Two and a half months ago, my 3 year old Gateway laptop crashed and burned. It was very ugly and there were no survivors. So I purchase a new Toshiba laptop with Windows 7 along with a portable hard drive so I can back up all my files just in case something like this happens again.
Guess what? No, not chicken butt. Something like that happened again. To my two and a half month old laptop. Suddenly, I'm getting a million pop up windows, NOT from my Norton 360 anti-virus software oh by the way, telling me that a virus has been detected and if I would just "Click Here!" my problems will be solved. I'm also getting a million pop up windows that all happen to be from porn sites on Internet Explorer which I never use because it's crap and I only use Firefox. Porn site windows that won't let me close them.
So Thing 1, who doesn't seem to have any problems with his log on account on my laptop, tells me to just delete my account and create a new one. No problem because I had backed up my hard drive on to my portable hard drive only a few days ago.
Guess whose portable hard drive is telling me that my files cannot be retrieved? Guess whose Norton anti-virus software that backs up my files for safety is not able to retrieve said files? Guess who is ready to put on a hockey mask, pick up a chainsaw and go all Freddy Krueger on Microsoft, Best Buy, Norton and anyone else related to the problem and yes I know I'm mixing up my horror movie villains but I. Don't. Care.
What makes me even more angry is that the reason I needed this laptop was for work and it was only when I went to install the software needed for my job that I found out the software was not only not Mac compatible which is why I went with a PC/laptop but is also NOT Windows 7 compatible. Isn't that SPECIAL? And this was after I had to also get Microsoft Office because the software program needed Office to work.
I never wanted to get a Windows computer. I think Microsoft sucks and Apple products are far superior because you don't get the crap that happens with Windows computers but I had to have it for work which was a big waste of money because see paragraph above.
I think the problem came when Thing 2 watched "Breakfast Club" over the internet this weekend on my laptop. She does not remember what site she found the movie but that's the only thing I can think of.
I had a chat with TheManTheMyth about this and told him we have two options. Option 1: We can continue to have problems and lose files over and over, apparently, and spend money over and over without any guarantee that it won't happen again in the next year or two. Or even in the next month or two. I've already lost my files and all my work twice in 2 months.
Option B: We can just bite the bullet and get a new Mac that will last for years. That software program I need for work will not be used after this year anyway so I have no need for Windows in my life except the kind that lets me look outside. To put it in terms that TheManTheMyth would understand, I told him that Macs are the equivalent of KTM dirt bikes and computers that use Windows are the equivalent of those cheap dirt bikes made in Communist Asian countries that you can buy at Pep Boys and always need repairing and you end up spending more than you paid for it just trying to keep it running.
TheManTheMyth looked at me, whimpered and went off to take a nap. I don't know if the whimper is a Yes or a No.
Well, I'm off to the Geek Squad to see if they can fix this problem and retrieve my files from either the laptop or the portable hard drive. Best Buy sells Macs. Hmmmm.
Update: I took both the laptop and the Passport to Geek Squad. The good news is, they couldn't find a virus anywhere and they gave me something to scan my system to look for malware, viruses, etc and that came out clean.
The bad news is that once again, none of my files could be retrieved. Somehow, both the Passport backup hard drive and the Norton Backup thingamajig failed miserably and my files on both systems are gone baby gone with the wind. So I am right back to where I was 2-1/2 months ago and having to start from scratch to get my 500+ racers data entered all over again. Unless I can convince TheManTheMyth we can sell one of the kids so I can get a Macbook.
My sister-in-law is a professor in our state college down here in the IT department. She says her entire staff calls Bill Gates, the anti-Christ.
ReplyDeleteWell, I am so very sorry for your computer woes. Nothing gets my goat more. We are a Mac household here, so I'm feeling your pain. I hope it all works out, your work is saved, your virus is deleted and you get your Mac here very soon.
@Joann, I hope I can get a Macbook soon, too. All of my files were deleted from both the laptop hard drive, the back up hard drive and my Norton back up.
ReplyDelete