hard drive always attached that backs up my laptop on a very regular basis.

The other day after work, I got an alert that there was an update ready for my computers. I checked the reviews online first to make sure the update was good and compatible with my computer. And once it all looked good I started the download.

The actual download of the update went fine, but when my computer rebooted and tried to install the update everything went wrong. It froze on the update and no matter how many times I tried to restart my computer it wouldn’t budge.

Finally after an hour or so of restarting I got my computer up and running again but everything was gone. There were no settings, no photos, no documents, and no downloaded apps on my computer. It was like it came straight out of the box (or more like straight out of the box 6 years ago because it was using the operating system that came with the computer when it was new).

After a minor freak out and google search on my phone on how to restore my computer from my backups, I finally got the restoration process started.

Computer Restore

Restoring my computer took about 6 hours and then resetting the last few things on it took another hour or so. I was up all night making sure that this worked because I knew that I had to work in the morning and if my computer wasn’t working I’d have to figure out how to fix it before 10am.

This entire problem was resolved pretty simply (I’m very lucky), but it made me realize how reliant I am on my computer. Obviously, I need it for work but it also has all my photos on it. And while I feel pretty good that my backup is reliable, it still terrified me that all my things might be gone.

I’m not going to try to update my computer again. I’m worried that I’ll have this issue again and I’m planning on getting a new laptop in December or January. While this laptop does an ok job, I need more storage for photos and files and it’s getting very slow and glitchy (in order to open my web browser I usually have to attempt to open it 5 or 6 times and force quit it until it works).

I know that a new computer is a really big expense and probably considered a luxury. And people may think I should buy the cheapest computer I can to save money. But those cheaper computers seem to not last as long and I won’t be able to do all the fun things that I use my computer for (editing photos, collage projects, syncing with my phone the same way). To me, it’s worth spending the extra money in order to make sure I have a computer that is good and will last me at least another 5 years.

I’m getting very excited for a new computer because I know it will work really nicely, but I’m already starting to think about how I will transfer all my data from one computer to the other. My mom is also looking at a new computer (her computer is as old or older than mine) and I want to be able to help her too.

I’m doing so much planning for this purchase that won’t happen for another month or two. But there’s nothing wrong about getting excited for something that should make my life much easier!

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Posted in Fun Stuff, Shopping

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Fall Cleaning (or Making My Workplace Spotless)

Posted on October 3, 2014 | 2 comments

I’ve always tried to keep a clean house. I do my laundry weekly, vacuum at least weekly (now that I have a vacuum again), and seem to dust and wipe down various surfaces in my house a hundred times a day.

The one place that hasn’t been super clean has been my desk. It’s not dirty, but until recently it never looked that dirty.

But now that I’m working at my desk and computer a good portion of the day 5 days a week, I’ve noticed that things have gotten a little grimy.

The one positive about being chained to my desk so many hours a day is that now I’ve cut down my computer time to only be when I’m working and then again in the evening (which is when I typically write my posts).

The bad thing is that I’m noticing the grime more and more since I have to stare at it for so long.

One day after work I searched online for how to clean the body of my laptop (I have a MacBook Pro). There were a ton of posts that came up and most had one thing in common.

They said to use a Magic Eraser.

I don’t own Magic Erasers so I went to the store to get one and see if this trick worked (and hoped it wouldn’t ruin my laptop).

It was pretty simple. Wet the Magic Eraser and then wring out most of the water. You want it to be damp and not dripping.

Then you can start cleaning. I first shut down my laptop and disconnected the power source (most websites didn’t suggest this but it seemed like common sense to me). Then I gently wiped the body of my laptop with the Magic Eraser.

It totally lived up to its name!

No joke, it was only a minute before my laptop looked clean again.

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And it worked so well, I cleaned the grime off my desk quickly too!

IMG_3835

I know I sound like a commercial for Magic Eraser. I swear I’m not. I’m just impressed at a product that really cleaned well and easily and figured that some of you might want to know how to de-grime a laptop too.

Now I have another weekly cleaning task to add to my list.

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Posted in Fun Stuff, Work

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More Computer Frustration (or Trying To Let It Go)

Posted on August 28, 2013 | 1 comment

After yesterday’s craziness on my computer, I went to bed and hoped I could figure it out tomorrow. That did not work.

I finally got the trash emptied on my computer, but then my external hard drive disappeared. So after spending a couple of hours fixing that, I thought everything was good. Until I saw that everything I deleted in the trash was back in the trash again! So I tried to empty the trash again, but weird things kept happening. Like as the trash emptied, the count went into negative numbers. How can you have a negative number of the items that need to be deleted?

I googled and YouTubed solutions but really haven’t seemed to be able to find one.

Then I took a step back. Maybe I can’t fix this right now. I did successfully delete some files that allowed me to have more room on my computer to update the programs I needed to update. And there are a few more programs like Garage Band that I don’t use that I could get rid of.

I’m making this problem more than it really is. I have a tendency to do that.

Then I tried to relate what’s going on to my weight loss (as I tend to do as well). I’ve done more research on weight loss than most people. I’ve read hundreds of diet books. I know the science behind weight loss and the numbers to track. I’ve had medical testing done to see if there is anything wrong with me so I know what symptoms to look for that could mean that my weight issues are something else.

But with all the research in the world, it hasn’t helped me. Because I need to find my solution to the problem. Just because I have a weight problem doesn’t mean it’s anything like anyone else’s weight problem. Just like the crazy problems with my computer aren’t necessarily the same as the problems I’m researching (maybe it is since the computer isn’t as individualized as a person, but just go with me on this).

What I’m saying with all this craziness is that I need to step back from the big problem and start focusing on the little things. Because fixing each of those little things can add up to one big thing.

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Posted in Tough Stuff, Weight Loss

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Trying To Cut Back On Clutter (or Why Won’t My Computer Do What I Want It To Do?!?)

Posted on August 27, 2013 | 3 comments

I’ve been working on getting rid of the excess things in my life. I have some luggage that I don’t use anymore so I’m selling it (sold 3 pieces so far and only have 1 left). I’m working on donating book to the library (there’s no need for me to keep a “real” book and e-book unless it’s something really special). I’ve done a bunch with cleaning out my closet as well.

And then the other day, I got an alert on my computer that my startup disk is full and I need to trash some items to make room (I don’t have enough room on my computer to do an update). So I’m trying to move some things I don’t use too often to my external hard drive. But this has not been going so well.

To make room for movies and videos on my external hard drive, I have to delete some of the old backups of my computer. There’s no need for me to have 27 different backup versions. 2 or 3 should be good enough. So you’d think that you could move the extra backups to the trash and then delete it, right?

Wrong.

For some reason, my computer does not want to delete any files. This is extremely frustrating. After consulting Google, I’ve tried a few force empty ideas. I’ve downloaded a couple of apps that are supposed to empty your trash when your computer won’t do it. Well, all of those apps crashed on me.

I’m getting ready to admit defeat and make an appointment at the Apple Store for them to help me.

If any of you out there have any ideas, I’d appreciate them. I won’t have time to go to the Apple Store until Monday, so there’s plenty of time for me to try new options.

I’m excited that once this is done, not only will I have more room on my computer to store photos but my computer should run a bit faster.

I’m really feeling better about things as I de-clutter. It’s nice to have room to grow in my house (before it was starting to feel a bit crowded).

I just wish my computer would be as enthusiastic about getting rid of clutter as I am!

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Posted in Tough Stuff

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