Tell us what you really think?
Oct. 2nd, 2007 07:14 pmSo a certain computer company would like me to review my recent purchase on their web site. I am in two minds about this.
On the one hand, the thing is lovely when it works, and the support line guys were very good about helping me with its initial DOA-ness. The remaining quirks I'm learning to live with; I don't think they're anything that the manufacturer could improve.
On the other hand ... this has been hands-down the most annoying out-of-the-box experience ever. A brand-new, middle-of-the-road machine shouldn't have quirks that leave me holding my breath every time I try to turn it on -- or off. (Tonight's little adventure; apparently the wireless card didn't wake up until the very end of the initialization process, and never did turn on its little "connected" icon; on Sunday it was discovering that the "safely remove hardware" function will cheerfully disable the four-slot card-reader, which isn't actually removable.) I got a new computer at least partly because I was tired of the "turn on, wait five minutes, log on, wait another five minutes," routine, but at least the laptops can usually manage without my help while they're going through that. This one, it's "Disconnect peripheral hub. Turn on, wait. Log on with auxiliary keyboard. Connect peripheral hub. Wait. Panic because either we're not on line yet, or we got on line before the anti-malware protection started. Wait some more. Wonder what else is going to go wrong this time."
Only about half of the above is the manufacturer's fault, though; the rest is a combination of Vista not being quite ready for prime time and my own slightly exotic requirements. (Most people probably wouldn't insist on using a keyboard and mouse connected via hub, for example, but I have my reasons, as witness the icon.)
Addendum:
You have 2Gb of RAM. How on earth do you manage to use nearly half of it without even trying? Filling up to 90% and needing a reboot after a heavy session on Google Earth, with lots of 3d models, I can sort of understand, but the resting state is ridiculous. I dread to think how people manage to run Vista in less well-endowed environments.
On the one hand, the thing is lovely when it works, and the support line guys were very good about helping me with its initial DOA-ness. The remaining quirks I'm learning to live with; I don't think they're anything that the manufacturer could improve.
On the other hand ... this has been hands-down the most annoying out-of-the-box experience ever. A brand-new, middle-of-the-road machine shouldn't have quirks that leave me holding my breath every time I try to turn it on -- or off. (Tonight's little adventure; apparently the wireless card didn't wake up until the very end of the initialization process, and never did turn on its little "connected" icon; on Sunday it was discovering that the "safely remove hardware" function will cheerfully disable the four-slot card-reader, which isn't actually removable.) I got a new computer at least partly because I was tired of the "turn on, wait five minutes, log on, wait another five minutes," routine, but at least the laptops can usually manage without my help while they're going through that. This one, it's "Disconnect peripheral hub. Turn on, wait. Log on with auxiliary keyboard. Connect peripheral hub. Wait. Panic because either we're not on line yet, or we got on line before the anti-malware protection started. Wait some more. Wonder what else is going to go wrong this time."
Only about half of the above is the manufacturer's fault, though; the rest is a combination of Vista not being quite ready for prime time and my own slightly exotic requirements. (Most people probably wouldn't insist on using a keyboard and mouse connected via hub, for example, but I have my reasons, as witness the icon.)
Addendum:
You have 2Gb of RAM. How on earth do you manage to use nearly half of it without even trying? Filling up to 90% and needing a reboot after a heavy session on Google Earth, with lots of 3d models, I can sort of understand, but the resting state is ridiculous. I dread to think how people manage to run Vista in less well-endowed environments.
