Working backwards from the year 2014 (Computers, right? Load of old bollocks)

[hirez]

Another thing that happened is that at 5AM the morning before we were due to fly out to the Americas for the Convergences, there was a brief power-cut. The alarm next door set to peeping away like a lost robot, about which I would have been sad because they were away for $time and we would have had to put up with same, had we not also been off out the door.

The other thing that expired was my computer. I said some rude words about that and resolved to buy yet another PSU on our return.

This I duly did, from the cursed Amazon because Novatech no longer have a handy shop just down the road. Since I paid for next-day delivery, the thing turned up at half-five the day after and didn't work.

Bugger.

So. New m/b (from Novatech because at least I know what I'm getting into with that lot). Since I didn't pay for next-day delivery, the thing turned up at seven the next morning.

Due to the onward march of progress, modern motherboards don't bother with PATA connectors (although they do bother will parallel printer plugs, which, what?) so I spent a cheerful number of hours writing the driver DVD to a USB stick (stupid, hateful name).

There is something terminally farked with my old XP (yes, I know) install.

Installing XP with the aid of a SATA DVD and a spare HD reveals the new kit to be quite happy with XP Pro SP3. I could, if I had a mind to chase it all down, probably work out which bit is causing the thing to blue-screen on startup, but I did kinda-sorta think that the next time this happened I'd bin M$ and use a proper OS.

Sadly I chose Umbongo. It really is just a horrible, horrible bucket of sick with an evil robot brain, isn't it? Everything is just slightly harder than it needs to be, or just doesn't work, no matter how hard you twiddle the knobs in the Fisher-Price activity centre.

Comments

[maluse.livejournal.com]

Linux Mint (Xfce version) is a version of Umbongo that's as good as the old ones, before they decided that the user experience just wasn't new and shiny enough.

[hirez.livejournal.com]

I believe a somewhat lashed-together Kubuntu + relevant video driver have stopped it crashing X every few hours. It's telling when your XP install stays up for 'n' weeks and yur Linux install can only manage 'n' hours.

KDE is also less brown and thus better for my aged eyesight.