Blue Screen

Are you one of those unfortunate people like me? A slave to Windoze and what ever garbage Microsoft is slinging our way because either you need the compatibility with your workplace or the programs that you need to use are not ported to a more sensible system like Mac or Linnux.

Have you met the Blue ScreamScreen of Death?

Did I mention then that my laptop computer decided to toes up? The hard drive has not yet completely failed. But to top off a morning already “great” thanks to some work emergency and a torture session at PT – I have seen that infamous screen another six times this morning. Before 0900 and certainly before my coffee.

Using the work laptop – I managed to do some email out of the house and defuse one crisis while backing up everything critical from that computer (twice) onto external hard drives. There is no way in h that I want to lose this summer’s pictures. Or my webpages or articles or journals or collected patterns. You get the idea.

Want the real fun? I can’t get WinXP anymore. The only decent laptops I found all had Vista on them. Vista is like Visa (the charge card) – you are always taking a chance when you use it and it is always going to cost you something. Those costs may be hidden or inconvenient, but they are there.

I am sitting here with my new Sony loading software. A bit more – my workhorse programs like Winstep and the FN Cataloging set – and my computer will feel a bit more “normal.” So far all the touted improvements with Vista are either frustrating or about 17 years later than Mac, or O/S2. Go figure. Most of the innovations aren’t, nor are they essential so that I have gotten just about all of them eliminated or killed off.

Now to finish getting rid of their widgets. Exactly why would I want to clutter up a clean, organized workspace of shelves with things?

No knitting, no spinning but I am working my way through new books.

Books & Audio Books

Every time I stop through the library there is something new to borrow. The cataloger is back from vacation and new books are landing on the shelf daily. Hardbacks from August and July. The September books will be out in the next week or so, the librarians tell me.

But there are audio books by Tami Hoag. Not The Alibi Man, but some of her old books from the 90s. Reissues are reissues. I wish they would not put a new copy right date on them. I understand why, since the publisher has changed, but still. It is like thinking an author has a new book out, only it is a reprint with a different cover.

Sandra Brown’s Play Dirty was alright, but certainly not a five star book.

-Holly