Wednesday, April 22, 2015

Just That Fast!

A pop!  A flash!  And then pouf!  Just that fast, my monitor went black and the computer quit.  Too late I realized the lightening was close enough to strike the power line to my computer.  That was two weeks ago.

I'm grateful for blessings both large and small:
  1. I had a back-up (2 weeks old but still, a back-up).
  2. It didn't kill my whole computer, just the power supply.  (Or so we thought.)
  3. I had a friend willing and able to help.
My computer-geek-friend, as he calls himself, determined the problem was the power supply, ordered a new one, and installed it.  When I picked it up he told me about a new computer virus which encrypts photos (and other files, too, I think).  One can unencrypt (is that the correct word?) them by paying a $500.00 fee to get a code.  I brought my computer home and promptly made a new back-up before connecting to the internet.  When I finally connected to the internet I learned that my provider (TWC) was doing routine maintenance, scheduled to last 24-48 hours.  When it lasted longer than that, I called and spoke with someone at TWC and learned that the adapter inside my computer that connects to the internet was not working.  My computer-geek-friend came over and diagnosed the problem.  We determined that an external USB adapter would be the best choice for my 8-year-old computer.

I don't have any other means of connection to the internet just now but since the hinge on my old cell phone is broken (Don't problems come in threes?  What will it be?) perhaps my next phone will be a smart phone with internet connection.  Maybe I'm about to join the modern age.  Maybe.

Well, it's lovely to see you again, friends!  I'm happy to be able to read your blogs, learn the news in the genealogy world, and start posting again.

--Nancy.

P.S.  Back-up, back-up, back-up.
P.P.S.  Unplug if you see lightening anywhere in the sky.

Copyright © 2015 Nancy Messier. All Rights Reserved.

8 comments:

  1. Welcome back! Ugh. Computer problems are so not fun.

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    1. Thanks, Jana. Ugh is right. I home I'm free of them for a while.

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  2. What a close call. We can't be reminded enough how important it is to back-up our research.

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    1. Oh my gosh, it felt like a really close call, Wendy. Right after it happened all I could think was "thank goodness I have a back-up.

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  3. Nice to hear from you, and with words of wisdom. Thanks for the useful information. I thought I was the ONLY one who didn't have a smart phone!

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    1. Thank you, Barbara. I don't think there are many of us left (maybe just us?) without smart phones. In fact, I still have a flip phone. For me it comes down to whether I'll use a smart phone enough to warrant the monthly payment. (And I'm not keen on change, either.)

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  4. Welcome back Nancy! I back up all the time. On disk, on my PC, on flash, and on a External drive....But those go out too. I lost years on a External box that crashed. Took it everywhere and to everyone, No one could get in it. Learned a hard lesson and was about to stop genealogy all together after that, then I remembered I had some 88 percent of all those years back up on some old disks I had saved. God sent? A miracle to me!

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    1. Thank you. I need to back up in more places and more often. Thank goodness you had those old disks! Yes, it would seem like a miracle to me, too! I should put my photos on disks and send them along to my brother and keep an extra or two for myself.

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