Posted on 07/26/2018 2:47:33 PM PDT by Zionist Conspirator
I'm sure you've all noticed that I have been missing for a while. Unfortunately, my computer conked out on the 11th of this month and I have been without one since. I also don't know if I will ever get it back.
I'm very disappointed (to put it mildly) that a brand new Dell Inspiron computer, purchased at Best Buy on Feb.15 of last year (with help from a total stranger on the Internet) didn't even last a year and a half. It is in the shop but all signs point to it being unfixable.
It was already acting a bit wonky three months or so ago (about the time the warranty expired), but it had been prompting me for weeks to run "support assist." Yet every time I tried it was unresponsive. I eventually decided to simply pay no more attention to the prompts.
Then suddenly on the morning of the 11th I received two prompts. At the second one I clicked on it and, wonder of wonders, it actually began to run! But I thought I noticed my browser still open (all other programs are supposed to close). I tried to close my browser but my cursor was frozen at the bottom of the screen. I couldn't stop or pause support assist because my cursor was frozen. I hit control/alt/delete but couldn't click on it because of my stupid frozen cursor. I hit "escape" and nothing happened. So I did the usual last resort: I turned off the power and then turned it back on. The problem was, the tower refused to come on.
I unplugged and replugged the main cord (something I've learned to do) and it still wouldn't come on. So I took it to the shop that evening.
They guy there said it obviously needed a new power source. He ordered one, it got lost in the mail, and he finally had to pick it up at the post office. Then he brought it back to the shop and installed it but it still wouldn't come on. Please note that it was now the 19th.
He called the Dell company and they suggested a short had developed in the motherboard. He ordered one, and it just came today (the 26th, when I have been without a computer for fifteen days). Trouble was, they sent the wrong one and he is having to send it back and reorder it.
On top of all this the business itself is usually closed. I've always used it, but apparently things aren't like they used to be. Most of the time when I call I don't even get a chance to record a message; it just says please call again later.
So now I must wait at least another week while another motherboard comes in, and when it does it also may be the wrong one, or it may turn out that a motherboard won't fix it either. Or if it does, perhaps it's so messed up by now that it won't be usable.
As I said, I bought this thing brand new less than seventeen months before it quit. I am really upset, and right now I have no idea when, or if I will get my computer back. This whole thing is like a bad sitcom.
I am at the library now, but you see how long it's taken me to let you all know about this. Meanwhile I am subscribing to DSL without a computer to access it. If I can't have this one fixed or replaced, I will have to cancel my Internet subscription and then I will never get on from home again.
They have no business making brand-spanking new high quality name computers that don't even make it to a year and a half.
Oh, and there's something I forgot to add: back on the 11th, when I was taking my computer to the shop, somebody trying to pass slow traffic was headed right for me in my lane forcing me to slam on the brakes and sending my already damaged computer onto the floorboard hard.
I don't know why I have such horrible luck with computers. They seem to hate me. I've been in this situation many, many times over the past 21 years, but this is the longest amount of time I've been hung out to dry without really knowing anything. I can't explain how depressed I am. I can't afford to buy a computer every single year, but I can't afford to have an Internet subscription that I can't access. Things are bad all the way around.
To be honest, at this point I don't know when or even whether I will be able to log on from home again. I am pessimistic by nature, and right now things aren't looking too good. I can only tell you that if I still don't have a computer after a month, there's no need to continue paying for the subscription. At that point someone else who has been waiting for a DSL connection will take my place and I'll never be able to subscribe again.
I just wanted you all to know what was going on. I miss you all so much. I can't promise how often I'll be here at the library to answer your responses.
Right now, things seem pretty bad.
Thanks for the tip. I was about to buy my first “Smartphone” from Best Buy.
If you’re mainly using a computer for browsing and perhaps checking email, consider getting a used machine. Even a 5 year old MacBook will have plenty of processing power. A used machine has the advantage of being both less expensive than new and having electronics that have been proven over time. If electronics are going to conk out, they usually conk out when relatively new as the parts burn in.
Next time you might look at the dell Outlet site and the Optiplex line of desktops and all-in-ones. Most of these are heavily discounted and come with a three year NBD (next business day warranty. they will send someone to you the next business day to fix your system.
some of the laptops also used to get this warranty as well.
Get a wireless mouse and disable the touch pad.That's what I do.
Hard to type and not accidentally get some part of your hand near the touch pad.
Did you take the computer to a Dell Support technician or a dude who said yeah, I work on Dells?
If the new power supply did not fix the issue then why did he persist on the ‘low power to the mother board’ scenario? The frozen mouse is a symptom of low power to the CPU. MBs don’t fail their CPU that way, power supplies do. When MBs go PCI lanes usually start dropping first. And I’m talking 5+ years for that.
There is a chance the car impact loosed solder and caused a short on top of the initial problem (software).
No qualified technician ‘thinks’ a power supply is bad. They plug the cables into a $10 power supply tester and check the voltages on all the cables. Green light good, red light bad, no light dead.
Secondly, he should have slaved off your hard drive to read the event log. It’s usually very detailed for hardware and software as well as a locked system state (time gaps in security log entries).
If I had to guess I’d say it could be a corrupt driver issue. We have seen the mouse driver issue with some MS patches recently on virtual machines.
Most normal data corruption issues on spinning hard drives can be fixed with admin command prompt: defrag C: /u /v. In the analysis section anything over 5% = program degradation, errors, etc. It’s good to run this command occasionally on hard drives. It should NOT be run on solid state storage (SSDs).
If the issue persists it may be something more serious like a garbled patch, etc. which needs to be uninstalled and reinstalled.
It should also be thoroughly checked for viruses. I use Avast! Free in Quiet mode, Malwarebytes, etc.
There are other options but they get more into serious OS issues. MS is putting out a ton of patches (they are updating the source code) so expect a higher than normal degree of W10 issues for the foreseeable future. Typical components affected are NIC, firewall, system .dlls, drivers, etc.
If you can get your computer back use the keyboard to navigate to control panel, and re-install the mouse. Or buy a cheap USB mouse, plug it in and let Windows load the driver on top of the modified or corrupted system files. Load last, works best.
Seems your tech is collecting a bunch of unnecessary parts in-warranty. I find it quite hard to believe there was neither a power supply tester or a spare power supply on hand.
The only reason to buy Dell is that if you pay an extra $200+ a year,
...
I can buy a really good used one for $200.
I have a nine years year old Dell lappy. Had to replace a disk years ago that was trashed because of a neighborhood power issue. Came with Vista now running Windows 10
“Ctl-Alt-Delete still works? I thought that went out the window with Windows 7.”
Ctrl-Alt-Delete is the Mother Of All Keystrokes. It will never perish. It’s 1,000 year reign is a shining beacon of progress lighting humanity’s way to the Blue Screen of Enlightenment.
“Get a wireless mouse and disable the touch pad.”
I prefer wired mouses/mice; they seem more responsive. But a touchpad is straight from Hell.
To fix the cursor problem jumping around press at the same time fn and F6
I had the same problem with my Lenovo and that fixes it, but you have to do it every time you start your laptop up. It’s very annoying!
For the business, my department gets all laptops with 3 years pro support.
I haven’t had to do any real laptop surgery in many years because of the service package.
In the past year, I may have had to get Dell on-site 4 times at most.
I’d bet that it was probably running a BIOS update and pulling power bricked your computer. :( I don’t know if in that case pulling the CMOS battery would help any. Sorry.
Feel your pain.
Disconnected is not a pleasant way to go through life. When our puter blew a gasket (during the primary season of POTUS TRUMP first election) we felt like the wrath of GOD had come down on us. Fortunately, we were able to pick up a rebuilt at a small shop with which business had been done in the past. $100 for CPU Dell tower and OS win7
Runs fine; operator could use some help.
Good luck. It WILL get better. :-)
I thought my Dell with Win 7 wanted CTL-shift-something.
An alternative might be an I-pad assuming you have wireless capability at home. Any I-pad model will do, meaning you don’t need the latest to access the internet. They are great for email, internet, photos, camera, portability, and you can print to a wireless printer.
Just a suggestion. I haven’t utilized a computer in years. Photos can be transferred to a computer from an I-pad as well.
BTW, I’ve had the same experience with laptops. They are made to die quickly. I-pads don’t have that problem.
People have been getting away from their desktop computers; they are so last century. You can access Free Republic and post on your Smart Phone or tablet. If you are totally disconnected from the internet for a while enjoy it. You will no longer suffer from information overload. :-) The lib’s are still going berserk and Trump is still winning. I was without the internet for a few days during hurricane Irma last year. If I wanted to learn what was going on I sat in my car and listened to the radio. Didn’t bother me that much, but it was the week long power outage that almost broke me.
I forgot to add, you can also listen to podcasts, which are free, such as Dan Bongino, Levin, Hannity etc. or Rush on IHeartRadio (also free). Those apps do not interfere with performing any other tasks. I often peruse FR while listening to Rush.
I bought my last desktop and 2 laptops off of Craigslist. All were corporate off lease units. I paid about $125 for the desktop and $150 for the laptop.
Dell’s like any computer lasts a long time until you take them into the shower. My stepson has problems with cars, some people have problems with computers.
That is unnecessarily nasty. No reason for it at all. You can take your unjustified snark and stick it somewhere where photosynthesis would not be possible.
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