Okie tech Thread (Okay, Gate: work, sick, storage)

[TheComputerGuy]

Originally Posted by redbird4848

I also do a lot of work from home computer. Have several programs on this computer that are the same as at work.

Will Microsoft Access work on Linux?

Yes and no...

It is possible to run Windows apps under WINE, Cedaga, or Crossover Office.
Open Office has an MS compatible Access equivalent called Base.
I don't have any experience with it, so I can't tell you how well it will work with your particular files. If you feel adventurous, you may want to give it a try.

From what I understand, Crossover Office WILL work for you,
but it's not free. You may want to Google it and check it out.

Congrats on getting free from AOL!

[redbird4848]

Originally Posted by mkfarnam

What thread was that "World Clock" posted on?

Sorry, mkf, I didn't see your question earlier. I posted the link on new years day on the okie chat thread, but here is the link:


http://www.poodwaddle.com/worldclock.swf

Check out the new one on it that says,

US illegal immigrant population : 12.7 million and counting...

Awful kind of them to keep track of that for us.

They need a few okie stats, like number of okies saying "Dang"

[TheComputerGuy]

Originally Posted by karibear

I've been reading a lot of the older posts, and it seems like most people are pro-Dell. I have a Dell story.

The place where I worked in voc rehab, one of the Native Associations, had nothing but Dell computers originally because they were supposed to be the best, plus they provided support, and they were on the list for federal discounts. Then one fine day, the backup/LAN system - Dell's wonderful Blackbird - failed. The head IT guy called them, and the response was essentially "So sad, too bad, we don't do Blackbird any more. Good luck." The IT guy had to fly all over the state looking for something he could cobble together that would allow Blackbird to keep working long enough to replace it with something else. In the meantime, approximately 100 computers on the LAN/WAN systems were so many paperweights. All the clinic's records, both medical and dental, were unavailable. None of the scheduled appointments would come up so both of the clinics were basically walk-ins for 5 days. Those few of us who had at least some files on our computers as well fared a bit better, but not by much. After that fiasco, we were directed to NOT get any more equipment from Dell, we could get whatever we wanted, and if they had a federal ID #, great. Suddenly all the offices were sporting new Gateways and Compaq. I really really liked my Compaq. When I finally bought my own, I got an e-machine from an online company that has long since become part of Amazon, but it lasted me a long, long time, all things considered. What I have now is a patchwork that has been repaired and rebuilt and upgraded and added on to so many times, the only thing left of the original computer is the zip drive, and I keep that because I have so many files on zip disks.

Who's pro Dell?
Ask Jessaka how thrilled she is with her Dell.

Dell has a large market share because of the federal discounts,
and because most people don't know of any alternatives.
In my experience, they are the most failure prone machines out there.
I'm SO sick of working on Dells...
Then again, I should stop whining because they do generate a good portion
of my business. It appears that most people would rather pay someone to
solve their problem quickly as opposed to dealing with Dell's tech support...
(Your mileage may vary.)

With the exception of their XPS series, they are comprised
of cheap, underpowered, substandard components.

I have heard both good and bad stories regarding their support.

Gateway is not significantly better, but they seem to last a tad longer.

Compaq makes a better quality machine, but they still appear
to be too proprietary to be cost effective in maintaining over the long haul.

Acer while more expensive used to be a pretty solid machine,
but they seem to be going down hill as of late.

HP was also a pretty solid machine back in the day,
but they've been putting out a lot of substandard machines
in the name of cost reduction.

E-Machines, while cheap, are less proprietary, and can be a good choice for a civilian to start with, if the are handy enough to change out their own components when they fail.

The best bet, is to build your own machine from quality components that are hand-picked for the machine's particular mission.
Obviously this is not an option for many people.
It's possible to to obtain a machine like this on line, from a local
computer shop or to do it yourself.

NOTE: The above statements are only my opinion based upon over 20
years as a network technician and IT manager, and your mileage may vary.
Not looking to get into any debates on the subject.

I only posted this because I'm constantly asked what machines I recommend.
Now I can just point to this post... Pretty lazy huh?

BTW karibear....
You may want to consider transferring you data from Zip disks to CD or DVD...
Those disks have a reasonably limited life span.

[redbird4848]

Originally Posted by TheComputerGuy

Congrats on getting free from AOL!

The AOL godz must be crazy/angry and have sent me surveys, downloads, upgrades and other freebies since I called them and told them I was ending my account.

THe last time I quit them, they gave me AOL for 9.99/mo. This time, I am going to erase completely ALL AOL cr@p off my computer.

[TheComputerGuy]

Originally Posted by redbird4848

The AOL godz must be crazy/angry and have sent me surveys, downloads, upgrades and other freebies since I called them and told them I was ending my account.

THe last time I quit them, they gave me AOL for 9.99/mo. This time, I am going to erase completely ALL AOL cr@p off my computer.

Oh boy! An instant performance increase!
So what ISP do you plan to go to now?

[redbird4848]

I am transferring to Plainsnet.net which is the only alternative out here in the boonies.

Hughes net was too expensive and another outfit called blue window had too many up front charges inluding having to buy the equipment.

[karibear]

Originally Posted by redbird4848

I am transferring to Plainsnet.net which is the only alternative out here in the boonies.

Hughes net was too expensive and another outfit called blue window had too many up front charges inluding having to buy the equipment.

How many ISPs are available in southern OK? I called Hughesnet and never quite got a straight answer when I asked how much the total monthly charge would be. I thought about BlueSkies but I've heard too many negative things. Clearwire is supposed to be available right here in WA, but they told me I was 8 miles outside their coverage area, so I had to stay with the slow dialup. I had a friend in northern Louisiana who switched to Earthlink about 7 years ago and he really liked it - except for one thing: when he downloaded the connecting info, it wiped out all his email addresses!

And speaking of AOL, I have another friend in CA who does most of her business on line, who switched to AOL in '99, I think. She sent out a group email to everyone in her address book, informing them of her changed email and AOL blocked her. They said it was a violation of something or other to send bulk emails soliciting business, and it took her several hours on the phone to convince someone to actually READ what she was sending and see that she wasn't soliciting business, she just had a very large address book. Needless to say, AOL didn't keep her business very long.

[karibear]

Originally Posted by TheComputerGuy

Who's pro Dell?

BTW karibear....
You may want to consider transferring you data from Zip disks to CD or DVD...
Those disks have a reasonably limited life span.

Bite your tongue!

Actually, what I have are several manuscripts, and the zips were my back up in case one of the hard drives crashed again [only one ever did]. I have a couple of flash drives I just got but haven't hooked up yet. I'm waiting for one last bit of stuff to arrive, then I have a bunch of things to hook up and install, and it's such a royal PITA to move everything out of the way to get to the back of my computer every time I want to do something to it, I'm waiting to do it in one swoop.

jMy original e-machine was one of the toughest and longest-lasting ones I've ever heard of. It was moved around inside the house half a dozen times, one of our roomers in Alaska nearly burned the house down and the computer came through a fogbank of smoke and continued to work after I vaccuumed it carefully, it bounced around travelling down the Alcan from Alaska to the midwest and back to the Pacific Northwest, and didn't give up until the second dog started sleeping under it - then it wasn't the hard drive that gave out, it was the motherboard.

My biggest problem now is that while I know WHAT to do, I can't SEE well enough to do it. So my techie friend sometimes fixes glitches, and sometimes talks me through them.

Once you move to OK, I suggest you find a home base somewhere in south central and do house calls.

[mkfarnam]

World Clock

[mkfarnam]

Originally Posted by redbird4848

Sorry, mkf, I didn't see your question earlier. I posted the link on new years day on the okie chat thread, but here is the link:


http://www.poodwaddle.com/worldclock.swf

Check out the new one on it that says,

Awful kind of them to keep track of that for us.

They need a few okie stats, like number of okies saying "Dang"

They're about 8 million short.