It certainly was a hot one today…
I have 3 servers alongside where my desk is, so when the temperature in the outside world topped 25°C, it gets REALLY hot in our office.
Even with the windows and doors open, the lack of breeze didn’t help

Still – when it got too unbearable, we redirected the phones, shutdown non essential equipment, and left for cooler climes!
In this case home, but somewhere where I could sit, scantily clad, and not feel like a Sumo in shorts!

Anyway – this is one of the bigger pluses when working in your own businesses – especially one like ours which isn’t necessarily office or location bound.
I took a few calls, remotely accessed my work emails and documents, and fixed stuff remotely from home.
Ain’t technology brilliant! :)

I broke my sunglasses the other day – not something I was too impressed at. I HATE breaking things, I guess it’s against the moral code to be responsible for the destruction of something instead of the fix.
They are something I take seriously too – I find that they REALLY help with my dyslexia, making things much easier to read. This to the point of wearing them indoors when I get tired!
Well, I picked out my new pair – being Internet shopping savvy (and usually saving myself and friends £££s) I trawled the t’Internet for them. Failing I contacted the manufacturers, it turns out that they are very new and won’t be released in Europe until August; BUT they would let me have a pair with the result that I’ll be the ONLY person in the UK with a pair of these!

WOW!!! I’m a fashion pioneer!
Soon Vogue will be calling for a photo opportunity…

Hmm… perhaps not..!

#EDIT#
Nearly forgot to add – I got the Sat Nav back today!
A complete turn around time of 4 days!!

WELL DONE GARMIN!

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This week, there have been several instances of mis-communication.
That is to say I have misinterpreted what a client actually means when they say certain things.

From a technical point of view (bear in mind what I do for a living), certain phrases mean certain things.
I like to educate my clients as to what the correct technical words are, in the vain attempt to get them to explain a problem properly.
Usually its “just not working” is not too helpful… although it’s something I hear ALL the time :razz:

With this level of education in mind I bold went (yup, even I can split the infinitive ) off on my daily mission to resolve the worlds problems.
There were three separate instances where the wrong info was passed, and I merrily went down one avenue or resolution, only to face plant into the wall of “oops” when I realised that I was not in possession of a full complement of facts.

There was pain and wasted time all round

Still – thanks to YEARS of doing this job (and the exceptional patience of our clients :) ) we got there and solved stuff.
That IS why they pay me, after all…

Maybe it’s time to dust off the old fortune telling kit, and invest in the company trying to develop a universal translator!

Jobs of interest included:

• Finding and downloading some OLD driver software
• Ressurecting a PC from a blown power supply (it had killed the main board AND the graphics card too!)
• Sorting out a CAD plotter which decided not to open the files any more
• Remote access errors.
• Fixing a router that decided to play technical ‘Hide ‘n’ Seek’

A good week (and quite profitable for a change!) :oops:

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I posted the other day about the stupid European bureaucrats making life difficult for the rest of Europe in respect to Microsoft’s dominance of the IT world: European Idiots

Well, it seems that Micro$oft have started limiting Europe’s Windows experience already:
Windows 7 pricing gets unveiled

Reading on you will find that Micro$oft have decided to limit the upgrades for European users thanks to the limitations placed on them by Brussels.
This is NOT good news – I think it’s the tip of the iceberg.

The Eurocrats should remember that Micro$oft doesn’t HAVE to sell Windows here – it does so because it can.
What will happen if M$ just say “OK, enough is enough” and pull out of Europe all together?

Although I DO agree that this level of threat should not be a case for NOT suing Microsoft, the result of the case seems to have simply caused us ‘Techies’ trouble, not saved the world from some perceived ‘Sword of Damocles’.
Would society as we know it really collapse if Microsoft provide Windows with [their own] Internet browser or [their own] Media playing software?
I think not.

So what, I ask, was the point of spending countless £££s on a needless case?
My cynical side says – to line some MEPs pockets with platinum…!

BTW – Breaking news is that Michael Jackson has died from a heart attack!
That came as quite a surprise, I’ll tell you!

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What is the matter with peoples legs?
Mine work fine most of the time (Sometimes they ache; Sometimes I’m drunk!).
More to the point what exactly means that parenthood instantly disables you, to the point of having your own spaces in car parks RIGHT next to the store/exit/place of interest??

I ask this for two reasons:
Firstly, the guy who lives opposite us sometimes has his sister to visit – despite asking politely SEVERAL times she insists on parking directly opposite our drive -as I use the drive to park my car AND the fact that the road is non too wide, it makes it impossible to manoeuvre to actually get on to my drive.
The other day she managed to park in such a stupid place that the guy next to the guy opposite couldn’t get onto his drive EITHER (I had arrived home, just as he had. We were both attempting to park).
A shouting match ensued, during which she said “There was nowhere else for me to go” – she
“Erm – WHAT ABOUT THE REST OF THE ****ING STREET!! DON’T YOUR LEGS WORK?!?!?!?!” – me.

Sheesh! :eek:

Secondly. our local Sainsbury’s has altered it’s car park.
Now, more than â…“ of the spaces are dedicated to parent spaces – along with a friendly warning of a £50 fine for abusing these.
ALL THESE SPACES ARE CLOSETR THAN THE DISABLED SPACES!
So it would seem that Sainsbury’s value parenthood over disability.

SINCE WHEN DID HAVING A CHILD MAKE YOU UNABLE TO WALK LESS THAN A DISABLED PERSON?

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Sometimes technology sucks

I was called out this morning to a client who’s PC had just stopped working – as it turns out the power supply had decided that this mortal coil was too much for it and left for a better place (read – a fuse in the power supply blew).
PC deaded
Fixable though – under the assumption the power supply failure didn’t kill anything else on its departure…

Then I had to pop over to a suppliers to collect memory for  another clients PC.
On the way there my Sat Nav (a Garmin nuvi 765t) popped up a message saying “GPS update complete” – odd that since I had not installed any updates for a while.
The unit then decided that there were no satellites in the sky any more – even more odd
Then it decided to go see if there IS a God and shut down – I have not had any joy out of it since, i.e. it’s dead

Oh dear…
Now I’m faced with sending the unit back for replacement – without a Sat Nav for about 1 – 2 weeks.
Not a good prospect ‘cos I’m geographically challenged at the best of times (I actually drove PAST my office this morning and had to turn around and go back! We’ve only been there 2 YEARS!! )

All this from something that just happened – not by my own hand did this thing die

NOT happy

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