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06/27/2003 Archived Entry: "THE MYSTERIOUS WORLD OF MSIE"

THE MYSTERIOUS WORLD OF MSIE

Well, I'll never understand computers. They should either work or not work. They are predictable, like machines usually are.

My MSIE stopped working, just out of the blue, a couple months ago. I couldn't call it up, it wouldn't do anything. Luckily, I also have Navigator and Mozilla installed on my computer, thanks to the foresight of my webmaster. It never occurred to me that I needed more than one browser, but now I understand.

So…all this time I have lamed along without IE and talked to every Dell techie in Asia and Indonesia about it. Eventually, after hours of trying this and that and running the repair program on IE, they all said I needed to clean my machine and reinstall my OS. That’s what the guru techie from Sunflower Bank told me when he was here putting in a new drive. They all said it was a missing or mismatched ILL or OCX file since my TCP/IP subsystem looked fine. Brad suggested I call the re-install team at Dell and “they would walk me through it”.

If I need a “team” for that, the image of horrific consequences loom in my mind. First of all, “re-installing” is no easy task to the uninitiated and causes shudders down my spine. I know a guy who does it a couple times a month to keep his machine clean but then he’s some kind of genius. No one who hasn’t called Dell lately understands that most of us don’t even speak the same language as "the team” to which Brad referred. My address book? No one cares as much about my address book as I do…all 522 names of people I don’t want to lose track of.

I can’t be certain, but I’m very suspicious that Weatherbug might have created the problem. I’m not putting that on my machine again…you can bet the farm on that. Something caused MSIE to go kerplunk and that’s as good a guess as anything. My local guru is of the opinion it’s nothing you want on your machine even if I did like the chirping warnings of impending storms.

Yesterday, out of the wild blue yonder, I clicked on MSIE, just because I was a little nostalgic and missed the old girl, and there it was back from vacation looking well-rested and ready to go. I couldn’t believe my eyes. Mark Gwinner was here and he was aware of the problems I’ve had so I had him double check that I wasn’t seeing things. Nope. He and Phillip both agreed that was the real MSIE and not an imposter. My bookmarks were still missing, but now they aren’t. My friend and computer helpmate found them for me this morning and put them back where they belong. Everything seems sort of back to normal and it’s a good feeling.

YEAH!

P.S. Wooooo....well, this is spooky. As I was typing this and reflecting on my conversation with a techie in Indonesia, a very large, very heavy ebony carving that we bought in Bali just crashed to the brick hearth below...undamaged it seems. It's been hanging there for 26 years and never fallen before. The wire holding it didn't break, the nail bracket holding the wire was huge and in place....it just fell...like it jumped off. Geez. I take that back about my impossible conversation with Maria, the Dell techie in Manila which is only a skip away from Bali. Maybe she's Balinese and sending me a message. This is too weird for me!