Susanna J. Sturgis   Martha's Vineyard writer and editor
writer editor born-again horse girl

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Another 2010 First

January 05, 2011

Forgot to mention this one: In 2010, my studio apartment became a two-computer household. In July, Hekate the laptop moved in. In August, I took her on a short road trip to Fitchburg; that was the Rally trial where Travvy exited the ring during a nice stand & walk around because he thought the stuffies on the other side looked more interesting. For the first time I received and sent e-mail using public wi-fi. Hekate came to Norway with me in December. I made a hotel reservation while sitting in the international terminal, using Logan Airport's free wi-fi. I felt very grownup, or with-it, whatever it is. I almost said "wired," but since the whole operation was wireless, that doesn't seem to apply.

I'd been considering laptops on and off for several years. Sure, it seemed everyone had one -- at least one -- but I didn't need a laptop. Morgana V has been the most persnickety desktop I've ever had -- really, four major crashes that required Windows reinstallation, when I'd never had to reinstall an operating system before? Editor friends insist that anyone who depends on a computer for her livelihood should have access to a spare, just in case. I concede the point, but I also think "just in case" regularly seduces people into springing for excess capacity -- buying more than they need, like they buy a Suburban because once a year they have to take the whole soccer team out for pizza.

It also seduces governments into follies like TSA airport inspections, but I ranted about that last month and the rant hasn't changed much since then.

So after Morgana's most recent Windows reinstall, my Internet access disappeared. I couldn't figure it out, Comcast phone support couldn't figure it out. The Comcast tech guy who came to my house did figure it out: Morgana V wasn't acknowledging my cable modem because the drivers and other files and inexplicably wound up in the wrong place. Fixing it was beyond his capability, though, so Morgana went to MVTech in Vineyard Haven, and they fixed it.

This was the first time I'd needed to pay for outside help to fix a computer. True, I paid a guy to set me up with a wireless receiver when I moved in here (and was using my neighbors' wireless, with their permission), and also true, I've twice paid another guy for not-fixing something. But mostly I've been able to diagnose and fix things with occasional assistance from (free) tech support and the astonishing knowledge base that is Copyediting-L, also free. One baffling problem in 25 years was not, by itself, enough to make me decide that I had to have a second computer.

I was, however, starting to travel more. Portability was looking attractive, and having a backup machine sure wouldn't hurt. So, enter Hekate.

No regrets, no regrets at all. I can now write and edit onscreen while sitting in my favorite chair. I do that a lot. I'm doing it now.

 

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