partially back
Jun. 9th, 2002 03:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
cellioWe are partially back online.
We have one machine with internet access right now. It's the box that was going to be a Linux box if we could just figure out the installation, but right now it has Win98 on it. (One of the things we can't get properly configured under Linux is the network connection.) It turned out that both the Linksys box (firewall) and the hub got fried, not just the hub like we first thought, and that's why replacing the hub didn't fix the problem. (We were misled by the Linksys' "everything is ok" lights...) The DSL modem survived unscathed, near as we can tell.
One quirk: the cat5 cable running from the basement to the second floor is apparently dead. It sounds odd, but we carried Dani's computer down to the basement and it could see the network, so it's not his network card. And neither his machine nor the once-and-future Linux box from which I'm writing could see the net while plugged into that cable. I guess we'll ask the electician who'll be here tomorrow anyway whether he does network cable. (Good thing I haven't returned the spool of cable to Greg yet.)
On my computer, the motherboard and the power supply are toast but everything else is ok, so the insurance company dictates that we repair rather than replace. As I've otherwise been quite satisfied with the machine and not eager to upgrade right now, we're doing that. So my question about where to shop can be delayed; I'll replace the machine in good time, but I don't need to do it today. The file server made out even better; its I/O ports are dead but the rest of the internals are ok.
I do find myself wondering if we can really trust the rest of the internals in a machine whose motherboard and power supply got zapped. I'll test everything when I get the machine back, but if I have problems in a couple months I'll never be able to prove anything. On the other hand, the repair place has incentive to list everything that might be damaged, and they only listed these items. I guess I'll just have to take my chances. I'll probably replace the machine in another year or so.
We bought a new TV (to be delivered), and a couple of VCRs and a DVD player. This is our first DVD experience, but it seems a shame to get a nice modern TV and not get a cheap DVD player to go with it. (The player was $65.) Eventually we might want a better player, but first we should find out how much we would actually use it -- and what multi-zone players cost and where to get them, so we could watch foreign DVDs.
We needed a stand for the TV (my current one is not rated for a larger TV), and that's when we found out that stands come un-assembled and, of course, we'd have to have it assembled if we want the delivery people to put the 200-pound TV on the stand rather than on the floor. Neither Dani nor I has ever had a good IKEA experience, so we were dreading this, but then it turned out that they didn't have any appropriate stand in stock anyway, and we pointed out that we didn't want to wait a couple weeks for the TV (which had to come after the stand), and they finally agreed to sell us a floor model. I wasn't going to ask for the discount that usually comes from that; having it be already assembled was adequate compensation. The sales person rang it up with the discount, though, so double bonus.
So with luck, on Tuesday we'll have a working TV setup. I wonder how long it will take us to figure out the correct wiring diagram. :-)
We have one machine with internet access right now. It's the box that was going to be a Linux box if we could just figure out the installation, but right now it has Win98 on it. (One of the things we can't get properly configured under Linux is the network connection.) It turned out that both the Linksys box (firewall) and the hub got fried, not just the hub like we first thought, and that's why replacing the hub didn't fix the problem. (We were misled by the Linksys' "everything is ok" lights...) The DSL modem survived unscathed, near as we can tell.
One quirk: the cat5 cable running from the basement to the second floor is apparently dead. It sounds odd, but we carried Dani's computer down to the basement and it could see the network, so it's not his network card. And neither his machine nor the once-and-future Linux box from which I'm writing could see the net while plugged into that cable. I guess we'll ask the electician who'll be here tomorrow anyway whether he does network cable. (Good thing I haven't returned the spool of cable to Greg yet.)
On my computer, the motherboard and the power supply are toast but everything else is ok, so the insurance company dictates that we repair rather than replace. As I've otherwise been quite satisfied with the machine and not eager to upgrade right now, we're doing that. So my question about where to shop can be delayed; I'll replace the machine in good time, but I don't need to do it today. The file server made out even better; its I/O ports are dead but the rest of the internals are ok.
I do find myself wondering if we can really trust the rest of the internals in a machine whose motherboard and power supply got zapped. I'll test everything when I get the machine back, but if I have problems in a couple months I'll never be able to prove anything. On the other hand, the repair place has incentive to list everything that might be damaged, and they only listed these items. I guess I'll just have to take my chances. I'll probably replace the machine in another year or so.
We bought a new TV (to be delivered), and a couple of VCRs and a DVD player. This is our first DVD experience, but it seems a shame to get a nice modern TV and not get a cheap DVD player to go with it. (The player was $65.) Eventually we might want a better player, but first we should find out how much we would actually use it -- and what multi-zone players cost and where to get them, so we could watch foreign DVDs.
We needed a stand for the TV (my current one is not rated for a larger TV), and that's when we found out that stands come un-assembled and, of course, we'd have to have it assembled if we want the delivery people to put the 200-pound TV on the stand rather than on the floor. Neither Dani nor I has ever had a good IKEA experience, so we were dreading this, but then it turned out that they didn't have any appropriate stand in stock anyway, and we pointed out that we didn't want to wait a couple weeks for the TV (which had to come after the stand), and they finally agreed to sell us a floor model. I wasn't going to ask for the discount that usually comes from that; having it be already assembled was adequate compensation. The sales person rang it up with the discount, though, so double bonus.
So with luck, on Tuesday we'll have a working TV setup. I wonder how long it will take us to figure out the correct wiring diagram. :-)
(no subject)
Date: 2002-06-09 06:41 pm (UTC)A.
(no subject)
Date: 2002-06-10 06:34 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2002-06-09 10:01 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2002-06-10 06:32 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2002-06-11 09:36 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2002-06-12 06:27 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2002-06-13 10:33 pm (UTC)It would not go back together. We had a picture of how it was supposed to go together. I believe we constructed a formal proof that it could not go together that way. We had one type-A and two type-B, and we very clearly needed two type-A vertical divider pieces and one type-B. How this is possible I do not know. A third party said "this shouldn't be too hard", came over and looked at the pieces, and swore. For several days the mystery of it was sucking up all of Dee's processing power, so she would stare into space when you talked to her.
Theories:
1) Mixup with another item of black Ikea furniture stored in pieces in my basement?
2) Mixup with another item of black Ikea furniture lying about Yan's apartment?
3) Violation of known physical law?
None of these seem at all likely.
(no subject)
Date: 2002-06-14 07:13 am (UTC)Wow, that sounds really bizarre. If IKEA still sells that model I suppose you could go inspect one of theirs...
(no subject)
Date: 2002-06-15 12:12 pm (UTC)