Well, I got a nasty shock the other day: my computer abruptly crashed, exposing me – for the first time in some years, I think – to Microsoft’s notorious Blue Screen of Death.
Yep, I believe this was the first time I’ve had such a problem with my new computer (now more than two years old), Windows 7 being supposedly so much more ‘stable’ than its predecessors.
What did I do to bring this calamity on myself? What, indeed?! I was trying to use Explorer.
Yahoo won’t let me access more than one of my e-mail accounts simultaneously in the same browser (there’s probably a way around this, but…); so, I have my primary account permanently open in Google Chrome, and use Explorer to check my supplemental accounts from time to time. And Explorer always makes things glitchy as hell!
Still, we can laugh about it...
Or produce merchandising….
16 comments:
Is that the exact error you had or are you using that picture as just an example? The majority of BSODs are caused by hardware drivers rather than a bug in Windows itself and this one is no exception. Personally I would go to the website of each manufacturer of the hardware in my box and download and install their latest drivers but as that can be taxing and time-consuming I usually suggest to most people to let Windows Update take care of that. When you launch it (from Control Panel) click where it says "optional updates" or suchlike and select those that you feel necessary to install (in this case all the ones related to graphics cards, networking etc.). They won't be the bleeding edge versions but there should be some upgrades there which will hopefully prevent such problems again.
I am fairly convinced this is just a problem with Explorer (which I hardly ever use - it stopped working altogether for a long time, and has only recently come back to life).
I do update via Windows once in a while - though I resent the fact that I am pestered to do so almost every single time I log on. Having to go through a full reboot and then fire up my VPN and reopen all my browser pages and current documents (I work on the computer A LOT) is just way too much trouble to undertake unless absolutely necessary. I usually try to limit it to once or twice a month.
No, this is just a random example BSOD pulled from the Internet? I would have thought they were uniquely resistant to screen cap - but obviously there's some way of managing it. I haven't even worked out how to screen cap regular Web pages and so on. Is there a standard app in Windows for this (well hidden, if there is!), or do you have to download something specially??
I was intrigued to discover that there is a way of summoning the Blue Screen of Death on demand.
A particularly nasty practical joke you can set up on a friend's computer if they leave you unattended for long enough!
Is this what you're referring to?: http://windows.microsoft.com/en-GB/windows-vista/Take-a-screen-capture-print-screen
Yes, that's very well hidden.
And it appears to be inoperative on my computer - unless it sneakily carries out the operation and stores the screen cap files in some undisclosed location.
That secret place will be the "clipboard". Pressing the Print Screen key saves a snapshot to memory (the same place where you temporarily copy text and such to when you highlight and click Copy), it doesn't save to a file. To use that screen-shot you'll need to paste it somewhere- directly into Word or into Paint as a new project for example.
If you prefer a file being saved immediately then yes you will need to download one (of the probably myriad) programs out there that override the original function.
Don't forget the Alt + Print Screen combination as mentioned in the article; makes things a lot easier.
And I get to the 'clipboard' how?
Is it FULL of stuff I've inadvertently saved over the past couple of years, but had no idea how to access?
Do you have access to Wikipedia out there? I suggest you read their entry for it here.
The default Windows clipboard only holds one thing at a time; it's temporary memory that is wiped when the computer is turned off so there is no archive going back any amount of time.
Wikipedia not a problem, but no help. That feature is inoperative in my system. And I can't be bothered to try to work out why.
If I were at all techie, I'd bin Windows and go with LINUX. I don't even care if it's any better; I just haven't built up the 18-year store of hate that I have for all things Microsoft.
You don't need to be a techie to use Linux, it's the one great misconception that turns most people away from it in fear. If you went to Oxford you can install Linux, even next to Windows. Most people think that Linux is all about entering commands in the Terminal (text interface), which it certainly can be, but I strongly advise against it. This is 2011 and operating systems have come a long way; any tinkering around with text-prompts is really for the very inquisitive hobbyist and true professional who knows their system and how to make it do things (fixes usually) fast for their boss. It's not even enough to pass a course, experience I would say is still the best teacher when it comes to the terminal. You see, Linux comes in many distros (short for distributions). Whereas a new edition of Windows will have a few different types (Home basic, Professional Enterprise or whatever they're called) a Linux distro can be in all shapes and sizes depending on what software has been placed on top of the base kernel (the true operating system itself of which every distro has the same, I think). To learn how to be very good at Linux will serve you well but the fact that all these distros are released and with the cycle of turnaround to a new release often being very short it can be hard to apply what commands you learnt from one distro to the next. Not because the commands differ but because the different setup will cause a different outcome due to its differing structure. The techie Linux user will often have switched to Linux to be a techie and will tirade against the graphical user-interface but this in my opinion is how to use any operating system with Linux being no exception. The graphical software available will perform the tasks that can be done by entering text but each distro (or group of distros) will have its own software set up exclusively and they're all free of course.
With over 300+ distros to chose from it can be another off-putting reason why some will avoid Linux but when you realise that the majority of those are not suitable for the home user who speaks English and doesn't require certain features then the list is shortened drastically. In fact, the recognised list of 'good' distros for the home user is under 20 with the majority plumping for the ever-popular Ubuntu (which you probably have heard of in passing). I can't tell you what to chose but I've used Ubuntu and found it a good experience; I would still really advise you read around first before making a choice.
You can of course have many distros on the one machine AND Windows as I've mentioned but this can be a daunting task to play around with. Unless you care about wasting disk space I would advise the new user to buy a new hard drive to try Linux on, that way they can leave their Windows drive more or less untouched. The other alternative of course is to back up all your files and get rid of Windows entirely; you will of course have wasted your licence (which you probably can't sell these days) and while Linux can run Windows software I'm not sure how good the experience is. I don't hate Windows at all, I use it almost exclusively (having done so way back when I started using PCs as have most people) but I'm planning on not buying a new Windows licence when I get my next computer.
Well that was a long comment wasn't it; I'm just all for people having a choice when it comes to computers. Most people all too often have no idea one even exists and Linux would be perfect for China.
Anyway, congrats on your new move. It's a shame you were backed into a corner over price where it's clear there's inevitably going to be a housing crash sooner or later. That's just silly China for you I guess. Hope this long-winded spiel was useful.
Thanks, John. You've not really convinced me that Linux is the way to go, or that Microsoft isn't evil.
You must remember that for most of us this is not an intriguing puzzle to solve, it's just something we have to do to get our jobs done. With an old manual typewriter, I could understand how each key did what it did. I miss that simplicity.
I don't envy the age of typewriters at all; liquid paper over the backspace key? I know which I prefer!
Well, there was a correction ribbon, which wasn't much more trouble than using Delete or Backspace. And it made you a bit more careful not to make mistakes.
I dread to think what my keyboard skills would be like if I'd learned on a computer!
I think you know my feelings on Windows and Linux. (Unless you're a gamer, there's no reason not to switch. If you're a gamer, install Linux alongside Windows.) But I do understand the reluctance; probably 85% or so of Ubuntu installations go completely without problems, but what if you're in the 15%? where do you turn? etc.
You must remember that for most of us this is not an intriguing puzzle to solve, it's just something we have to do to get our jobs done. With an old manual typewriter, I could understand how each key did what it did. I miss that simplicity.
I think that's the primary draw of Linux, actually -- it certainly was for me, and I'm pretty darned Windows-comfortable. When I found myself spending more time fixing and cleaning up after Windows' depredations than I was spending in actually using the computer productively, I decided I'd had it.
At work over the last couple of days, the I.T. department has been doing these massive "push" updates to be sure all of our PCs have the latest updates from Microsoft. I like to think of myself as a pretty responsible Windows user, but when the process started for me on Tuesday there were 118 updates to install. The process still isn't done, because every so often the computer has to restart. And at one point the hard drive ran out of free space (!), requiring a lengthy cleanup just because Windows Update is just such a crapola housekeeper.
My Linux system updates itself maybe once or twice a week. It does so quietly, unobtrusively, almost never requires a restart. And the system just chugs along for days and days -- whole weeks -- with no restart required just because it's run out of RAM or temp space or whatever the hell. Finally I restart it on my own, just because it feels somehow unnatural to let it just... run.
Whew. That was a lot more information than I meant to unload. And almost certainly more than you're interested in hearing!
Ubuntu has a HELL of a lot more updates than Windows but even then you're absolutely right. Ubuntu may have literally 5-10 updates a day but they'll whiz by in about five minutes compared to Windows 5-10 updates a month taking anything up to an hour. Both can be set up to be unobtrusive but due to the massive difference in time Linux barely makes itself known. It's simply all down to completely different design principles when creating all this software. Shame then that Microsoft has always had the better marketing principles (and that Linux doesn't need such things?); oh well...
Yes, the idea of unobtrusive updates is beguiling, but I am so resolutely untechie that the initial changeover is too daunting to contemplate.
Even though Windows frequently pins me to the mat, I feel that I hold my own with it most of the time... and at least I know the rules.
Ubuntu sounds like an arcane martial art, and one in which I would assuredly get my ass whooped.
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