Barbara J. Hamby

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Computers - Me No Savvy

I am not now, nor do I anticipate I will ever be, a competent member of the computer age. My chronological age and the present state of my brain probably preclude such a possibility, devoutly as it may be to be wished.

So, my recent purchase of a “notebook” computer (that looks surprisingly similar to its predecessor, a “laptop") has resulted in weeks of struggling to transfer information from the dinosaur to “thoroughly modern Millie,” or Willie, as the case may be. Although they were purchased only five years apart, they are separated by generations of computer technology. Dinosaur accepts floppies and CD’s, but won’t write to a CD. Millie accepts only CD’s and DVD’s and, of course, will write to both. Attempts to allow them to communicate through a network cable and/or a zip drive have only been minimally successful. Little “techie"trip-ups keep popping up. My son-in-law, fluent in computerese, has been here twice already and I fear a third visit may be required, but so far, I haven’t been bold enough to request it. Millie’s purchase price was half that of Dinosaur, to my surprise.

There is always the possibility that I can utilize my desktop as a surrogate communicator, so to speak, as it accepts floppies and CD’s and will write to CD’s. Are you totally confused now? I am.

To rest our brains, let’s speculate on how laptops have been renamed notebooks. Possibly the average lap does not accommodate the larger screens on the new notebooks. Or, perhaps, too many laptops slid off and were injured. Paper notebooks, generally speaking, are smaller than this new computer, but that’s another issue. Probably more laptops were used on desks or train or plane tables than on laps. Only Bill Gates or his Japanese counterparts know for sure.

Yesterday I actually did some writing on my memoirs. It was a blustery, wet day and huddling over a warm computer screen seemed very desirable. I edited a few stories that have been around awhile and started a new one. More about that later.