Planting Seeds

I've gotten behind my seed-planting schedule with the computer problems, but I made some major progress last evening.  The delay shouldn't cause too much of a problem.  My indoors tomatoes and peppers and leeks were planted on time and they are up and growing.  And the unusual late cold would probably have killed the beets and peas I should have planted outside anyway.

The late indoors plantings were all of flowers and I got 7 flats of them planted.  And since planting the seeds directly outdoors is scheduled for 4 weeks from now, all I have lost is 3 weeks of a headstart.

I'm trying something new this year.  Most of my existing perennial flowers have died out over the past years, and to tell you the truth, perennials don't bloom for very long and you have the same flowers in the same colors in the same places for years.

So I'm trying a cottage garden.  I bought a dozen packets of seeds of a few perennials and mostly self-sowing annuals.  I planted 6 of each in cell-packs (in my own sifted starter soil I mixed last month), so I know I have some growing plants of each type.  I'll plant the seedlings randomly in the old flowerbed along the fence.

And then, I will scatter most of the rest of the seeds around the bed randomly.  I have already spread 3" of 50/50 compost and topsoil mix around, so the scattered seeds should have a good start.  The indoors-grown seedlings will guarantee me of "something", and the scatterred direct-sown seeds may surprize me.  I'm keeping some of each in case the direct-sowing fails.

Partly, I'm doing this because I've been too organized about my plantings for many years.  It's not that I'm "formal", just rather geometrically-oriented and rather controlling.  Oh wait, that's what "formal" is, isnt it?  I want to force my hand on Nature.  Well, let's see what Nature will do on its own.  It is time to try a different approach!

For anyone interested, I have a real system for indoor seed-starting.  To begin with, I have a metal shelving stand that I added lights to (Ooh, my English Teacher would scream.  That should be "to which I added lights")

I mix my own starter soil from compost, peat, vermiculite, and perlite.  I fill a large barrel with it.

I reuse 6 pack cels each year, but I soak them in the laundry tub with some bleach overnight and then rinse them.  Then I add them to flats that hold water and add a mesh flat underneath for strength.  One 6 pack cel is a 5 cel; I cut one out to make watering easier.

I have a plastic bin that holds a whole flat.  I can just dump starter soil in  and scrape off the excess without waste.  The extra goes back in the starter soil trash can.  So I have a flat of cel packs leveled with soil to plant in.

Most of the cottage garden seeds are surface-sprouters.  They need light to germinate so they are just pressed lightly into the soil.  A few 6 pack cels stacked together make a perfect presser.  Others want 1/8" to as much as 1" depth.  Well that's what fingers are for! 

The surface-planted ones need light to germinate, so they get on the light stand.  The others just get stacked up until the emerge and then they get their space on the stand.  My basement stays at 64F, which is fine for most flowers.  The few that want 70-75 get stacked on the upstairs rack.  They grow better at 65F some they go back downstairs on emergence.

It's a real dance sometimes.  But what is the purpose of a hobby but to take some work?  I mean, if everytime you tossed a bowling ball any way and got a strike, who would bother to bowl?  The purpose of a hobby is to focus some effort and get good at it. 

I am hoping for some very interesting different flower garden this year and for the next few years.

I Surrender

There are times when you make what seems to be a good decision and it just doesn't work.   
I have struggled for almost 10 days now with the new Windows computer and I just can't make sense of it.  And I was a Windows user for almost 20 years.

Nothing makes sense.  Compared to my Mac, the Windows is very hard to organize, the file folders are hard to arrange, and I can't seem to control it much.  Windows FIGHTS user control.  I read that before I purchased it,and I hought I could force it to look the way I wanted, but my confidence was in error.  I can't get used to the loss off control.

If you have Windows and are used to it, wonderful. I don't criticize in the least bit.   Windows has one way of user management; Mac has another.  I'm the Mac kind. 

So, I'm selling the Windows computer I just bought.  

Yes, it will cost me something.  I paid $1,000 for it, I may be able to sell it for $600.  It is not returnable.  Sometimes you just make a mistake and have to bite the bullet.

I had several reasons to try a Windows again.  Several computer sites said Windows was about as stable as Macs (and it has not crashed this week).  Others said there were more apps.  Others said more people used them.   That seems to be correct.  

I don't want to start a Windows vs Mac war here. I just know that Mac software is more intuitive to use and easier to manage and get around.  I have more control over it.  

I had 5 malware attacks in one day on Windows. I had 2 Mac attacks in 6 months.  And my Mac software detected and deleted those.  That may not last forever, but I appreciate it now.

So 'Im going to sell the new Windows computer for what I can get (and it has additional software I've downloaded).  And buying a new Mac.

I hate to waste money.  But I expect this Mac to last 6 years or more and who wants to fight with their computer.  I'm going back to what I understand.  Because I realized I am just not ON the computer (with Windows) much anymore. 

I found a Mac Mini equal in Ram and memory etc to the Windows computer.  It costs more, but I can accept that.  

It will take 3 days to arrive, a couple days to migrate, and I should be up and working again then.  The programs will be familiar, the files will stay, the photos will be accessible again, life will be normal.

I should have just done that to begin with. But like I said, sometimes you make mistakes and mistakes aren't free.  I will be happier afterwards.

When you get down to it, that's what matters...

Monday Humor

As long as I am copying files and deleting everything ABSOLUTELY not required, here is som more old humor. 

Thoughts From The Workplace...

 Doing a job RIGHT the first time gets the job done. Doing the job WRONG

fourteen times gives you job security. 

 We put the "k" in "kwality." 

 If at first you don't succeed, try management. 

 Never put off until tomorrow what you can avoid altogether. 

 TEAMWORK means never having to take all the blame yourself.

 The beatings will continue until morale improves. 

Never underestimate the power of very stupid people in large groups. 

 We waste time, so you don't have to. 

 A snooze button is a poor substitute for no alarm clock at all. 

 When the going gets tough, the tough take a coffee break. 

 INDECISION is the key to FLEXIBILITY. 

 Succeed in spite of management. 

 We waste more time by 8:00 in the morning than other companies do all

day. 

 Work: It isn't just for sleeping anymore. 

 Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines. 

 I THINK THAT I KNOW THESE PEOPLE! 

 A programmer is someone who solves a problem you didn't know you had in

a way you don't understand. 

 An auditor is someone who arrives after the battle and bayonets all the

wounded. 

 A banker is a fellow who lends you his umbrella when the sun is shining

and wants it back the minute it begins to rain. (Mark Twain)

 An economist is an expert who will know tomorrow why the things he

predicted yesterday did not happen today.

 A statistician is someone who is good with numbers but lacks the

personality to be an accountant. 

 An actuary is someone who brings a fake bomb on a plane, because that

decreases the chances that there will be another bomb on the plane.

 A lawyer is a person who writes a 10,000-word document and calls it a

"brief." 

 A professor is one who talks in someone else's sleep. 

 A consultant is someone who takes the watch off your wrist and tells

you the time. For a fee.

Sunday Humor

More stuff about to be lost...

In the beginning there was the computer.  And God said

c:\Let there be light!

Enter user id.

c:\God

Enter password.

c:\Omniscient

Password incorrect.

c:\Omnipotent

Password incorrect.

c:\Technocrat

And God logged on at 12:01:00 AM, Sunday, March 1.

c:\Fiat lux!

Bad command or file name.

c:\Let there be light!

Bad command or file name.

c:\Create light

Done

c:\Run heaven and earth

And God created Day and Night. And God saw there were 0 errors.

And God logged off at 12:02:00 AM, Sunday, March 1.

And God logged on at 12:01:00 AM, Monday, March 2.

c:\Let there be firmament in the midst of water and light

Bad command or file name.

c:\Create firmament

Done.

c:\Run firmament

And God divided the waters. And God saw there were 0 errors.

And God logged off at 12:02:00 AM, Monday, March 2.

And God logged on at 12:01:00 AM, Tuesday, March 3.

c:\Let the waters under heaven be gathered together unto one place

and let the dry land appear and

Bad command or file name.

Too many characters in specification string.

c:\Create dry_land

Done.

c:\Run firmament

And God divided the waters. And God saw there were 0 errors.

And God logged off at 12:02:00 AM, Tuesday, March 3.

And God logged on at 12:01:00 AM, Wednesday, March 4.

c:\Create lights in the firmament to divide the day from the night

Bad command or file name.

c:\Create sun_moon_stars

Done

c:\Run sun_moon_stars

And God separated the light from the darkness.  The sun ruled over

The day and the moon and stars ruled over the night.  And God saw there

Were 0 errors.

And God logged off at 12:02:00 AM, Wednesday, March 4.

And God logged on at 12:01:00 AM, Thursday, March 5.

c:\Create fish

Done

c:\Create fowl

Done

c:\Run fish, fowl

And God created the great sea monsters and every living creature

That creepeth wherewith the waters swarmed after its kind and every

Winged fowl after its kind. And God saw there were 0 errors.

And God logged off at 12:02:00 AM, Thursday, March 5.

And God logged on at 12:01:00 AM, Friday, March 6.

c:\Create cattle

Done

c:\Create creepy_things

Done

c:\Now let us make man in our image

Bad command or file name.

c:\Create man

Done

c:\Be fruitful and multiply and replenish the earth and subdue it

and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the fowl of the air

and over every living thing that creepeth upon the earth

Bad command or file name.

c:\Run multiplication

Execution terminated. 6 errors.

c:\Insert breath

Done

c:\Run multiplication

Execution terminated. 5 errors.

c:\Move man to Garden of Eden

Bad command or file name.

Garden of Eden not found in this directory.

c:\Create Garden.edn

Done

c:\Move man to Garden.edn

Done

c:\Run multiplication

Execution terminated. 4 errors.

c:\Copy woman from man

Done

c:\Run multiplication

Execution terminated. 2 errors.

c:\Create desire

Done

c:\Run multiplication

And God saw man and woman being fruitful and multiplying in Garden.edn

Warning: No time limit on this run. 1 errors.

c:\Create freewill

Done

c:\Run freewill

And God saw man and woman being fruitful and multiplying in Garden.edn

Warning: No time limit on this run. 1 errors.

c:\Undo desire

Desire cannot be undone once freewill is created.

c:\Destroy freewill

Freewill is an inaccessible file and cannot be destroyed.

Enter replacement, cancel, or ask for help.

c:\Help

Desire cannot be undone once freewill is created.

Freewill is an inaccessible file and cannot be destroyed.

Enter replacement, cancel, or ask for help.

c:\Create tree_of_knowledge

And God saw man and woman being fruitful and multiplying in Garden.edn

Warning: No time limit on this run. 1 errors.

c:\Create good, evil

Done

c:\Activate evil

And God saw he had created shame.

Warning system error in sector E95.  Man and woman not in Garden.edn. 1 errors.

c:\Scan Garden.edn for man, woman

Search failed.

c:\Delete shame

Shame cannot be deleted once evil has been activated.

c:\Destroy freewill

Freewill is an inaccessible file and cannot be destroyed.

Enter replacement, cancel, or ask for help.

c:\Stop

Bad command or file name.

c:\Break

c:\Break

c:\Break

ATTENTION ALL USERS *** ATTENTION ALL USERS: COMPUTER GOING DOWN FOR REGULAR DAY OF MAINTENANCE AND REST IN FIVE MINUTES. PLEASE LOG OFF.

c:\Create new world

You have exceeded your allocated file space. You must destroy old

Files before new ones can be created.

c:\Destroy earth

Destroy earth: Please confirm.

c:\Destroy earth confirmed

COMPUTER DOWN *** COMPUTER DOWN. SERVICES WILL RESUME  SUNDAY, MARCH 8, AT 6:00 AM. YOU MUST SIGN OFF NOW.

And God logged off at 11:59:59 PM, Friday, March 6.

Saturday Humor

As I am going through my doc files, I have found some old humor.  I'm not going to keep them, but I will post them for some laughs.

 First,   From "actual" US government employee performance evaluations:

 1. Since my last report, this employee has reached rock bottom and has started to dig.

 2. I would not allow this employee to breed.

 3. This employee is really not so much of a has-been but more of a definite won't-be.

 4. Works well when under constant supervision and cornered like a rat in a trap.

 5. When she opens her mouth, it seems that it is only to change feet.

 6. He would be out of his depth in a parking lot puddle.

 7. This young lady has delusions of adequacy.

 8. He sets low personal standards and then consistently fails to achieve them.

 9. This employee is depriving a village somewhere of an idiot.

 10. This employee should go far, and the sooner he starts, the better.

 11. Got a full six-pack but lacks the plastic thing to hold it all together.

 12. A gross ignoramus -- 144 times worse than an ordinary ignoramus.

 13. He does not have ulcers, but he is a carrier.

 14. I would like to go hunting with him sometime.

 15. He has been working with glue too much.

 16. He would argue with a signpost.

 17. He brings a lot of joy whenever he leaves the room.

 18. When his IQ reaches 50, he should sell.

 19. If you see two people talking, and one looks bored, he is the other one.

 20. A photographic memory but with the lens cover glued on.

 21. A prime candidate for natural de-selection.

 22. Donated his brain to science before he was done using it.

 23. Gates are down, the lights are flashing but the train is not coming.

 24. Has two brains: one is lost and the other is out looking for it.

 25. If he were any more stupid, he would have to be watered twice a week.

 26. If you give him a penny for his thoughts, you would get change.

 27. If you stand close enough to him, you can hear the ocean.

 28. It is hard to believe that he beat out 1,000,000 other sperm.

 29. One neuron short of a synapse.

 30. Some drink from the fountain of knowledge; he only gargled.

 31. Takes him two hours to watch 60 Minutes.

 32. The wheel is turning, but the hamster is dead.

Second,

Only in America......do drugstores make the sick walk all the way to the back of the store to get their prescriptions while healthy people can buy cigarettes and candy bars at the front.

EVER WONDER ... 

Why the sun lightens our hair, but darkens our skin? 

Why women can't put on mascara with their mouth closed? 

Why don't you ever see the headline "Psychic Wins Lottery"? 

Why is "abbreviated" such a long word? 

Why is it that doctors and lawyers call what they do "practice"? 

Why is lemon juice made with artificial flavor, and dish washing liquid made with real lemons? 

Why is the man who invests all your money called a broker? 

Why is the time of day with the slowest traffic called rush hour? 

Why isn't there mouse-flavored cat food? 

Why didn't Noah swat those two mosquitoes? 

Why do they sterilize the needle for lethal injections? 

You know that indestructible black box that is used on airplanes? Why don't they make the whole plane out of that stuff?! 

Why don't sheep shrink when it rains? 

Why are they called apartments when they are all stuck together? 

If con is the opposite of pro, is Congress the opposite of progress? 

If flying is so safe, why do they call the airport the terminal?

Just some laughs as I delete old files getting back online...

Mark

New Computer 3

Ah changing computer systems is SO much fun. 

My Corel Photo processing software arrive in the mail today.  I will save installing that for later.

I am obsessed with the email problems tonight.  I finally CAN access cavebear2118, marksmews2118, and yardenman2118.  My problem now is that I have to log into one, read it, log out, log in to another, read it, log out, log in to the third and read that.  And each time, I had to look at "AOL Today" newsfeeds which are mostly clickbaits for ads. 

So I called AOL with 2 questions.  I had a tech support person on the line immediately; no complaints about that.  First question was "can I arrange my AOL mail display so that I go directly to my inbox"?   Apparently not.  I wasn't surprised, they make their living off ads.  They even admitted they understand that I may not read any ads and just go to the inbox, but they want their shot at my attention, so they won't let me  change my scene.

My 2nd question was about the annoyance of having to log in and out of accounts in order to read the mail in the 3 email accounts.  I had tried to log into one, save it as a bookmark, log into the 2nd and save THAT bookmarked.  It doesn't work.  The only AOL email address is non-specific to account names. 

They do have a solution to that called AOL password manager so that all 3 accounts (for I am already paying $5 per account per month) would show on a single menu for easy switching between email accounts.  For another $5 per month.  That might be total or per account, the tech guy wasn't sure.  OK, he's not in Billing...

And THEN, he surprised me.  My AOL help is free only for 30 days.  And guess what they want after that?  $5 per month.  They are obsessed with $5 per month charges. LOL!  He DID tell me (on prompting by me) that I can get a lot of the tech help for free if I call AOL in the US during their normal business hours. 

I'm going to look for a better email system.  I wanted to keep the verizon.net addresses for convenience (and I'm sure that is part of AOL business plan).  And I have to question the value of having the 3 email addresses.  I set up 3 on the Mac mail from verizon because it was free and convenient.

I discovered I had 12,000 saved emails.  Mostly cat blog and personal blog comments forwarded there.  I deleted those down to 500, mostly so that I kept at least one who has every emailed me.  Those are stored on the Mac.  I can look those up anytime and just retype them into the PC mail as needed.  I might just try to print them out, probably only 12 pages and stick them in a binder.

One lesson I've learned from all this is to just never call tech support during non-working hours.  I'm not saying anything bad about the overseas tech support folks.  They do their best.  But they don't have full access to the US corporate information about my accounts or  ability to change things as freely.

As an example, I spend 4 hours one night with an overseas call center about email passwords and they could not solve the problem.  A US AOL tech the next morning did it in 15 minutes and it worked. 

So at night, I'm going to just gradually transfer files from the Mac to the PC 8Gb at a time with the flashdrive, and leave the tech questions to daytime hours. 

So I think I will end this post and just go install the Corel Paintshop photo processing program and see how that works... I sure want to post cat blog pictures again!

7AM update:  It was a struggle to load the Corel Paintshop CD.  I kept asking me about Drive E and I couldn't find a Drive E.  The solution was disgustingly simple.  My Mac CD loader is centered and you can't drop a CD without it falling into place properly.  The PC CD loader is off centered slightly and you have to push it down onto the holder. 

A new user of computers would have done that. I fussed around for 2 hours before I caught on to the difference.  I think I will wait til tomorrow to try and load any pictures.

My new driver updater tells me I need to upload new ones every few minutes.  It's hard to say "no" but I stopped that when I noticed a small box that said 0 new drivers required.  So many new things to learn. 

My learned Mac movements are all wrong on the PC, but it is hard to unlearn them.  I am.  I've noticed a few correct movements to different corners of the screen are becoming familiar.  And in fact, when I turned to the Mac to get some files, I went to the wrong spots already.  I had to stop and think.  I don't know how anyone uses both.  I guess that is why tech support folks hate Mac users.  They have to stop and recall all the different moves.

So I've successfully transferred some .doc files to the PC.  In small doses.  It took some time to do the first few, but more get easier.  I could probably get all of my documents transferred tomorrow, but I need to plant some seeds inside, so I may just take a break from the computer.  But I'm obsessive and may not.  Once I get a process working, it is hard to stop.

I really want to get the cat blog up and working again!

New Computer 2

MIDNIGHT:  Well, the new PC arrived last night, but I can't do anything with it yet.  What always happens with a new computer?  The existing monitor  plug is wrong...    There WAS just time to rush out to a local store to buy a new one, but I was up all night struggling with Verizon and AOL about the email on the old Mac and wanted a clear head about the new monitor, so I'm waiting til morning to go shopping for one.

I'll keep updating here as things progress.  Meanwhile, I can respond to any comments here, but my email seems shot.  Verizon points to AOL, AOL points to Verizon, and both say I need to talk to Apple about my email.

So I'm catching up on sleep tonight.

11:15 Wed:  I slept for 14 hours.  I needed it.  But that got me up late so I got a late start getting the new PC set up.  I had to go out to buy a cable adaptor.  My 2 existing monitors are VGA and I needed an adaptor from VGA to HDMI.  $30!  Ouch.

And when I got home, I was so hungry not eating much yesterday and sleeping 14 hours, I ate for 3 hours.  I minced roast beef, bell peppers, onion, and mushrooms, simmered it all in canned tomatoes and served it over noodles.  Then I ate an apple, several stalks of celery, saltines, ritz crackers with cheese, and sat down to watch the news on MSNBC.

Then I disassembled the old Mac and set up the new PC.  I'll set the Mac up on a card table temporarily, as I'll need it working to copy files to the PC using a flash drive.  I read through "getting started" on the PC.  No big surprises there, but the display and icons have all changed and that takes some getting used to.

The PC REALLY wants me to use the Cloud, but I'm not ready for that.  I did get The new MS browser  (Edge) opened, so the first thing I did was open my blogger account.  Hence this update...

I'm annoyed about apps.  I thought there was Office included with Windows 10 Home version, but apparently not.  I can open Word, but it says it is a trial version only good for 5 days. I'm searched around the File Manager and it really does seem true that there are no bundled apps for Word or Excel.  Or pretty much everything else.  

There IS a mail program, but since my mail wasn't working on the Mac, I doubt I have the settings and passwords to make it work on the PC  (other than receiving emails at cavebear2118@verizon.net).  I'll worry about that tomorrow. 

So I think I will go shopping for PC software at Amazon.  I could download it from the Windows store online, but I want CDs to start with.  I expect to have some problems and it is a LOT easier to reload software from a CD than from a download file.

Tomorrow morning, I'll set up the old Mac on the card table and I THINK it has a wireless feature that won't require me to keep moving the router cable back and forth.  If it doesn't, my Mac laptop DOES and I can connect my external backup drive to that and access most of the files I want to transfer. 

So, a-shopping I will go...

1 AM Thurs:  Well, it seems I can't get Windows software on CD any more.  It is all download.  And I need a working email, which is not set up on the PC yet.  That's a real Catch 22.  I cant get the AOL email working fully on The old Mac, so I can't set it up on the PC yet and that means I can't download software for the other things I want to do. 

7 AM Thurs:    Got the Windows Office software to work with the help of an Amazon tech rep at about 4 AM.  Word and Excel are now working.  Went researching photo management software next.  That was confusing.  I wanted Picasa, but that seems to have died.  Google software seems to want to use only the Cloud, and I don't like that.  I finally went for Corel Paintshop Pro x9.  The difference between the Home version and pro was only $10, so whay not?  The surprise, after all the software that only sends downloads, is that Corel actually sends I CD.  I will receive it Saturday. 

So that leaves the email as the last major thing to get working.  And my recent experience suggests I want to talk to REAL AOL techs not foreign call centers. 

And I might decide to just stay with AOL for a while.  Poor as it is, it DOES work for my cavebear2119@verizon.net address and I am thinking I might not want to risk messing THAT one up.  I got into the habit of saving all my emails for a decade because it was so easy on my Mac email.  But I deleted 95% of them, preparing to migrate them and I'm not sure I needed most of those.  I saved the emails from several people I actually email back and forth, and I have them on my Mac computer which is up and running again so far as reading old emails goes. Maybe I needed to delete all those forwarded comments anyway.  They ARE still on the blogs. 

But I DO need to get a better email than AOL.  It sucks.  I have 35 minutes before AOL techs are available, so I think I'll see what I can learn about the installed  Windows email until then...

9:15 AM - I THINK I got an AOL tech rep who solved the email problems.  It WAS confusing at first because what Verizon considered a primary account and 3 subaccount emails, AOL just considers 3 primary email accounts. We got through that eventually.  It seems to me right now that all my 3 email addresses are working.  Who knows what might happen tomorrow.  But for now, all seems good.  AOL wants $5 per month per email account for full tech support. 

I can afford it, but I also find it offensive since Verizon said the migration would be free and they weren't charging me for either tech support or the 3 email accounts.  I'm going to let that slide for now.  It's by the month, so I'm not locked in for a year, and  so a couple months of that won't kill me. 

So now, I have MS Office working, email working, and am waiting for 2 days for the Corel photo
manager software to arrive Saturday. 

Which means I am free to start arranging File Manager to migrate my documents to.  That should only take a few hours (he said while laughing confidently) , but I will hope for the best.

My next effort is setting up File Manager to accept specific folders of files from the Mac. 

I feel awake enough to transfer files.  The question is whether Windows File Manager will let me set uop subfolders in a way I like.  We'll soon finf out.

New Computer

First, let me describe the new PC.  It's a desktop Dell XPS8910 with an Intel Core i7, 16Gb RAM (expandable to 64Gb), 2Tb memory HDD, a Nvidia GeForce GTX 750Ti graphics system.  It comes with the Windows 10 Home operating platform.  I can add a 2nd internal hard drive and probably will just for photos, and I'll get an external drive for automatic backup.

Windows 10 Home has the Windows Office Suite.  Mostly, I want that for Word and Excel.  I used Windows at work and at home for years and even when I switched to a Mac in 2008, I bought Office For Mac anyway.  Mac's Pages and Numbers frustrated me with the lack of features.  All the rest of the softawre will have to be purchased when I see what seems "missing.

I'm probably going to miss Mac's Finder and iPhoto software the most.  And I've been using old versions of Photoshop Elements and some other Mac software because I trialed the newer versions and just didn't like them much.   But since I'll be buying new Windows software and starting with the newest versions, I'll just have to learn those from scratch.

I've done the new software learning before.  I started with a Commodore 64 in 1990, learned completely proprietary systems at work twice and then Windows after that.  I was usually the quickest to figure out new office software .  And as I said, a lot of Windows software is already familiar to me.  I even still have my pre-2008 PC set up and use it occasionally.

I'm going to be migrating many of my Mac files to the PC myself.  I suppose I could have most of that done by a local Windows shop, but those are the easy ones to transfer.  I have an external drive and a couple of flash drives to make that easiest.  Most of my word and spreadsheets are already in Windows format anyway.  I'll take screenshots of my mail settings, but since my mail is messed up right now anyway (because of the forced Verizon-to-AOL transfer) I'll probably have to call them for help.  My email receives, but won't send. 

One good thing about switching back to a PC is that call centers usually know more about PCs than Macs.  When I tell them I'm on a Mac, I can almost hear them cringe.  And sometimes they just have to have someone call back who is more Mac-oriented.  I won't miss that.

I'll be leaving the Mac set up on the internet, and setting up as much as I can on the PC offline.  I think I'll buy as much new PC software on discs.  One thing I learned is that having the initial discs is invaluable for re-installing apps when something goes wrong.

When I have my new file manager set up the way I like (I'm more detailed about that than most people - I have folders, subfolders, subsubfolders, LOL!) I'll copy the Mac files to it (Word, Excel, etc).  Photos may take longer, and I suspect I'll have to buy a photo program first anyway.

So I actually may be remaining on Mac for a good week or so.  And maybe I'll give Verizon another shot at fixing my Mac email.

Most of what I do these days are the 2 blogs and internet searches and those are working just fine.  So you probably won't see any difference unless you sent an email and I can't reply to it.  And maybe Verizon will fix that today... 

UPDATE:  Verizon says I have migrated my email from them and they can't help me any more.  So I called AOL where the email was transferred to.  They managed to ruin what the Verizon techs had set uptwhat DID work.  And AOL basically said that unless I paid them (for the Verizon email that was formerly free) they didn't much want to talk to me. Never mind that Verizon said the transitioned email would be "free".  

None of my 3 Mac mail accounts can receive OR can send.   3 days ago, I could receive to all three and send from 1.  That's not an improvement.  AOL made it so I can receive to one account and they say that is all I should expect, being a free customer.  

Are some companies just "evil" or what?

They blame my Mac email, which was working perfectly fine until the migration to AOL.  

The tech support people really do try to help.  I don't doubt their desire to fix my problems in the least.  But I think things have become complex beyond their ability to solve some problems.  

In my case, it would take someone knowledgeable in Verizon, AOL, AND Mac to solve it.  And there isn't such a person I can find.

I think my 3 Verizon accounts are doomed.  I have cavebear2118@verizon.net for personal emails, marksmews2118@verizon.net for the cat blog, and yardenman2118@verizon.net for gardening.  

I think I'll have to go to a paid email system to have several accounts, and it SURE won't be AOL.  I'll have to see how the email works on the new PC..

Seriously annoyed right now..  I EXCPECT to solve most problems myself.  Given some technical details like the name of an outgoing server, I usually can.  But this 10 days of email problems is driving me mad.  Which only makes me want to solve it more!

Part of my personality is persistence, learning, and determination.  When that fails, I feel that *I* fail.  I must not be understanding something.  And that drives me nuts!