Gone

 Gone.

More Computer Woes

I feel like a broken record sometimes...  computer, computer, computer.   I'm almost surprised anyone reads this blog lately.

I mentioned previously that the HD was backed up, so I erased the HD to try and try to restore the most likely "OK" apps a few at a time to see where the frequent restart problem was.  Great in theory, but it is not ( have learned) easy to restore some apps selectively.

I am probably misunderstanding some things, but it seems that some apps won't restore directly, but need to be re-installed via the original download installer packages.  I can't find some of them.  Maybe some kinds of files don't get included in the backup program or I need to change settings to cause them to backup.

They say "a little knowledge is a dangerous thing".  True.  I know enough to think I can fix things, but that same knowledge is "just enough" to get me wading in computer fixes that turn out to be too deep.

So I decided the better part of valor was just to restore the whole HD, and think of something else to try.  Eliminating all apps I could do without and or re-download free was one.  Getting the computer to a repair place was another.

I restored the HD successfully.  It took 9 hours.  Not that I had to do anything those 9 hours, but I had to stick around because sometimes the computer asks a question.  It didn't, so I spent the time cleaning windows and finishing my existing Civilization 2 game  (I won).

As an aside, I cleaned the windows using balled-up newspaper and home-made "windex".  Worked well, but finished with more "windex" and lint-free cloth.  And since the outside of the bottom half can be swiveled inwards, I was able to do the outside too. The Civ 2 game got my colonists to Alpha Centuri successfully in spite of all the opposing civs allying against me.  Well, I needed something to be successful!

So the HD was restored about 10 am (yes I stayed up all night).  There was some minor success in that (aside that it worked at all).  While it did that auto-restart upon turning it on, it didn't crash while I used it the next day.  Sounds great, right?

Nope.  The computer case became very hot!  That means death to the HD.  There is no point is trying to have it repaired.  I've gone through hot case issues before and it is never really fixable.  So I am just going to replace the Mac Mini.  It wasn't expensive itself (a renewed 2018 model from Amazon).  I should stop buying "cheap"...

"Cheap" is an old family habit.  My parents lived through The Great Depression and my Dad's side of the family were struggling farmers and small merchants.  As the eldest child, I was taught to be cheap.  Childhood training dies hard even though I don't have to be.

But I still have a dilemma.  Apple tends to release a new Mac Mini every couple years.  I have a 2018, there is a 2020, and I found some discussion that there will be a new one in 2023.  So rather than buy a factory-issued 2020, it might make sense to buy a renewed 2020 to last a year or 2.  Amazon sells them for around $400.  

That's not "going cheap".  It's more like buying a used car to just last 2 years while waiting for one of the good new all-electric cars expected to become available in 2024.  I won't bother you right now about all-electric cars, but one would suit my needs just fine (I do short errands frequently).

OK, I've talked myself into a renewed 2020 Mac Mini.  Will order one tonight.  I have to make these constant computer problems go away!

Computer Problem Fixes

The Mac is not operating fully yet.

You don't have to know about Mac computers for this.  I made sure my backup disk (Time Machine on a Mac) seemed accurate.  Then I unplugged the backup drive and erased the internal HD.  Restarting it by instructions, I got the O/S back and it is the most up-to-date one.

I first added back a few basic apps that didn't seem they should cause problems.  Safari, my blogs and Blogger dashboard, Antivirus software, AOL mail, etc.  It seemed OK for a day but then started restarting again.  I restored a few others today.  They didn't make things any worse, so I guess they are OK.

Actually, the restart seems to happen more often when I awaken it from Sleep Mode than when I am actively online, but it does happen then sometimes too.  It is probably the hardware, but I want to explore the software some more before I replace it.  The restart error messages suggest there is an "outdated or incompatible software" issue.

A 2018 Mac mini should not be outdated, but I did go with a "renewed" one.  I won't to that again!

I would have to get a new current model 1 TB and 16-24 RAM Intel7 chip.  I don't understand the cloud and I have like 20,000+ photos and many apps.  I want to keep everything on my desktop.  And I will need some new apps because I am trying to escape Google the way I escaped Windows in 2008.

At this point I can post on my blogs.  And I can comment on some blogs, but not most.  I suspect my difficulty with posting on your blogs is a Google issue, but I'm not sure why.  It might be that I am not fully-Google or that Google doesn't like Macs much.  

I might have to change my blog host and blog-reader app.  Oh good, more things to do...

There is an IFixIt store that works on Macs not far from here.  I may bring the computer to them for an exam.  For all I know, the problem is simple for an expert to fix.  I can imagine the conversation afterwards:  "Well, really, all we had to do was move the library to the context folder, update the frazzic circuit, installer frazzic manager, and change the P1 setting to P2".  

Of course I'm making that up.  But their explanation would sound like that to me.  :(

I'm coming the end of my rope.  And when you come to the end of the rope, you pay an expert to untie it...

Comments and Visiting

I should mention I am having visiting problems again for several weeks.  I use Feedly.  On Safari, I can't get a comment to get through.  I save them to Word and try later, but it isn't working.  Sometimes it works, but I have to manually enter my site name, email address, and blog address every time, and even that only works "sometimes".  Maybe I am spoiled and most people have to do that, but I haven't had to for past years.

On Firefox, Feedly won't show the bloglist.

When I try to reset my account to log into Feedly directly, Google stops me and says I already have an account there through them.  And it doesn't work.  I can read, but can't reply.

The Laptop usually lets me get through, but there are 2 broken keys.  I can live with the Z key taking careful work, but the H key is maddening.  Still, it is a safe place for my bloglist file while I try to fix it on Safari and Firefox.

I am coming to hate Google as much as I used to hate Windows.  I think a lot of my problems these past 2 years are caused by my Google. account.  It is convenient, but seems to want to take over.  It might also be the Apple iCloud.  Similar takeover problem.

The guy who visited to add RAM (to 16) said that Mac O/S Monterrey "sucks up storage space".  I have a 1 TB internal drive and 75% unused, but I think he meant RAM.  My Mac is a 2018, which might sound old, but a Mac Help Forum says that isn't a problem.

I've made sure to update all my apps everywhere, so it doesn't seem to be an issue of old versions.  But something is going very wrong here.  Nothing is really working right.  2 days ago, the Mac Mini stopped waking up from sleep mode at the touch of a button.   Now I have to manually turn it off and then back on.  That is NOT GOOD!

Don't worry, I'm not asking for detailed Mac help here.  I'll ask more questions at the Mac Forum.  But it sure becoming more frustrating.  I have questions because I don't know enough about computers and I am frustrated because I don't know if it is hardware or software.  And if I just bought a new Mac Mini, I would still just have the same software to transfer.

Time to go annoy the Mac experts some more.  Actually, they are very helpful and kind.  It's just (probably) that I don't know how to ask the questions right.

But I really want you all to know why I haven't been leaving comments...

Annoying Stuff Again

I hate to keep being all negative because it is all "generally" minor, but the list continues grows...   

1.  The computer continues to restart randomly.  It doesn't seem to be any particular program.  I only use about 5.  But sometimes it is fine for days with them, and sometimes it is several times and hour.  The message I get means there is most likely an outdated program or one that has fallen into incompatiblity.

I thought maybe I had gotten lucky the other day.  I have Microsoft Office 365 for Mac.  I did get a few screen alerts that my "Microsoft Updater Assistant is no longer active".  So I found it for download and installed.  No change.  I think I need to open every single program/app and check the update status.  That probably won't help.  😞

2.  The color toner printer still won't communicate with the computer.  I noticed at one site about using a special printer cable.  It has a small square plug.  I have one somewhere.  I had it in my hands 2 weeks ago, but I can't find it now.  It is probably in that weird place where you put "things you don't want to lose track of".  😡

3.  I mentioned that the garden enclosure pipes were bent and/or fallen from a heavy January snowfall.  The good news is that the weather is warming enough to work outside.  The bad news is now I have to actually go out and do it.  

4.  I keep my passwords on a spreadsheet printed out from an old standalone computer.  That's unhackable!  But the printout is so old and over-written with changes that it has become unusable.  I have to completely redo the whole thing.  I have 1Password but don't like the idea.  If someone breaks into that, they get get everything.  My password is Really Difficult, but no password is unhackable.  And a Really Difficult password to hack is also Really Annoying to enter every time.

I wonder if there is a fingerprint/face ID external plugin?  That should be safe.  But for now, I will just go back to a printout from the standalone.  That's a lot of really careful typing!  😒

5.  Lori has been in heat again since Tuesday.  That's the 3rd time in 7 weeks!  Hopefully, it will end today.  It better end soon, because she is scheduled for a 3rd try at a spay on Monday.  If it gets delayed again, I may lose my mind.  At least the platelet count confusion is all cleared up now.

6.  I'm having a terrible time leaving comments when The Mews visit their friends.  Autofill wont't work on Firefox or Safari lately, and when it does, the comments don't go through.  I read, just am having trouble leaving comments.

7.  The heat pump is making odd noises lately.  I expect a failure soon.  25 years ago, when the first one failed, I considered having underground pipes installed for one (about $15,000).  Underground temps stay about 50F or like that, and that is very efficient for heat pumps.  I didn't know I would stay here so long.  It would have paid for itself by now.

8.  New problem!  And this one is a bit long.  My kitchen sink suddenly started leaking Thursday night.  I had run the dishwasher and the garbage disposal and run the faucet, so I couldn't tell the cause.  I stuck a small bucket under the drips.  The next morning, I just ran the faucet and it dripped.  Seemed like good news, as it suggested there was just a loose connection somewhere.

But when I went to empty the inch of water in the bucket, I discovered the entire bottom of the cabinet was flooded.  An entire 75 container of dishwasher detergent pods are fused and everything in cardboard is soaked.  OK, that is really minor stuff.  But I'm more worried that the cabinet floor will rot and leaked water into the basement below where I will see it ruining ceiling tiles a few days.

I couldn't find and loose connections.  I'm no plumber anyway.  So I called one around Noon Friday.  They were booked for the day, but could come out 3-5 pm on overtime ($250/hour).   I asked about today (Sat).  Overtime again.  And no Sunday work.  And on Monday I am busy with Lori and her spay and picking her up after.  So it would have been Tuesday before regular rates.  I decided I couldn't get along without running water in the sink for 4 days.

So I said OK come Friday 3-5.  The plumber came by promptly, took one look and said your garbage disposal needs to be replaced.  He said it was leaking from the bottom.  Well, I could see that but leaks from above always drip off the lowest point.  I was unsure.  The faucet drain, the disposal, the sprayer, and the dishwasher all go through mutual connections.

He showed me that the water was coming out of 2 small holes in the bottom.  Apparently they are there for that reason.  OK.  I asked him if he had a disposal in the truck.  He said yes, but it would cost $550.  He said, well there is the labor and parts and everything.

I got burned by the "I have one in the truck" thing before as part of a heat pump repair once.  The repairman did work on the heat pump, but it kept cycling from heat to cool.  He said I had a bad thermostat that didn't match my equipment, but he "had one in the truck".  For $400...  

Given that the house was about 95F and I had barely slept for the 2 days it took them to arrive (I wilt over 75F), I very reluctantly agreed.  It didn't help.  To save you from a longer story, go to the end of this post where you can skip it if you want.

Back to the plumber...  This guy was offerring a $550 replacement job for a new garbage disposal.  I said, you know I can just buy a new one at Home Depot and install it myself in 30 minutes.  He looked at me with a slight smile, so I told him I had installed this one and the previous one.  I can't do actual plumbing (finding leak sources, fitting pipes, soldering copper connections, etc), but replacing equipment was easy enough.  

He was more than generous about the visit and didn't charge me.  Well, it was 2 minutes and I was on his way to another local customer.  And I have had them to service for me before.  He said to call them if I had a problem.  Or if I bought one myself and needed help.  That was more than fair.

What I didn't know was that disposals have changed since the last time I bought one to install.  I went straight to Consumer Report magazine site to find the best  models at a good price.  The best have plug-in cords and narrower openings so you can't reach in lest you also stupidly turn it on while retrieving a dropped object in there.  The silly thing is that a child's hand can fit in.  And I don't have an plugin electrical outlet under the sink.

So I had to research new disposals for an hour.  Some were expensive and bragged about grinding up bones and peach pits.  I don't do that.  Some bragged they ground the material fine enough to be suitable for septic tanks.  I don't have one.  Some bragged about outlet plug-ins.  I don't have one down there.  Some bragged about "continuous feed" or oppositely "bulk feed" (which are oddly expensive for reasons I do not know).

I finally found the best-rated hard-wired, continuous feed, reasonably priced model, according to CR I could get quickly (tomorrow) from Amazon (cheapest).  It isn't the top-rated, but all the better ones need an electrical outlet for plug-in.  It will probably last 10 years.

BTW, when the plumber guy asked how I installed them myself, I smiled.  They are awkward to hold in place AND attach bolts at the same time.  I told him I just stuck a scissors-jack under them and twister the handle tight.  He blinked and I could see him thinking "I should get one".

Well, when you live alone and have to hold awkward things in place, you thing of things like that.  LOL!

   ----------------

The case of the wretched and rip-off heat pump (and eventually fixed) repair.

This is in the past, so not really important.  It is about how some individuals try to rip you off but the company can fix.  But as long as you are here, read on...

I don't have great luck with heat pumps.  They die after about 8 years.  2 of my neighbors have had theirs for 15 years.

So my heat pump died some 8 years ago in August.  I called the company that installed it.  They sent an idiot.  He worked on the outside unit and hooked up some testing equipment.  First, he said it was running properly, but then decided it needed more coolant.  He added more.  It seemed to work.  The air from the vents was cool.  He left.

Then I realized the heat pump was always on, recycling between cooling and heating every few minutes.  I called the company and they sent the same guy out.  Well, it made sense, he had just worked on the unit.

He decided my thermostat had failed.  He had one in the truck.  $400.  I was desperate, so OK.  The cooling came on and I was thrilled.  It seemed to work.  He left.  Then the heat/cooling cycling returned after mere minutes.  And I could hear whistling noises through the internal unit.

I called the company and told them about it saying they better send an actual expert this time.  They did, the next morning.  I said "it sounds over-pressured".  Well, professionals hate amateur guesses.  But he heard the whistling noises too when he arrived and agreed..  I also explained about the thermostat (and complained about the price).  Apparently, some repairmen get to sell parts for their own profit on the side.

The guy who came out was an actual manager of the business.  He agreed the repair had been done badly.  The higher than normal coolant pressure (whistling noises) was likely to have caused damage (and he gave me a brief nod for identifying that).  

He had the entire internal mechanical structure of the heat pump replaced at no cost.  And he examined the thermostat.  

This part is truly weird.  Thermostats display degrees in whole digits.  But some actually operate in 1/2 degrees.  And apparently, that matters but can be changed.  I'm not sure about how that works.  But, in any case, the real expert also adjusted the thermostat to match the heat pump (way out of my depth here).  

Daylight Saving Time

 I have battery-powered clocks all around the house.  No matter how carefully I set them, none ever quite agreed. Maddening.  And the change from Standard to Daylight Saving time was maddening. 

So I bought some clocks with radio signals built in.  They were cheap, so I wasn't expecting much.  But they worked great!  Every one automatically changed.  

Seriously, even the send hands all match up!  A true joy.

A link if you are interested...  I don't get anything from it.

Still had to do the wristwatch, car, oven, microwave, and fancy old one, but half is better than all...  ;)

Spring Flowers

The blooming season has started!  

 

A Good Day

I am very pleased with myself today.  Last week, an entire plant stand light fixture failed.  Naturally, just as I was starting to plant seeds...

I traded out a working fluorescent tube light in that for one in a working fixture.  It lit, so it wasn't the tube lights.  So I tried plugging the fixture into a completely different outlet.  No luck there either.  Which meant the fixture itself had failed.  

So I removed it.  That wasn't easy.  It was bolted onto a higher plant shelf.  I don't build things with easy maintenance in mind.  I assume things last forever, LOL!  But I did get it removed and on my workbench. The 2 possibilities were a loose wire or the failure of the fluorescent ballast.  

I'm not an electrician.  I've nearly electrocuted myself at least twice.  Once, it wasn't my fault (there were actually 2 (seriously non-code) separate circuits in one rental home electrical outlet).  The other was, but I was lucky enough to be sitting on a wood ladder.  I understand basic electricity, but practicality trips me up.  

I have a good sense of dangerous stuff.  I have very careful with power tools and knives, etc.  But electricity is invisible.  I wired my entire basement panel walls once (passed inspection) but it still scares me.

So I had the fixture sitting on my workbench (light tubes removed).  And I couldn't figure out how to even open it!  No obvious screws to remove to get at the insides.   I bent the fixture around some to see what was holding it together and finally decided two weird looking clips were the point were it moved least.  Well, the choice was to replace the fixture or fix it and I WAS curious. 

I grabbed the weird clips with vice-grips and pulled!  It was a heart-shaped plug.  I took the one at the other end out too.  After THAT, I took ever single screw out of the fixture and the insides were free.  Hurray, but what next?

I couldn't find a loose wire.  Of COURSE NOT, that would have been too easy.  I don't get easy problems.  So it had to be a failure of the ballast.  I know nothing about ballasts expect that they are essential.  So I researched the internet for a replacement hoping they were cheap.  

Mine was...

So, where to get one?  Checked several DIY stores and didn't find it.  But checked DIY sites again about "similar".  Found one than specififically asked if my ballast could be replaced by others.  Yes, and one was available at my local DIY store.  Drove there immediately and bought it.

I read the instructions.  They were laughable imprecise "match the wires according the the ballast diagram".  DUH!  My concern was that there were 2 blue wires, 2 red wires, 2 yow wires, a black and a white.  Replacing the ballast meant splicing the same-color wires, but WHICH blue wires, etc?

Well, I could only try it and see if it worked.  And that I didn't electrocute myself in the test.  Well, I am obviously still alive...

After cutting some wires shorter, stripping the insulation off, and capping same-color wires together (worrying that I had attached old blue 1 to new blue 2 (etc), I re-assembled the fixture.  The considered how to test it on the workbench.  I didn't want to have fluorescent tubes explode or risk near-electrocution #3...

Well, I have a shop light above the workbench.  And in a case of creative madness, I wired it with a light switch before the electric outlet.  So I turned off the "light switch" and plugged the fixture into the outlet.    That might be confusing or weird, but it meant the fixture had no electricity until I flipped the "light switch".  

Standing with a door in the way, I flipped the "light switch" ON using a piece of plastic pipe.  The fixture didn't light up.  Damn!  But there is a chain-pull on the fixture, so maybe it was in the 'off position.  I turned everything off and unplugged the fixture and pulled the chain.  Then set everything up again.

It LIT!!!

Fitting the fixture back onto the plant rack was annoying, but that was just about getting bolts into holes and nuts tightened.

But I fixed the fixture.  No knowledge, some persistence, and a bit of caution...  LOL!

I spent the rest of yesterday planting seeds and placing them under the newly-lit fixture.  😄

Dr Suess Day (A Bit Weird)

 I always enjoyed Thing One and Thing Two.

From The Cat In The Hat (having nothing to do)

So I thought I would search back 

To what what was once seen.

A sort of a Flashback if you know what I mean.

It's "Clobberring Time" they both said to the kids.

Shall we break all the dishes?  Or maybe the door?  

We'd love ta break "something", we could stomp on the floor!

But the Cat said "Relax Guys", this isn't a place to go 

Beating down dishes and not doors or floors.  We have to leave everything just as before.  

And the children (relieved) said just could you maybe puttin

Down crazy old depot named Vladamir Putin?

"Your right" they both said, smacking hard hands together,

"We'll turn that old nut into pieces of leather"!

And what did the Cat say to such a brave claim?

Do it all very quickly, and leave us no blame!

 

A Confession

 I love Kim Possible.  And Ron Stoppable, and yeah Shego.  And, at the end, even Drakken...

Kim and Ron were never "quite" in a dating relationship, more "friends from childhood".  And Ron was pretty inept.  Shego always acted like she considered Drakken an idiot she had to work for to be a proper villainess.  

I watched "Graduation Day" again (of many times) last night.  And things worked out...

At the end Kim and Ron were a couple t the Prom.  Everyone cheered to see them together.  It was a bit awkward to see Ron "saving the day", but it was only after years of seeing her save him, so I guess he had to have "his moment".

But what I liked the most was Shego (the general villainess of the good GO team [HeGo/TheyGo/IGo)] departed for Drakken.  Drakken was always trying and failing to be a supervillain, but always failed.  Shego stuck around seemingly bored  (and fighting Kim).

But in the last episode, Drakken actually saves the world (sort of) by flower-power (literally grew and commanded vines growing from him).

Shego always wore a neck to ankle green uniform.  She obviously loved Drakken in some odd way.

So I just noticed this time, that when Drakken was cheered by people as he was given a medal, Shego was (for the first time ever) "out of uniform".  That made me happy...

Note that her green villainess uniform has become a dress.  She loved him all along.  ;)

Sappy?  Yeah...

Screwed

This is a very expensive screw!  It cost $240 and you don't find screws that expensive every day.

Well, it wasn't made of gold.  That would have cost less.

But the dealership said might as well been.

After they replaced the tire it was embedded in...

A repair of the tire would have been "iffy".  It was close to the sidewall and plugs there can "go boom".  Better to be safe now than sorry later...

The tire guy cracked up when I told him I wanted the screw back.  But when I said I had a blog, he understood.

We traded jokes/comments while he did the work (my car was right at the service door).  I noted he used DeWalt tools (both our favorites).  He asked about my license plate and I explained it was chess move ("cavebear" was too long and "caveber" suggested I was a spelunker and "cavbear" was taken).

They got me in and out in 30 minutes.  

One problem down, a dozen more to go.