Things still falling apart

The new dryer arrived, was installed, and actually works.

The ailing computer came home from the shop, but the problem wasn’t solved. It continued to crash frequently for no apparent reason. I took it back to the shop and got a second opinion from a different technician. The motherboard is damaged and will have to be replaced. There’s nothing wrong with the CPU or memory modules, so we could theoretically just move them to another motherboard — except that no motherboard that could use them is being made anymore.

We could buy an old one on eBay, but what would be the point? No, this means we have to buy a new motherboard and CPU and memory, and build a new computer in the case of the old one. This is probably a good idea anyway, as the computer in question is increasingly unstable. For example, inserting the FlashPath adapter for my digital camera into the floppy drive causes the machine to reboot. So does opening the little plastic door that covers the front-panel USB port.

Last night, I tried to order the replacement components from TigerDirect, but I couldn’t remember the password for my account there. When I tried to use the “I Forgot My Password” feature to have the password e-mailed to me, it didn’t work. Nothing came.

This morning, I phoned TigerDirect customer service, waited on hold, and eventually spoke to a live human being. He investigated and told me that their e-mail servers are currently suffering from some kind of major problem caused by large amounts of spam. He recommended that I create a new account using an alternate e-mail address, and use that to place the order. I did.

Two MP3 players I ordered for Ben and Ruth arrived. They don’t work.
And Marie went to her dentist to have a toothache diagnosed. Result: she needs a root canal and a crown, which will cost over a thousand dollars.

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