The Era of Disposable Computers (8/19/16)
In my rants, I've normally left out the names of vendors, but I'll make an exception in this case. One of the things I've learned over the years is that it is often cheaper to buy some new product (often cheaper, better) than have the old one repaired, say a toaster. I can go to WalMart and buy a replacement coffee maker, toaster or other small appliance for under $20, while trying to get an old version repaired probably starts over that.
I remember buying my first PC as a business school professor in the late 1980's for just shy of $3000. I probably shifted to laptops as a road warrior in the late 1990's, probably now in the $900-1200 range. (I think I discussed my PC purchases in a SoftDoc blog post; I would say they've probably lasted 2-3 years on average. Various issues, especially accidental spills: for example, an HP laptop near the end kept warning imminent hard drive failure.) As a DBA, I love redundancy and backups, so I've normally had a second PC available. During my WV move, my backup desktop was buried somewhere in a storage unit by mover assistants. When I relocated to SC, my new movers did deliver my desktop to my apartment, but I couldn't get it to start. So I decided to buy a budget ASUS laptop as a backup. (Long story, including an issue with Rollback RX software, but I eventually got my desktop to start up, giving me two backup PCs.) The ASUS was relatively inexpensive; in the process of writing this segment, I came across a Best Buy ad for a comparable ASUS at about $230.
During my most recent move, my aging primary PC died from a spill. I had my ASUS packed elsewhere in my luggage. I had booted up my ASUS, waiting for logon; I got an external drive prepared for converting my ASUS to a primary. In the interim, my ASUS went dark. I thought maybe it was sleeping, but the ASUS wouldn't respond at all. It wouldn't power on. No lights, nothing.
There are issues with laptops, and one I've had problems with is the battery. For one of my past laptops, the battery caused a problem, even with the laptop running on a power cord. As soon as I removed the battery, my problem went away. I didn't try or need to replace the battery. The issue with checking the battery in the case of the ASUS is the laptop design did not make the battery accessible as a removable module like in my past laptop.
I initially Googled the problem and found a lot of issues reported by ASUS users not able to power on, even one or 2 Youtube videos on workarounds. Summarizing, one workaround was to unscrew the back, locate and remove the battery, do a hard reset (press the power button continuously for about 45 seconds), reinstall the battery, screw back the cover. (I don't have the right screwdriver for those tiny screws on the back.)
I went to the ASUS support website and tried to get an RMA (problem ticket for repair, particularly on warranty issues). After one feeble attempt by ASUS support to have me do a hard reset without touching the battery, I got forwarded to a guy empowered to set up RMAs, only to be told my warranty on the lightly used laptop bought last year had expired. I was given a STARTING repair estimate of $330 and warned it could run higher.
So the point is that I could pay $230 (plus taxes) on a NEW ASUS today vs. repair a year-old ASUS for $100+ more. Welcome to the world of disposable laptops. (I may attempt to try the workaround when I get new tools, but I bought a new laptop in the interim (my desktop was delayed with my household shipment).) As to any future ASUS purchases, I don't think so.
USPS and Credit Card Verification (8/20/16)
I ran into the same problem on one of my prior moves to WV and SC. The USPS website uses a test $1 transaction to validate one's change of address. I think I ranted on this in one of my blogs around the time. When I submitted my credit card transaction, the USPS reported the transaction was rejected. I contacted my credit card issuer. They insisted they hadn't rejected any transaction. I went back to USPS and got shuttled among various bureaucrats, all in a state of denial. Long story short, I used an alternate credit card (same brand, different issuer), no problem. There was no interest whatsoever in getting my prominent issuer and the USPS to figure out why the transaction failed.
I guess I shouldn't be surprised the same problem occurred with my latest move (and the same workaround of using my second credit card worked). It's not just with USPS, because I had into a similar issue with a commercial transaction. I suspect it's an address verification software bug. The difference is that I can always find an alternative commercial vendor, but the government monopoly dictates its rules. It's astounding the USPS wants us to provide this information, but if we stumble jumping through Procrustean hoops, it's OUR problem, not theirs--and the USPS doesn't really offer an alternative to a credit card validation check unless you want to drive down to your local post office and manually fill in your address change old school. Don't ask me how I'm the first person to run into this issue with the well-known credit card issuer.
Soda Pop and Temperature in the Car (8/20/16)
I almost never buy or drink soda anymore on my diet except when I go out to eat and/or travel. I remember years ago in Illinois I had bought a case of diet Coke and put it in my trunk; I forgot about it. One cold day I needed to get something from the trunk and discovered that all my Coke cans had exploded, leaving an icy mess.
I didn't really think about the heat when I recently bought a case of another soda brand while shopping at a Sam's Club. I was living in a hotel awaiting delivery of my household goods at the time; I didn't want to bring the full case up to the hotel room and just peeled off a few for my small room refrigerator. Well, it turns out when you have outside temperatures sometimes topping 110 F, soda doesn't react well. When I finally retrieved the pack moving into my apartment a few days later, I found some lids off the top of a few cans and several distorted cans; what remained was flat soda. Lesson learned the hard way twice: don't leave soda cans in the car.
