Several months back, our area had a major thunderstorm with sever lightning strikes throughout the city. Out by the road of the utility pole, the telephone facility got struck and the lightning blew up the telephone wires along with burning out the ethernet in the computer.

It took 8 days before the phone company to come out and repair their services and restore my phone line. Then it took me another couple days to figure out a end around solution to get back online using the same computer that was struck by lightning and not have the expense buying a new computer.

So as clever as I am, I was determined to find a solution to save the cost of buying a new computer. So, I headed out to Walmart and Office Depot and purchased two items to go wireless and by pass the ethernet problem on the computer. Seems like it was around $80.00 expense for the belken and netgear gizmos.

Got back to the house, open the units and had no idea what I was doing, but, that's OK I live to conquer challenges. About, an hour later, I was ready to boot up and see if success had been achieved.

It's systems go, lights powered on and ready click the power button to boot up the computer.

Amazing. I'm back online after being out of commission for 12 days with no Internet
That's the beauty of working a real home based MLM business, while I'll missed 12 days off the Internet, I'm
still earning on my primary home business, while simply missing the extra income at ClixSense.

Before the computer crashed this go around, I had been going through deleting over 100 manual
traffic exchanges. Some where along the way, the computer got a big case of Blue Screen ithen and a few
other viruses of which I got rid of the viruses and then still dealing with the Blue Screen Kiss of Death.

Finally, My computer died. But, before I completely gave up, I go purchase a new hard drive and tried to
install Linux without having to give in to Microsoft to buy their operating system for $120.00.

I returned the hard drive and got my $70.00 refunded. I didn't fork over no cash to contribute
to Microsoft profits.

My computer died and resting in peace.

I'm back online.

Stay tuned in for my next topic and find out how I was able to get back online.

Proadco,

Sorry to read about your PC. It is nice to know you are tech savy enough to find a solution. Welcome back.

Thanks Fellow

Not that I'm tech savvy.

I don't let excuses stand in my way to take a step forward. I seek solutions to solve a situation.

Should I encounter a situation where I can not solve a problem, then I treat it like a wooden nickel
and take care of it when it get a round-to-it, rather by gaining OJT knowledge or by open source solution.

The last resort is having to pay retail.

You don't have to be tech savvy to use Linux. Android is Linux. It's a Linux we try to disown, but it's a Linux.

Not all Linuxes are created equal - that's why there's so many of them. I have political issues with my preferred distro at the moment, so I don't even really know which to recommend, but I can tell you that you probably won't even get Gentoo installed - even hackers fail sometimes - or you can stick a Mint live CD in and install in the background while you're actually using it, and you can find everything in between

There's a wide range of distros for a wide range of users, is the point. If you find something hard, and can't get any help, trying a different distro is a perfectly sensible strategy. Doubly so if you're relying on proprietary drivers.

Can it start the C drive ? Or is drive not bootable ? I tried Both a dead C drive and a C drive that was messed big time up . If it can start the C drive then try removing everything down to standard installation it came with . If the C drive can start and it is usually caused by by Irql problems . Irql problems comes from conflicting software installed on the C drive .

The drive is not bootable, not even with a new hard drive.

I'm going save the power supply and the other gizmo fan, ram, dvd and put the remains in my metal scrap pile and haul off to the salvage yard and collect some cash on the scrap and then keep an eye out for a non working desk top at a yard sale

Rod, why not just go to walmart and purchase an inexpensive laptop?
Not sure if you have tax free days there (due to school start up) but it can be a good time to buy.

Today I was looking for the charger that came with a little acer notebook I purchased a couple years ago....
I couldn't find the charger. It's around here some where. The point is, I think I gave about $69 for it
at the Walmart at a Christmas sale or some time around Christmas. It's a little black and purple 'Acer',
multi gesture touch pad, windows 7, wifi etc, 1 GB Memory, Aspire One, WebCam optimized, and so on.
It is 10.1 inches. It may not sound like much but it works great, and I only keep avast free version
anti-virus on it.

The point I am making is, you don't really need to spend a lot unless you want to. One cheap pc
lasts about as long as the next cheap pc.....even expensive ones.

About 10 years ago I paid over $2,000 for a dell desktop and after one year the thing had issue
after issue.

I have several dell laptops and believe me, they are way over-rated. I have a couple of Lenovo
products, a tablet and more recently a laptop. I like Lenovo products better than Dell.

Several years ago, I bought a MAC, and it is mainly what I use. I guess I've been using this same
MAC for about 4 going on 5 years. No problems with it at all. Works the same as it did on day one.

I got a brand new 2.4 Ghz Quad core Toshiba with 17" screen and 2 years warranty for around 600 $ last year . If you look for something cheap that last for many years , a Toshiba might be an idea . You never know how long those you buy on yard sales last . If you can get them to work properly at all .

valerie wrote: Rod, why not just go to walmart and purchase an inexpensive laptop?

Valerie, that's the whole purpose of not spending high dollars being a wreck less spender. Sure, could run down
to Walmart and look for those roll back prices where they purchased China goods at cheap labor wages and Walmart
then retails at premium prices.

You see, I'm on a new kick that works. New out of the box has become non important.

My Motto. I coined this phrase.

Buy American First. Shop Yard Sales.

From time to time. I set up my very own Yard Mart and under cut Walmart's roll back prices with pre-owned merchandise where Smart Shoppers Shop Smart and Save Big.

Get the rest of the story at My Computer Part 2 Topic

hyldig wrote: I got a brand new 2.4 Ghz Quad core Toshiba with 17" screen and 2 years warranty for around 600 $ last year . If you look for something cheap that last for many years , a Toshiba might be an idea . You never know how long those you buy on yard sales last . If you can get them to work properly at all .

Some years ago I bought a used computer a guy had for sale in the local paper, for $40.00.
I bought it for my ex husband to play cards because he liked those poker card games....Hoyle.
It worked for about one week.

@Rod, you can find good deals at yard sales, garage sales, flea markets, auctions, etc. There's
a very large flea market type building not far from me. They have booth after booth of stuff. It's
a huge place. I just thought about it and I don't think I can recall ever seeing any electronics there
at all, other than perhaps an antique radio. I enjoy going there but rarely take the time out to go.
I'm not knocking you buying computers at yard sales. Many people do place items in yard sales
that are very good items.

Valerie, what's cool is saving $400.00 + and only spending $20.00 for two working laptops. That's like saving $1,000.00 and plus, I can resell these laptops for a good profit.

Last summer about this time. I went to a yard sale and this family was selling everything, pulling up stakes and moving to Florida.

I bought lot of household items, furniture to resell for my yard sale.

I spotted this computer they were selling. All the other shoppers over looked it thinking it was just a laptop canvas bag.

This laptop is a newer model and it's a compaq, maybe couple years old. Not sure what the actual story is. But, the family said, it was their daughters laptop and she left home or gone back to college or something and she left it behind that she didn't want the computer. That didn't make sense too me, but it's their story and they had everything pulled out of the house and they were selling everything super cheap.

This laptop appears to be in super condition, including the canvas bag. The downside, I don't have the recovery disc and the computer is password locked and I will have to learn how to hack the bios.

Only paid a $5.00 for that laptop.

A : You cant hack the bios . B : You believe what people tell you to much , check if it is stolen by the local PD . Buy American only , now you are being funny . I have earned a lot of money on guys like you . I buy damaged high end expencive brands and cheap throw away China productions . When you get in to it and know what you are doing you will discover that the content in various brands is the same . I have sold many rebuilt US casings filled with China machinery . I made huge profits on guys like you and I still do .

@ hyldig

Sorry to inform you. You may make huge profits off of suckers, but you will never make a profit off guys like me.

I see my phrase went right over your head. You really should stick to your native region where I'm only focused what happens in the USA.

So, you didn't comprehend. Buy American First. Shop Yard Sales.
Of course you didn't, you're not American, nor do you reside in USA.

While your free to roam around to exercise your off the wall free speech and you're welcome to read back to yourself what you posted here.

The only comments that are important is what I post. I can't help for what you do not comprehend.

So you see, you're not understanding the message within the slogan.

Buy American First. Shop Yard Sales.

100 million Americans unemployed thanks to the democrats and 50 million on food stamps and other gov't services with hand outs.

Millions of those unemployed and those working part time hours do yard sales for whatever reason, mostly to pay a pressing bill or food on the table.

While most of the yard sale items where made outside of USA, the message within the message is to shop yard sales first and support your local neighbors that could be in dire need for extra cash before you go shopping with the multi nationals that are too big to fail that you made wealthy with your wreck less spending.

Quote:A : You cant hack the bios

*cough* Libreboot project *cough*

Sorry, was still on the first cup of caffeine. That's the wrong value of "hack" - what you want to do is crack the BIOS.

This is normally pretty easy - most BIOS come with a jumper you can use to reset the password, or you can kill the battery. Once you have physical access to a machine, all bets are off.

@Rod, I have been there, done that, sold everything. After I graduated from college I was
offered a job in Alaska to manage a boys rehab center. I sold almost everything...even my
house. Then I changed my mind. So I bought another house and had to spend a lot of
money buying furniture and other household items. I've also sold items in the past due
to remodeling and/or changing decor.

Just because things are placed in a yard sale does not necessarily mean they are not good.
Lots of reasons why people sell their items and it's not generally because they are broke.

If you know where the house is in which you purchased the laptop, go over there and
ask them if they know the password.

ProAdCo wrote: I will have to learn how to hack the bios.

pull out the bios battery for (maybe) 1 minute or (maybe) 1 hour, let the bios reset itself

@Valerie, as stated in the post, that family sold everything thing they owned and moved to Florida.
They left town traveling light with cash and the clothes on their back.

As for the password.

I have three options if I plan to use that computer.

1. Crack the Bios to change the password and use the existing operating system.
2. Do a new install with the Free Linux operating system.
3. Spend $119.00 + tax for a a new windows operating system at their prices.


I actually have 4 laptops I purchased in yard sales.
Two that I can actually get online with. The other two are password protected.

Total money spent.

2 laptops for $20.00 - These two I can get online.
1 laptop for $5.00 works but password proteted.
1 laptop for $1.00 works but password protected, this one is the oldest model and may sell it and double my
money in my yard sale, unless I install Linux and get it operational and sell it for $20.00.

Total investment $26.00 is a super deal for 4 laptops in good condition and have Free Linux operating system as an option without having to spend the money for a operating system at their prices.

Now should my computer crash and burn as my desktop did, I will have backps to get back online.

Maybe you can try what 'jagobal' said above.

To remove the battery or use a jumper to reset bios in a laptop is not that easy . He will have to dismantle it to get to it . It is much easier said than done . In a stationary it is easy .