In the garden, and RAIN!!!!
POSTED BY: SIGNYM
UPDATED: Thursday, December 25, 2025 04:27
VIEWED: 1005090
PAGE 467 of 1154
Hey Brenda. I want to preface this reply by saying PLEASE don't take it like I'm angry or even frustrated with you, or that I'm talking down to you.
I know that both of my grandmothers have been taken advantage of by people in the past, and that makes me FUME when I find out about it after the fact. I feel that this is what happened to you today and I'm glad you weren't pressured into buying anything.
Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Anyways got out to Best Buy and started off by talking to someone who works for Microsoft and he told me what someone in London Drugs told me. I explained that I was talking about a desktop and he said to talk to someone from Best Buy.
I'm severely confused by this statement, for several reasons....
1. You're talking to somebody at a drug store about fixing your computer?
2. There are Microsoft employees in Best Buys where you live?
(I have to ask on that second one especially since there are A LOT of people worldwide that pretend to be Microsoft employees and they are in fact scammers. I've just never heard of them operating out of a Best Buy before today).
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The young woman who works at Best Buy once I basically explained the problem again said that I need the number for my mother board then I can order a new internet card online.
Wrong. That is absolutely wrong. There is zero evidence that there is anything wrong with your internet connectivity at this point. It is always possible that your internet could be a problem as well, but without being able to have a working screen, we can't even be sure you have a keyboard problem yet. Chances are very good your internet is just fine.
If at any point we were able to get the entire computer up and running again with output to the screen and found out at this point that you needed an internet solution, they make cheap USB network adapters that you can get for under $20 to connect to the internet that are universal to all computers and you won't need to know any motherboard information or worry about getting the correct card for your motherboard.
She either has no clue how to do her job, or she's trying to sell you something that you don't need.
Please forget any advice she gave you about anything today.
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The card has to be an exact fit. Well, as we all know I can't do that and I mean the ordering online, so I went to see what they have in the way of desktops.
Yes. Any cards you get (if you need one) will have to be an exact fit. And because your system is so old, that will be tricky and in some cases even impossible to do now. This is why I haven't even directed you to investigate anything inside of the PC itself.
Not because I don't think you're not capable of doing internal work yourself if directed properly, but because the computer isn't really worth saving if it came to that. Especially since you don't care about anything that is on there currently.
This is why I suggested getting a monitor first. If we find out after you have a working monitor that the computer still doesn't work and isn't worth saving, you can use that same new monitor on a new desktop or laptop you buy afterward.
Any other stuff that Best Buy is trying to sell you might not (and probably won't) be useful if you need to buy a new computer.
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Most of it is for gaming which I am not doing. Also a tower is too heavy to bring back on the bus for me.
Yes. You don't need anything gaming related. Best Buy HUGELY over-inflates their prices, and I would never recommend that anybody buy a computer there unless there was a huge sale. If you absolutely HAD to buy something there, I would recommend their absolute cheapest system they had to offer. With what you need a computer for, it would be sufficient and you'd even notice an improvement in performance from the old machine you're used to.
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Am thinking at the rate I am going I will have to order a tower tNOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
My car is awesome now. 
Not only does the new radio work without dropping the sound, but I can put my own library on it and easily update the music whenever I want to on the fly.
I also updated the maps on an old GPS system my folks gave me years ago that seems brand new and hardly ever used. I fixed my D/C power unit and now it charges on the go instead of needing to charge it in the house before I go out.
Now I'm going to pull off any music I didn't have backed up from the CDs I had in a book in the car and get rid of them and be done with CDs forever.
This car is now officially better than it was when I bought it before Obama was President.
Do Right, Be Right. :)
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Quote:
Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:
Hey Brenda. I want to preface this reply by saying PLEASE don't take it like I'm angry or even frustrated with you, or that I'm talking down to you.
I know that both of my grandmothers have been taken advantage of by people in the past, and that makes me FUME when I find out about it after the fact. I feel that this is what happened to you today and I'm glad you weren't pressured into buying anything.Quote:
No worries. I went into Best Buy to ask questions only. Had no intentions of buying anything without info.Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
Anyways got out to Best Buy and started off by talking to someone who works for Microsoft and he told me what someone in London Drugs told me. I explained that I was talking about a desktop and he said to talk to someone from Best Buy.Quote:
I'm severely confused by this statement, for several reasons....
1. You're talking to somebody at a drug store about fixing your computer?
2. There are Microsoft employees in Best Buys where you live?
(I have to ask on that second one especially since there are A LOT of people worldwide that pretend to be Microsoft employees and they are in fact scammers. I've just never heard of them operating out of a Best Buy before today).Quote:
1.Local London Drugs is a big store and they sell tvs, cell phones, cameras, radios, what used to be called "boom boxes" and computers. So that is why I was in there talking to their computer guys.
2. Apparently. After a minute he said, "I work for the Microsoft store, you need to talk to someone who works for Best Buy." I didn't know this before as the last time I was in Best Buy, I just went to their DVD section. He seemed legit, handling other customers and showing them products talking to the "Geek Squad" that works in Best Buy's computer section.Quote:
The young woman who works at Best Buy once I basically explained the problem again said that I need the number for my mother board then I can order a new internet card online.
[quote}Wrong. That is absolutely wrong. There is zero evidence that there is anything wrong with your internet connectivity at this point. It is always possible that your internet could be a problem as well, but without being able to have a working screen, we can't even be sure you have a keyboard problem yet. Chances are very good your internet is just fine.
I get that Jack. But keep saying that there is something missing which is where I plug the internet cable into the back of the case.Quote:
If at any point we were able to get the entire computer up and running again with output to the screen and found out at this point that you needed an internet solution, they make cheap USB network adapters that you can get for under $20 to connect to the internet that are universal to all computers and you won't need to know any motherboard information or worry about getting the correct card for your motherboard.
She either has no clue how to do her job, or she's trying to sell you something that you don't need.
Please forget any advice she gave you about anything today.
Okay. But I am getting a little confused again.Quote:
The card has to be an exact fit. Well, as we all know I can't do that and I mean the ordering online, so I went to see what they have in the way of desktops.Quote:
Yes. Any cards you get (if you need one) will have to be an exact fit. And because your system is so old, that will be tricky and in some cases even impossible to do now. This is why I haven't even directed you to investigate anything inside of the PC itself.
Not because I don't think you're not capable of doing internal work yourself if directed properly, but because the computer isn't really worth saving if it came to that. Especially since you don't care about anything that is on there currently.
I do care but as INOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
1.Local London Drugs is a big store and they sell tvs, cell phones, cameras, radios, what used to be called "boom boxes" and computers. So that is why I was in there talking to their computer guys.
Oh, lol. Our drug stores branch out a little bit from just drugs, but they don't sell computers or have computer guys... at least none of them around me do.
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2. Apparently. After a minute he said, "I work for the Microsoft store, you need to talk to someone who works for Best Buy." I didn't know this before as the last time I was in Best Buy, I just went to their DVD section. He seemed legit, handling other customers and showing them products talking to the "Geek Squad" that works in Best Buy's computer section.
Hmmm... Maybe they have Microsoft guys at the Best Buy by me now too. I rarely ever shop there anymore unless I spot something on a really good sale or I'm in desperate need of something. I think I've been in a BB maybe twice in the last 10 years. I'm just always wary of anybody claiming that they work for Microsoft. My mom got scammed by people based in India claiming to be Microsoft support.
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I get that Jack. But keep saying that there is something missing which is where I plug the internet cable into the back of the case.
If your motherboard doesn't have a port for the internet on it and requires a separate card, it's EXTREMELY old. I don't think that's the case.
Does the back of your computer have a port that looks like the one highlighted in the following image?
If it does, you plug your router directly into that and you'll have internet.
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Okay. But I am getting a little confused again.
Me too, but we'll figure this out.
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I do care but as I said writing is all done long hand and typewritten. Pictures are on a USB.
I'd like to get all that work back for you too. But we won't know if we will be able to do that until you have a working monitor.
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I guess then I should think about the monitor first then go from there.
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Best Buy didn't try to sell me anything else. When I asked about Desk tops all the girl did was point to where they had 1 tower that would be useful to me and I had a look at their monitors which most were for gaming.
Yeah. You don't need any high priced monitor. Just make sure that it has the VGA and HDMI ports on it. The VGA is what you need for your current computer, and the HDMI port will be for when you decide to upgrade or we find out we just can't fix the old one. That way you're not wasting money getting a monitor that you can't use in the future.
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No, I don't. Most games I play on this thing I am using is a solitaire site and a mah jong site that I like. Nothing fancy in the least.
If your old computer can handle everything you wanted to do before, i can guaranty that the absolute cheapest computer that Best Buy has right now will be able to do anything you want it to do.
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I wish I could get some help too. But like I said I called my IT guy over a week ago and left a message. So, I am stuck doing things on my own(as per usual) and piece by piece.
I was thinking of going back into the store again tomorrow and grilling them again. I need it explained to me more carefully but sometimes I'm not sure I'm completely understanding.
I think I mentioned this up thread that the one monitor London Drugs have was $129 Canadian so with taxes I am probably looking at $160 Canadian. Though Walmart had a monitor for $88 Canadian and that would be about $100 Canadian with taxes.
No, you don't Jack. You are trying to help me and sometimes I just not sure if my brain is really understanding what you are telling me.
$100 sounds perfect, as long as the monitor is
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Brenda, I'm really confused at this point.
Aside from all the other things that have come up since then, did you ever find out for sure the monitor is a problem? Because it seems to me that before you can even try anything else, if your monitor truly is busted, you need to replace it. (And a new monitor will be handy anyway even if the old computer is defunct.)
The other thing I gather is that, in general, you're trying to assemble all the parts together, which is why the mouse and keyboard topics came up, the USB port, and now the inet connection. I think you got the mouse and keyboard connections figured out (the sea green and lavender ports), so if you have a mouse and a keyboard with those color-and-shape connectors, you're golden! The small rectangular USB memory stick/ flash drive port is a no-fail thing to try, if it's the wrong one it won't fit, and if it's a sort-of wrong one, it won't work; but in either case nothing will get broken. The inet connection looks like a really heavy-duty telephone line connector, with the little clip-lever on the side of it and all. Sort of like this 
I realize the person who originally built your system sounds like kind of a geek, so perhaps there may be some non-standard parts to it.
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There might be one reason that the monitor can't be easily replaced, and that was when PC's were made with that short-lived fad called the VESA local bus (approx 1992). If the PC was built around that time, it may have a non-standard video card. I don't remember what the back of the PC looked like but the VESA connector looks like this. (Looks pretty standard to me, but I can't tell from the picture.)
BRENDA, how old is the PC? Is is back from around 1992-1993?
If not, I agree with SIX and KIKI: Monitor first. You can't find out anything about the PC until you have a monitor. And even if you discover that the PC is dead, you can always use the monitor with a new PC, or even with a laptop
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Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake
#WEARAMASK
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Well, I had a lovely day! It started out by me waking up at noon, which is unheard-of! But I guess I needed it, and I was blessedly well-rested when I got out of bed.
So since the weather was cool and cloudy, I got to putter around in the old veggie garden, which is a hobby and not really necessary "family-work", and spent a couple of hours taking out another two lima bean towers. I thought I had only one to take out, but once I hacked my way thru the jungle back there I found another one. Apparently I had put up six towers, not four, which is why it was so overgrown and tangled. Also, I had to be pretty careful what I was grabbing onto because they had tangled up with a climbing rose, so the thorns were an issue. But I did leave up one tower so I could get seeds for next year.
Veggie garden is growing well. I harvested the first zucchini yesterday and see a lot growing. The herbs have been a real benefit, as I can run out and snip some parsley or basil or thyme as I need it.
Anyway, tomorrow in back to the grind, but this was a pleasant way to spend the afternoon.
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Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake
#WEARAMASK
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Hey SIX, I wanted to say CONGRATS on the car!
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Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE men poor - William Blake
#WEARAMASK
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Quote:Oh, lol. Our drug stores branch out a little bit from just drugs, but they don't sell computers or have computer guys... at least none of them around me do.
Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:Quote:
Originally posted by Brenda:
1.Local London Drugs is a big store and they sell tvs, cell phones, cameras, radios, what used to be called "boom boxes" and computers. So that is why I was in there talking to their computer guys.
Quote:
I'm going to take your last post to me bit by bit as I will most likely make a hash of it if I answer it straight out.
If I sound grumpy forgive me, I am in a bit of pain today. Over did it when I got home yesterday and right hip is driving me batty. But things to do.
London Drugs is a big chain store up here. You can find them pretty well all across Canada. They are the only drug store that sells stuff like that. The rest of the drug stores stick to magazines, cigarettes, candy, a few toys, some books, bit of food items, cosmetics, non-prescription reading glasses, vitamins, baby stuff and support stuff for walking or fixing your home up if you need help like that. Then they do prescriptions as well.NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME