\ *Grumble, Grumble* | unlimitedi.net
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Kaarin's picture
Posted in

This would go in things we feel compelled to share, but I'm not comfortable with non-members reading it. Why will become clear.

I started doing research on street gangs for Galen at some point. Now, this carries with it some advantages and disadvantages. Advantage: I understand what people I know who work with anti-gang units are talking about. Advantage: I can tell the difference between a Crip and a Blood, which is usefull for knowing if I should avoid wearing blue or red in an area.

Advantage: I can tell, at a glance, that one of the most dangerous gangs in the country is tagging at a construction site not 15 minutes by foot from where I live.

*Grumble, grumble*

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MrDave's picture

Of course there is also the possibility that they are tags placed by local kids who are "emulating" the big gangs becasue it makes them look tough, too.

I know these gangs get protective about their tags but in this area where gangs aren't the danger they are in places like New York and L.A. you get a lot of Posers.

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Kaarin's picture

You also have a gang war that just ended a few weeks ago between MS13 and Los Logos. Who are a bit more powerfull in this area than yours. PG County and Anne Arundel are different creatures.

But yeah, while posers are a possibility, I'm not quite willing to rule out actual gangs, because of some of the things that people in the know have cautioned me about. And, well, Langley Park ain't that far from here, and MS13 has even started to push into Hyattsville where my parents are.

Either way, am double checking with people about this....

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Kaarin's picture

Let take this opportunity to say, in the words of Samantha -

SHIT MOTHERFUCKER FUCK SHIT!

My laptop is now dead.

Again.

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Kaarin's picture

*looks confused*

I don't know how, but it started working again. Either this thing got too warm for a moment and decided "No, I'm going to shut down" or it's possessed.

*Grumble, Grumble*

Kaarin's picture

It's dead again.

Call me paranoid, but I suspect sabotage.

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Heather's picture

I suspect old age... how long have you had that laptop?

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MrDave's picture

Actually, I suspect the AC adapter plug where it connects to the computer. It has been my experience (after 3 laptops and counting) that that is the first part to go.

If it isn't in the perfect alignment with Jupiter and the phase of the moon it means your poor laptop is running on battery juice. Then it shuts down. And yes, heat can be a factor.

I'd "fiddle" with it and see if that is what is doing it. If it is...a new one can be pricey, but less than a new laptop.

*Grumble, Grumble*

Kaarin's picture

It's about 2, 2 and a half years old at this point. So not overly old. Thing is, the last time it was acting like this, it was the motherboard that died. Or at least, that's what tech support told me right before saying, "By the way, this isn't covered under warranty and we want $700 to repair it."

AC Adapter might be more likely. I'd actually been getting an error that the AC Adapter type couldn't be determined, but didn't think much of it because it wasn't adversly affecting my performance so far as I could tell.

Which makes the interesting question, how would I know if it's the AC Adapter? I've gotten it to boot up a total of two more times, but it won't anymore. And if the adapter is what went, I think I just drained my battery completely yesterday.

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MrDave's picture

Uhl wrote:
Which makes the interesting question, how would I know if it's the AC Adapter? I've gotten it to boot up a total of two more times, but it won't anymore. And if the adapter is what went, I think I just drained my battery completely yesterday.

Remove the battery and boot on AC power. Wiggle the adapter plug where it connects to your Laptop and if the computer dies...it is your AC adapter.

Go to the Radio shack and find one that seems to fit and has the same voltage/wattage rating (take the old one with you) and the guys there will find one...plug it in and repeat the test. If it works...you are golden. if it doesn't then it is something inside the laptop and isn't a quick fix.

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Kaarin's picture

Tried something like that.

I've removed the battery and attempted to start it. Didn't work except for almost one time, when for about 20 seconds I got a black screen replaced with a black screen and blinking underscore. It won't even boot up with the adapter, though, which is why I'm hoping that mom can borrow one from the NOC guys to test with.

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Kaarin's picture

Tech support tells me that it's my hard drive.

Anyone know anything at all about data recovery? Can I just hook up another machine to my laptop and access it that way?

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Kaarin's picture

I hate Dell.

All I'll say is that technical support is inenpt, cannot diagnose a problem correctly. Especially when a co-worker from the Help Desk just said, "Well, they told you the wrong thing. That can't be the problem if it won't even boot up. You should be getting an error message."

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MrDave's picture

It occurs to me that it might be a "sleep partition" problem.

Laptops have a small partition that is designed to allow someone to resume a session that has been put to "sleep". In theory it is sound, write the entire memory to a small partition (usually a GB or less) and then read it back in when you power up.

In practice, if your partition is too small, or if memory is copied incorrectly then it would not boot, it would lock up after a few minutes of trying to resume.

Sometimes booting into "Safe Mode" will allow you to get out of it.

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Kaarin's picture

The problem being that I can't even get to there. I have a black screen.

Green lights come on my laptop (the locks, plus the one to indicate "on")

Black screen remains

All lights disappear.

EDIT: Unless PCs have something like Mac where I can hold down another key while starting to go right into safe mode which I would need to start holding BEFORE hitting power.

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Heather's picture

Uhl wrote:
EDIT: Unless PCs have something like Mac where I can hold down another key while starting to go right into safe mode which I would need to start holding BEFORE hitting power.


They do. Hit F8 as soon as you power on and keep tapping it until the "Advanced Options" menu appears. There's a chance you'll get a keyboard error if you start tapping F8 too soon. If so, just power off (or wait for it to die :wink:) and try again. Once you get the menu up, choose Safe Mode and see what happens from there.

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Kaarin's picture

On problem: I don't get any indication that the thing is even alive. Bit I'll try it next time that I'm at home. :)

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Kaarin's picture

Well, my laptop isn't working.

But I got my data back - currently burning it all to CD.

I'll have to re-download and install a few programmes on the desktop, but at least now I can read everything. :)

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