Category Archives: devices

shadowfax

27 Friday Dec 2024

Posted by in casa azahar, computers, devices

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shadowfax (1)

This afternoon Peter was on his regular family zoom chat when his laptop conked out. And when he tried to reboot he got the same scary blue screen HEY YOUR BATTERY IS FUCKED message I was getting on Boquerón last summer, which prompted me to purchase Galga before I lost everything. Frankly Peter’s Silver was getting on, over six years old, and had been acting up for some time. And so what the hell, we went shopping.

Say hello to Shadowfax… a sleek Lenovo model that has everything and more to suit Peter’s requirements. And it was on sale! Bonus. When I saw it I thought of this name immediately but just said to Peter he should name it before we set it up at home later. Then over a post-purchase celebratory glass of cava he said… how about Shadowfax? Guess it was meant to be.

Anyhow, Shadowfax is now all set up and ready for Peter to fire up in the morning. Long may he run.

shadowfax (2)

hola galga!

19 Thursday Sep 2024

Posted by in computers, devices

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laptop 2024

Not the best time for my laptop to need replacing, but hey, is it ever? It’s been six years since I bought Boquerón and my two previous ones before that only lasted three years apiece, so I guess maybe I lucked out this time (??). A quick google tells me the average life expectancy for a laptop is 3-5 years, which seems like not much time, but what do I know? Anyhow, I think I also got lucky finding this model at El Corte Inglés, as there seem to be very few 17 inch models available these days. Plus it was 80 euros off (a “back to school” special offer).

And now begins the looong process of setting it all up. I was able to copy most of the important files, photos etc onto an external HD between crashes over the past couple of days but there’s still a lot to sort out. It’s a bit like housecleaning in a way. I’m realising how much STUFF was on the old computer that I can actually do without.

Of course I had to name her… galga is Spanish for greyhound as she is sleek and silver-grey. And she weighs just slightly less than Morcilla.

The specs…

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facetime eavesdropping bug

29 Tuesday Jan 2019

Posted by in computers, devices, iphone

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Well, this is alarming. You have probably already heard about this, but in case you haven’t… TURN OFF FACETIME ON ALL YOUR DEVICES NOW.

It turns out that anyone can call you on your iPhone and, before you answer, simply swipe up from the bottom of the screen and add your number to a Facetime group. From then on, your iPhone will start transmitting audio to this person, even if you didn’t answer the call. And even worse! If you press the power button on your iPhone you will start transmitting video as well.

I have now disabled Facetime, which I never use anyhow, on my iPhone and iPad. This also affects Mac computers.

accidental upgrade

08 Saturday Sep 2018

Posted by in computers, devices, geekiness

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Oops, I did it again. Well sort of. Maybe. Before I went away to the Basque Country I was having some “issues” with Sterling, mostly to do with things bogging down and running slow, including frustrating totally unresponsive moments, requiring me to reboot, sometimes 2-3 times. So I started thinking about upgrading, then saw that Sterling is only 3 years old. I mean, shouldn’t these things last longer?? Mind you, The Greyhound was also 3 years old when I replaced him with Sterling. But Peter inherited The Greyhound, so that was okay, and he worked with him for another three years, glitches and all, until he died a sudden death in July, requiring the emergency purchase of Silver. But it also meant Peter lost everything, something that strikes a note of terror inside me, even though I do make backups frequently(ish).

This is all to say that, if Peter hadn’t already bought a new laptop, then at this point I would be happy to pass Sterling on to him, as he doesn’t spend as much time on his computer as I do. He also has much less content stored, etc. And then I would feel justified upgrading. But now I’m not sure what to do, especially as I actually purchased this new fabulous beast the other day as “insurance” while it was on sale at 15% off. It’s still in the box, so I can return it any time… but do I want to?

It’s weird because I have no qualms about updating my iPhones every three years or so. Then again I usually have someone who wants my old ones. But what to do with Sterling? I mean, he mostly works well. And perhaps if I stripped him back to factory settings, removing all my shit, he would be much friskier. Having said that, he has been behaving much better since I got home (figures).

How often do you upgrade your laptop?

Below you can see the specs …

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