Hallelujah! My Baby Has Come Back to Life!!!

[rusty_armour]

Just as I was beginning to fear the worse, my beautiful baby was resurrected from the dead! In other words, with the aid of the poor tech support guy from Dell, I was able to fix the problem with my computer. Actually, the poor tech support guy from Dell had given up and was suggesting new hard drives I could buy. After barely taking in what he had said, I thanked him for his help and hung up the phone. Then I went back and gave it a go myself. You see, I think the guy was leading me in the right direction, but I was missing certain steps along the way (like "Hit any key to boot"). You see, the problem was that I couldn't get on to Windows. I was just getting this black screen with various error messages. The tech guy got me to load in the Windows XP disk and was telling me to hit certain keys repeatedly (such as F12 and F8) to bypass the error messages and reach system menus. In other words, he was trying to help me re-install Windows. Once I got off the phone, I tried to repeat his steps and found a way to re-install Windows successfully. Not only that but the re-installation fixed this recurring problem I was having with my Internet access! Well, at least for now.

I'm definitely going to look into getting one of those portable external hard drives in case something like this happens again. I've been playing with the idea for a while because I only have 40 GB and more space would be wonderful.

I'm pretty sure that simmfaninmexico is the only person on my flist who will appreciate this, but I'm going to post the national anthem from Human Traffic to celebrate the re-birth of my computer! Take it away, Jip!:

"Techno Generation Anthem (Human Traffic Soundtrack, 1999)" (Watch on YouTube)

Yes, I know. I still need help. However, right now I don't care because my baby's BACK! :-)

Comments

[inkscribe.livejournal.com]

Congratulations on the recovery! Will you be naming your computer Lazarus now in honour of the event? ;-)

External drives are dirt-cheap these days and I heartily recommend them, though just as with whatever you've got on your computer's HD that is irreplaceable (fic, pics, essays, whatever ...) you should have a secondary backup for the HD, too.

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

Congratulations on the recovery! Will you be naming your computer Lazarus now in honour of the event? ;-)

LOL! I might just do that! *g*

External drives are dirt-cheap these days and I heartily recommend them, though just as with whatever you've got on your computer's HD that is irreplaceable (fic, pics, essays, whatever ...) you should have a secondary backup for the HD, too.

That's excellent advice. I do have some stuff on CD, though I've really got to store some more files. The problem is that my computer can't burn CDs, so I have to transfer files to another computer using my memory stick. Last time, a friend was good enough to help me out. However, I think my brother might have a CD burner on his computer, so I should check with him.

[grondfic.livejournal.com]

Hey! Glad to see you back *properly*.

[grondfic.livejournal.com]

PS: Dell tech support ROCKS!

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

Yes, it really does! Although the tech support guy wasn't able to fix the problem there and then (which doesn't surprise me considering who he had to work with), he definitely pointed me in the right direction. I wouldn't have been able to solve the problem if I hadn't known how to get past those error messages.

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

Thank you! It's great to be back and seen properly! :-)

[radiogaga80.livejournal.com]

You know, when my brother was still working in a computer shop, his boss refused to sell Dell computers because they gave so many problems. *g* Am glad to hear yours is resurrected - and I fully support the idea of an external harddrive. I have an 80GB one and all my photos, website backups, and lord knows what else is on it. :)

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

Well, to be fair to Dell, the problems were my fault. It's embarrassing so I won't go into details, but I know that I'm to blame. The computer is also four years old, so it's probably a minor miracle that it has survived under my care (or lack thereof) for all this time. *g*

It's great to hear another vote of confidence for the external hard drive. I was definitely thinking of it for things like photos and website backups. It would also be good for storing vids and MP3s. If I don't end up buying an external hard drive in the next couple of months then I might throw it on my Christmas list.

Phoenix rises from the ashes....

[njc2007.livejournal.com]

I am very happy to welcome you back. An external drive is a good idea if you do backups. Multiple USB keys also work wonders for backups when you don't have a CD burner or external drive.

For some reason "We are the Champions" is running through my head. *g*

Re: Phoenix rises from the ashes....

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

I am very happy to welcome you back. An external drive is a good idea if you do backups. Multiple USB keys also work wonders for backups when you don't have a CD burner or external drive.

Thank you! It's great to be back! :-) I'm definitely going to get an external hard drive at some point, though it might be something I end up putting on my Christmas list. I have stored some things on my memory stick, which is a good option when you don't have a CD burner or external hard drive.

For some reason "We are the Champions" is running through my head. *g*

I'm surprised "We are the Champions" wasn't running through my own head at the time. Actually, I think I kept hearing the Hallelujah chorus! *g*

[tazzles.livejournal.com]

Yay! Nothing like having your computer broken to realise you do know a bit about them and boy, don't we rely on them something chronic!

Congrats!

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

It's pathetic how much I rely on my computer. You really don't know what you have until it's gone...or temporarily out of action. *g* Anyway, I know I wouldn't have been able to fix the problem if the tech support guy hadn't pointed me in the right direction, so he deserves more credit than I do.

Yay You!

[jackycomelately.livejournal.com]

Isn't that a great feeling when you manage to fix things? You be the woMan! I've just upgraded to a DVD burner, so anytime you want to back up... I noticed The Source had externals on sale in their last flyer. It's so sad that I know that offhand. They also have memory sticks for dead cheap.

Re: Yay You!

[rusty-armour.livejournal.com]

I seriously thought about sending you an email to let you know that I had fixed my computer problem, but then decided against it for some reason. In any case, it is a great feeling when you manage to fix something. It's an extremely rare event for me, so I feel even more special about saving my computer. *g*

I'm ashamed to say that I'm not sure how a DVD burner works. Would it be the same principle as a CD burner? I might take you up on your offer next time I'm at your place. And, hey, I don't think it's sad that you know about the price of externals at The Source. I mean, everybody's got to have a hobby... *g* It's good to know that externals are on sale and The Source has memory sticks dead cheap. If nothing else, I should look into getting another memory stick because they're extremely handy and I love mine. :-)