Capitol Fax.com - Your Illinois News Radar

Open thread

Posted in:

Illinois
YouTube
Updated Posts

* My brand new laptop died today. How’s your morning going?

…Adding… And all of a sudden, it started. Not sure what, if anything, I did wrong. Bizarre morning, but Ray Wylie Hubbard said it best…

The days that I keep my gratitude higher than my expectations, I have really good days.

posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 8:49 am

Comments

As anti-vaxxers use cases as an argument against vaccines observe that they omit deaths from their narrative.

Comment by Jim Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 8:53 am
The quality of modern day electronics in relation to price is a sin.

Comment by Flyin' Elvis'-Utah Chapter Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 8:54 am
All things considered not bad, going to be a baking day for my wife (and daughter who is home for Thanksgiving) so it’s going to smell awesome in the house today.

Comment by OneMan Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 8:59 am
sounds to me like a good reason to start the holiday early

Comment by Peanut Gallery Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:04 am
Please tell us the brand and model of your newly purchased and now deceased laptop, Rich, so those of us who are currently in the market for a new (replacement) laptop don’t make the same mistake.

Comment by Responsa Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:05 am
==Please tell us the brand and model of your newly purchased and now deceased laptop, Rich, so those of us who are currently in the market for a new (replacement) laptop don’t make the same mistake.==

As well as what store or online retailer you bought the bad laptop from so I will avoid that place when the time comes I have to replace my computer.

Comment by NonAFSCMEStateEmployeeFromChatham Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:06 am
Going to the post office for Christmas stamps. Praying that there won’t be a long line since ISU is on break. Then to the grocery store for a couple of items I forgot to put on my list earlier.

Comment by Nearly Normal Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:07 am
==The quality of modern day electronics in relation to price is a sin.==

As is the playing ability and quality of modern-day NFL players (as well as coaches, GMs and owners) in relation to their salaries–that is also a sin. (Case in point, the Bears).

Comment by NonAFSCMEStateEmployeeFromChatham Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:10 am
Meanwhile, my old family members still have blocky laptops from the 90’s that are still working like a charm.

Comment by NIU Grad Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:12 am
You probably know this, but you have to charge laptops once in a while. S/

Comment by Bruce( no not him) Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:13 am
Sounds like a terrible start to the day. No matter how bad it gets, remember, this is Illinois. It could be a lot worse.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRRvo5gCGCk

Comment by Michelle Flaherty Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:15 am
==Meanwhile, my old family members still have blocky laptops from the 90’s that are still working like a charm.==

As is mine, which is nowhere near that old–but I’d rather not say how old for fears I would jinx my laptop and thus would soon take a dump.

Comment by NonAFSCMEStateEmployeeFromChatham Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:15 am
hard to predict with component failure with anything in todays stuff. I know I ended the great majority of all my computer headaches by going to Mint Linux, at least on OS level issues.

Comment by truthteller Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:16 am
I haven’t had any problems with my Chromebook.

Also, go see Julia! in your neighborhood theater. I didn’t really think we needed another Julia Child documentary, but I was wrong. It’s excellent.

Comment by Cheryl44 Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:21 am
What Truthteller said. Or install Ubuntu which is very popular. I, myself, run Gentoo Linux, but it’s very much for tech people who understand the innards of software. Ubuntu or Mint for non-tech people. Think of it like buying a stock Honda or Toyota versus custom rebuilding your new Corvette.
Windows is like a Yugo.

Comment by Streamwood Retiree Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:36 am
It’s problems like that that make me think an old coworker is totally right. Mary was this little old Armenian woman I used to work with. She was a total technophobe. She begrudgingly had a flip phone. But that was it. She would go to the bank to pull cash from a teller, so she could watch a human count it. She hated the computers with a fierce passion.
Some days I think she was a total prophet.

Comment by Honeybear Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:44 am
Thanks for the quote Rich, it’s a keeper. I ditched my 3 year old, dysfunctional HP for a MacPro six months ago. My better half has a 10 year old Mac and it always works. I believed the sales pitch that tech would make my life easier and my work more efficient…so-o-o-o wrong.

Comment by froganon Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:48 am
Today marks 50 years since D.B. Cooper jumped out of that airplane. As far as I know, he has yet to be found. Perhaps he’s hanging out with Jimmy Hoffa somewhere…

Comment by Friendly Bob Adams Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:50 am
Glad the new laptop is working. I have “old Betsy,” an old reliable computer that keeps chugging along.

Comment by Grandson of Man Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:51 am
===…50 years since D.B. Cooper jumped out of that airplane===

One of the best and most enjoyable Easter Eggs in the “Loki” short series. Brilliant.

Good thing you got the laptop a-goin’, the news dump barrage should be beginning after lunch…

Comment by Oswego Willy Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 9:58 am
Thanks for the tip on Julie!
She who must be obeyed is a huge fan of Julia Child. Absolutely am going to see it.
It seems all the tips I see on Cap Fax on movies, plays, bars and restaurants always work out well for me.

Comment by Back to the Future Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 10:03 am
Meetings between Nagy and Bears ownership yesterday–then the cancellation of the rest of his meetings–are raising more questions than answers.

Could we be entering December with an “interim” Bears HC?

https://bearswire.usatoday.com/2021/11/23/bears-matt-nagy-fired-speculation-met-with-ownership-tuesday/

Comment by NonAFSCMEStateEmployeeFromChatham Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 10:10 am
Avoid Toshiba laptops (now apparently spun off as ‘Dynabook’); parts are hard to come by, since Toshiba (unlike HP/Lexmark/IBM/Dell) didn’t want end users working on their machines.
Da Bears: I am rooting for Detroit; hope they beat the Bears. Fire Nagy and Pace; season is over anyway.
Linux Mint/Ubuntu/MX Linux/Linux Light: Windows users, you have choices (banned punctuation).

Comment by thisjustinagain Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 10:18 am
Glad the laptop is working.
We just got new laptops and replacement computers at work.
The old machines were fine, but the hardware could not run new software updates and also couldn’t run the new Cybersecurity options.
Not sure what the state does with it’s systems. It must cost a small fortune for the state to keep up with all the software improvements as well as deal with Cybersecurity issues.

Comment by Back to the Future Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 10:27 am
Spent an frustrating hour looking for two big cooking pots….then found them on the shelf where I put them one year ago. Only walked by them about 10 times.

Got a eight year old Asus t100 small laptop I used to write a large database for work. Took it on many trips, restaurants and meetings. It just keeps working.

Comment by zatoichi Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 10:40 am
= My brand new laptop died today.=

Don’t get me started.

I’ve been in Apple hel_ since this summer.
Had an older Mac (which worked fine) but Microsoft Word would no longer sync with updates. So, forced to buy new Mac just prior to M1 chip rollout.
Thing is still under warranty, but they keep telling me it’s a software problem.
How can they sell a brand new defective computer and get away with it?
Apple’s version of planned obsolescence?
As soon as you walk out of the store.
There oughta be a law.

Comment by TinyDancer(FKASue) Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 10:58 am
Getting last minute items ordered for curbside pick up. Small gathering of family this year. Thankful we are all still alive and well.

Comment by DuPage Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 11:05 am
Kankakee HS plays for 5A Championship on Saturday
Good Daily Journal Story on Community effect
https://www.daily-journal.com/sports/kankakee-embracing-community-support-in-state-title-game/article_2875b338-4c23-11ec-8019-eb1c918a97b4.html

( a side note is that the Kays homefield was created 50 +/- years ago entirely by volunteers known as the “Spurs” - They’d be proud )

Comment by Red Ketcher Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 11:07 am
This is the 400th anniversary of the first Thanksgiving!

Comment by Downstate Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 11:15 am
All I know is reboot, unplug and plug back in, jiggle any cords to make sure they’re connected. No snark, many people I know consider me an IT whiz. It’s kind of like people thinking I’m a good baker because I found Mark Bittman’s no knead bread recipe on the internet.

Comment by Earnest Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 11:21 am
==My brand new laptop died today.==

Go with a medium priced HP ~ $600-$700. I bought mine directly from HP. One with a metal body. It is six years old and still going strong. My significant other had a $300 plastic body Dell that never worked well and then the hard drive died. She replaced it in August with an $600 HP
from Costco who will throw in a two year warranty on top of the manufacturer warranty.

==Going to the post office for Christmas stamps. Praying that there won’t be a long line since ISU is on break.

I went yesterday afternoon around 2:00 PM and there was no line at all. Timing is everything. Never go over the noon hour.

I am baking a pumpkin pie this afternoon.

Comment by Radio Frequency Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 11:37 am
Speaking of Ray Wylie Hubbard:

Watch his performance on Letterman in 2012.

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=ray+wylie+hubbard+on+letterman

Comment by Radio Frequency Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 11:41 am
A few years ago, I swapped all my old laptop hard drives for solid state disk (SSD’s). They have their limits also, but eliminated the dreaded hard drive failures and improved the performance some.

Comment by RNUG Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 12:43 pm
Apple is best bargain. PCs are cheaper but an Apple will remain usable for twice as long. Apple screens are incredibly sharp and vivid compared to any PC monitor I’ve ever used. Chromebooks are cheap but the tradeoff is full intimacy with Google (maybe that’s your thing). Linux is great for servers but UIs still feel clunky and choppy. Always use an uninterruptible power supply to protect your equipment and extend life.

Comment by Chalk Pull Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 12:57 pm
Chalk Pull, it is a Mac and it is on an uninterruptible power supply.

Comment by Rich Miller Wednesday, Nov 24, 21 @ 1:03 pm