Luckier Than We Knew; An Auto Update

This morning my husband shared a website regarding a class action lawsuit against General Motors over defective BECM units, or Battery Energy Control Modules. Our used GM ‘certified’ model utilized this small yet vital part. While I experienced minor propulsion hesitation on surface (suburban) streets other owners/renters weren’t so fortunate.

Some dangerous accidents occurred at freeway speeds. Between 2016 and 2019 many less traumatized folks waited weeks or months (!) for repairs due to a lack of replacement parts and skilled technicians. Even worse, General Motors reneged on their promise to reimburse alternate transport costs while continuing production and certifying used vehicles. Sad to report, I’m reading such ongoing frustration here.

Lucky us, our dealership collision/repair center accessed the improved BECM unit and we picked up our repaired 2017 Volt today. We think this failure took several years because the previous owner never ran the hybrid vehicle on battery power. I’m so happy this fix came at no added financial cost and the failure should never recur.

Can you believe our good fortune? Do you think current supply chain issues, etc. are causing other Volt owners delays?

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Concessions

Well, I’ve conceded to technical blogging issues and started signing off as “- Darla”. Fighting the comment failure rate has proven a ridiculous time waster. I’ve even begun this practice on my own blog.

At least most bloggers know I often use tildes. So far, bots and/or scammers do not.

~fingers crossed I didn’t give out ideas~

Then I wondered about the definition of concession stands. Here is the derivation: from the tiniest community sites to giant stadiums, owners grant vendors permission rights. In other words, these larger institutions concede.

Isn’t modern technology both a boon and burden? Have you ever or would you like to start up a small business?



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Blogger Question & Reactions to Comments

I have to ask a simple question regarding blog comments. Whenever you leave one, does a message pop up saying it will be published upon approval? I cannot find an additional setting for that and some folks have thought remarks got lost in cyberspace whenever I'm slow to react.

As for such comments, sweet Katie Isabella asked if Jezebel is mother to Terra and Polly. She is not, and I think she hopes they're not staying. ~grin~ We adopted her from friends who found this little stray in the winter of 2004 (!), so she's quite geriatric and cantankerous toward the still rambunctious wee ones. And it's a fun note that sweet Brian called them that just like my husband started doing.

Can you explain why my embedded links no longer show in a different color? ~sigh~ * In fact, don't you hate when software companies change things for no apparent reason? What can you do?

* Update: I finally fixed my link issue by trial and error. Whew!

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Picture Perfect – & – Hoping I Can Help with Blogger

With summer here coming to a close, I am thankful for our grape-style Roma tomato plant my husband picked on a whim and the Gong Bao pepper specimen I found. They have out-produced all the rest. Yesterday, though, I harvested two ripe Marglobe tomatoes that weren’t either munched on or rotting. One I ate right away, the larger one I’ll share with my husband.

Almost too Pretty to Eat

As for wanting to help, I am not at all technically minded, but have managed to work with the new format of Blogger. Cleo said her human dad has been frustrated. I can’t blame him, and who doesn’t want to read more from lovely Cleo the cat? Feel free to skip all this, of course, and forgive me if this seems pretentious. Nonetheless, here goes…

To start, I set up templates for both text and photos/video, using a publish date several years out so they stay in ‘draft’ mode. Switching between HTML and ‘compose’ formats, I copy and paste into a new document. Again, risking ostensible conceit, allow me to illustrate with images:

Text Template with 'Placeholders'

Text Template in HTML Coding

 

Photo Captured to Its Template
Using the Compose View

Now, the Image Encoded

 

I've Inserted the Image Code Between Text Lines

 

The Preview, Incomplete, of Course

Did I just make it more complicated? ~shakes head~ And did you know the thousands of current coding languages are so unlike person-to-person communication that learning them suits those of a science minded disposition? Can you guess how many my husband knew during his technical career?

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Bonus Clip

I finally figured out how to edit film on my iPod touch! My filming technique needs finesse, but it still makes me happy. The process is so easy. This is a snippet of more footage from our flooded park.

Updated – Growing Pains

This morning my husband worked on my laptop, replacing Microsoft Word 2003 with 2007. The layout is different but I am adjusting. Blogging, however, has become trickier. Simple copying and pasting no longer transfers any text formats.

The ’07 version offers blog templates but I took a look and declined to register. After all, what are the odds this is still being supported by Microsoft? Instead, I gave up trying to save my recent switch to the Comic Sans MS font and tweaked letter sizing.

What do you think? Does it look okay?

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You Don’t Say, Technological Growing Pains, & Misc. Tidbits

Yesterday I returned a phone call to a gal I’ve known for over forty years. She is forever asking when my husband and I will drive across state to visit. Heaven forbid she make the drive south.

~sigh~

Therefore it should come as no surprise this introvert contacts her out of loyalty more than enjoyment, especially as she so often sounds on the verge of emotional breakdown. This conversation indicated a more manic phase, which I don’t mind inasmuch as it indicated a positive mindset. But whenever I attempted to respond with my take on the current subject she talked right over me.

So I just shut up and listened with minimal murmurs of support. After a while she took a breath and said, “You’re not saying much. What have you been up to?”

Ooookay…

To my credit I didn’t laugh and just replied that there wasn’t much to say. The look on my husband’s face when I shared this was priceless.

Meanwhile, I took a rainy afternoon walk around our hilly neighborhood. The sound of raindrops on an umbrella (or roof, what have you) is so soothing. This time I stopped to photograph a colorful mailbox, never thinking to do so before Pam’s creative inspiration. ~grin~ And I know she will like the color scheme.

Purple!

And that brings me to computer issues. My laptop, while converted to Windows 10, has a ‘skin’ that mimics 7. It’s not perfect, and now I need a newer version of MS Word (I’m still using the 2003 software, believe it or not) for better compatibility. At least my iPod touch should be easy to access now.

Right? Well, not yesterday.

However, this morning I thought to go into PC settings → devices → Autoplay, and select the option to import pictures for the Apple iPod.

Got it! Whew…

Now if I could just get my Bluetooth keyboard to connect automatically as before. ~shakes head~ It needs to be ‘paired’ with my Bluetooth dongle every time now. That’s what happens when you choose retirement over owning the latest hardware. I’ll take that trade any day.

Ah! My husband just notified me that he’s worked out the tricks to making MS Word 2007 work in Windows 10. You can imagine how his acumen led to a long career in IT, both as an Airman and later for General Motors. Some changes he implemented remain in use, I believe.

Do you agree it’s the small wins that add quality and joy to our cluttered modern lives? What little victory have you won lately?

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Seal of Approval & a Photography Cheat

My husband’s cooking/baking fascination has resulted in several new kitchen gadget purchases. I won’t complain. Besides being wise with finances, he convinced me years ago that most of his picks prove very useful.

A few weeks ago he researched vacuum packing machines to make sealing food for the souse vide method easier and more efficient. Since its use goes far beyond that, this seemed a great investment, especially since he found rolls of plastic much less expensive than the bags.

The compact unit (atop our portable blue cooler) and, of course, the plastic rolls.

Our next box of frozen pierogi will receive the vacuum seal treatment after I’ve boiled and pan seared what we want for the meal. No more yucky freezer burn after we’ve forgotten an opened box.

Pot Roast Leftovers

What about that frustrating, rock hard brown sugar? I looked into options, discovered tight sealed crocks for sale, and realized we already possessed the solution. Just cut the bag open, take what the recipe needs, then use the Foodsaver to reseal it.

Doesn't the brown sugar look like a pillow?

Oh, and my easy camera trick is for dabblers like me with no professional equipment or training, nor honest desire to spend time rectifying that. I’d rather watch cat videos than tutorials.

 ~grin~

Besides, my photos aren’t for money making purposes, just fun. So, moving on, my most common photo fail is a shadow cast by the lens when using the built-in flash.

Photo Fail

The solution? Hold my Canon PowerShot SX130 upside down. Heh… And voila! That shadow you see here disappeared in the final result higher up.

Do you have a collection of kitchen gadgets? Is there one you find most indispensible?

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Technical Update – & – Tooling Around Town 2

Well, it's time to let go my stubborn hold onto Microsoft Windows 7 as the company no longer provides security updates. My husband, the dear, offered to upgrade my laptop as soon as I save off all documents, Internet bookmarks, etc.

I’m delighted to report that his machine, loaded with Windows 10, accessed my iPod Touch without delay. That convenience will be nice. (fingers crossed) I just need to do my part.

Procrastination aside, on the way home from a recent errand I decided to drive around the neighborhood. A few blocks from our street exist some of the ugliest houses I have ever seen. Pulling over to sneak a few photos made me think of Pam, especially when I saw the following mailbox. ~grin~ Sad to say, the grubby thing matches sad surrounding duplexes.

Sorry my focus is worse than I realized. The dreary weather doesn't help.

The westward valley beyond these homely dwellings is quite scenic, prettier than overgrown scrub bordering our property. It's what first drew me to that block years ago and I am a bit envious. The street lacks a view of the river, though, and our brick ranch is no Frankenstein Monster style eyesore. I'm so tempted to go back with my camera and take more images because this isn't one of the ugliest.

Yikes!

Do you suppose those rooftop dividers are rain gutters? But why must they stand so prominent?

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Recovering the L – Teamwork & How I Fixed My Keyboard

Concerned over the improper seated L key on my laptop, my husband consulted Laptopkey.com. Uncertain replacement would fix the issue, I nonetheless helped make sure he selected the correct kit. Even identical makes and models with the precise same layout use different hinge configurations.

If you’re in need I recommend this website, not for personal gain, but because their service is consummate. Videos provide instruction, prices are reasonable, and the warehouse ships within twenty-four business hours. My key remained in the envelope for several days, in fact, as I feared attempting to repair a working keyboard would backfire. This morning I decided to take the plunge and remove my rocking L key.

DH offered to hold a flashlight for me but anyone standing over my shoulder wrecks my concentration. So I tackled this detailed handiwork without telling him. My composure held even during the intimidating task of ripping off the tiny rubber cup and scraping away all adhered remnants. I worried the new one, a literal key component, wouldn’t stay put.

It did!

A minute piece must have broken from my original hinge pieces, preventing the key from snapping into place. Anyway, I’m delighted with this minor success.

What do you hope to achieve today?

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L is for… Love?

Well, I pulled a loser bonehead maneuver yesterday evening. An attempt to clean my keyboard resulted in the L key coming off. I thought I could just snap it back into place, but found that not to be the case. Online searches this morning resulted in a partial victory as the key is usable, just not attached properly.

~sigh~

You see, one of the two plastic retainer clips remained attached to the key itself while all the demonstrations show those bits being installed first and the key snapped in place overtop. I’ve decided to wait until my husband comes home for his professional tech advice. Otherwise, any further attempt may result in breakage of those tiny plastic pieces.

That’s okay. This is an opportunity to blog about something lighthearted for a change. It seems I’ve done little other than whine and complain of late.

And seeing as it is the L key reminded me of a favorite comedy, “Dodgeball: a True Underdog Story”. Vince Vaughn is at his comedic best in my opinion, and the entire supporting cast is right up there with him.

Specifically, the bittersweet skit between Gordon (portrayed by prolific and esteemed character actor Stephen Root) and his mail-order bride seated in the gymnasium with her stepchildren came to mind. These images sum up their story.

I think these children struggled not to laugh...

The expressions on the other guys' faces cracks me up every time...

If the world is your oyster, will irritating the entire globe give you pearls?

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Apple Versus Android

Over ten years ago (almost fifteen?) I bought my Kindle Fire. The thing is still going strong. I continue downloading e-books and playing electronic card games with ease.

A very short time after my purchase, my partner became a bit envious. He did a little online research and opted to go with an Acer tablet. Well, the thing saw almost zero usage.

From the start it was way heavier. You see, SO wanted a larger screen than my Kindle has.

Guess what? The screen is not that much bigger. Other than a brief period a few years in which I watched videos while lying across our bed, that Acer has mostly gathered dust.

Lately I started wishing I could read my own unpublished stories lying down, perhaps do a little light editing whenever I wake up in the morning not yet ready to rise. In that context, the Acer’s slightly wider screen seemed ideal.

First, I needed to trust the security of a cloud storage service like Dropbox. Yesterday I decided to take the plunge. I currently have nine of my short stories uploaded.

This morning I fired up the Acer and tried signing onto Dropbox. Nothing happened. Repeatedly. The only evidence of anything was a slight blink when and where I pressed the button.

The box in which to type my user name and password didn’t come up at all. Feeling quite clever, after a little fiddling I managed to pull up a different sign-on page where I could type. Again I thought, here we go.

No.

I received an error message telling me that Dropbox does not support my browser. But I could upload the latest edition of Chrome, my preferred Firefox, or Internet Explorer.

Okay. Here we go.

No. “Page unavailable. Check to see if you typed the address in correctly or have an adequate Internet connection.” Disgusted and dreading the answer, I put the device down until my husband stepped away from his PC game.

“Make it work,” I said, explaining my dilemma.

“Sorry. I’m afraid it’s useless.”

“Why?”

“Google doesn’t support its products as well as Apple.”

Ah. Okay.

My iPod Touch; of course the screen savr features Palaye Royale
And yes, the lead singer is wearing a skirt

Maybe I’ll try accessing my email on the Acer. I regularly send my updated stories from one address to the other as a sort of back-up, another layer of protection from hardware failure. Meanwhile, I can access Dropbox on my iPod Touch so maybe I should try it with the Kindle Fire. The Kindle hasn’t been the most wieldy when web browsing but it can’t hurt to try, I suppose.

If you’re better in the know than I, would you recommend a smartphone or iPhone to someone looking to upgrade?

Remington Sporting a Courtney Love Designer Dress for LA Fashion Week
Because They're Palaye Royale and... Why not?

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Cutting the Cable

My partner is very computer tech savvy. For years we’ve been using a homemade DVR. The cooling fan is in a ‘coffin’ box to eliminate sound, the machine's hard drive filled with excellent downloads.

These days I have been lobbying to get rid of cable television. The cost keeps going up and up while my time spent watching has only decreased. At the same time I didn’t want to get rid of our huge old flat screen TV, making the process tricky.

Folks all over have expressed shock that I refuse to buy a high definition unit. The prices may have come down but we would have to pay someone to haul away our super heavy Sony. And I don’t want to fork over money to toss something in perfect working order.

My partner, an excellent researcher to boot, found a workaround using a Roku device. As I type we are airing a YouTube video. The picture is better than before, the sound through our old Bose surround sound speakers excellent as ever. I’m tickled pink and very grateful. I need to readjust to watching commercials now and again but we will save a lot of money.

Who knows? Maybe I’ll cave in to getting a new television once those savings add up. I won’t miss lame stream news, that’s for sure.

Do you like episodic TV? I still tend to gravitate toward movies, though “Under the Dome” is entertaining.

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Darla’s Tips and Tricks: A Failsafe for the Digital Age

A common mistake many people make with modern technology is instilling too much trust. Every day someone learns once it’s too late that a computer crash can take all your data along for the ride. Knowing some dear folks who have suffered this, I’d like to share a simple idea.

While I own a solid state external hard drive I don’t use it on a frequent basis. For one thing, that hardware is as susceptible to failure as any other. But safeguarding my fiction, especially in the process of intensive rewrites, is important to me.

So I discovered an alternative. Rather than trust disks, hard drives, or Internet 'cloud' storage, I email documents to myself.

Having two separate email addresses using different platforms provides an added layer of protection. One email saves a copy in the ‘sent’ folder while the other's ‘in’ box (I hope) preserves the same information. The process is quick, easy, and the document can even remain open.

Do you back up your data? If so, what’s your method of preference?

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My Blogging Epiphany (an Update)

For this April’s A to Z Blogging Challenge, fellow participant Mary Burris (who hosts Jingle JangleJungle) inspired me to insert video. I managed to figure out how to do that via Youtube after struggling with my tendency to get overwhelmed by too much information.

It’s so obvious now. As she said you click 'share', then 'embed'. ~sigh~ At least I have that technique down.

Formatting text became my next challenge. For some reason, video insertion changed what all ready satisfied me in former previews.

Then I realized that I could probably insert video HTML code within text entered into Blogger’s ‘compose’ mode. I went to my original MSWord document containing my post and typed the words INSERT VIDEO HERE in each spot intended for video.

No, I don’t mean to virtually shout. I put the words in all caps so as to more easily find them within the HTML code. And voila! It worked. What a relief.

Have you found any convenient fixes for plaguing little issues? Don’t you wish you figured it out earlier?

To celebrate, I’m going to share a bonus video. Enjoy.

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Behind the Curve

Technology and I are uneasy partners at best. Sometimes it works to my advantage. While I watch fellow writers check their social media or struggle with streaming music I am happily writing with my iPod.

At home I prefer to use iTunes directly with my low-tech but awesome sounding USB speakers. That way my ears don’t get sore with headphones compressing the earpieces of my reading glasses for hours at a time.

I struggled with iTunes for a long while, unable to figure out how to play soundtracks. You see, I turned off compilations within the options to make integrating content between the software and my old scroll wheel iPod easier.

Yeah, I refuse to even buy a touch screen iPod. A local Apple repairman lauded me. He said these iPod Classics are built like banks. I’m down to the last of the three purchased, however, the first having run out of space and the second actually suffering a fatal hard drive failure.

At any rate, I finally figured out what may be obvious to others. The best way to manage my ITunes playlists is by using the song title mode. That way I can easily show my catalog by either that, artist, or album title.

Problem solved. What a joy!

I’m listening to “The Lost Boys” soundtrack as I type this. ~grin~ But I do like more modern stuff. Tune in during April’s A to Z Blog Challenge and you’ll know what I mean.

So, dear reader, how are you with today’s technology? Are you rather a (nondestructive) luddite like me?

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Neck Pain and Desk Update

Always one to tinker with solutions, I found a better setup at my actual desk than at the table like I photographed the other day. Ditching the now too tall footstool, I found a replacement in a sturdy box. This, I think, will be a place I can sit for hours and hours.

Complete with Marilyn Manson Mousepad!

This end of the house is chillier but my stories sometimes get me a little steamed up, anyway. ~grin~ Now enough silliness and back to the business at hand!

Happy blogging, my dears!

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Scam Alert

Living with a computer expert, I have long been schooled on how to keep my computer clean. It’s why my Facebook activity is so limited and I generally avoid ‘free’ software.

In my email today I saw something supposedly from Bravenet about my account being deleted. I paused before opening the message; did I ever sign up for Bravenet? If so, I didn't remember it.

So I went to the official Bravenet website and clicked on the password recovery button. My email address was not found. So please be warned. I probably avoided something nasty invading my laptop.

If you see the same message, here is a quick link to Bravenet’s account recovery page:

Bravenet.com - Lost Password 

 
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U is for Up Arrow - My New Keyboard Trick

People who know me understand that technology is not my strong suit. Sometimes a pig finds an acorn, as they say. Or, as in my case, the pig is lucky to find a savvier fellow. The power of the keyboard’s up arrow is an example of the latter.

I recently griped to my partner about a feature on the Mazilla Firefox web browser. Every time you add to the favorites list, that item is added to the bottom. Come on. It’s something new so of course I want ready access. But no…

You have to find the name in your list and manually drag it to the top. Scrolling down seems so tedious in this fast paced world, which prompted my complaint. Fortunately, I need suffer that no longer.

My partner looked at me and said, “That’s why I hit the up arrow to go directly to the bottom of the favorites list.”

Good grief. What have you learned today?

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Ending Overtype Mode Permanently (!) in MS Word

I have a new laptop.  And this Lenovo ThinkPad is awesome, the keyboard a writer’s dream.

But (and don’t we all have buts!), there is one issue that has plagued me.  This post’s title gives it away, of course.

Overtype mode needed to be stopped.

A Google search became paramount, and for a change my “Google Fu” struck a major hit.  Or in this case, a lethal blow – allowing me to kill the Insert key, which I didn’t understand had been the reason behind my little agony.

On my ThinkPad, the Insert key just happens to reside next to the Delete and Backspace buttons regularly used during story editing.  For months I’d been going through Tools → Options → Edit tab to uncheck the Overtype mode box in the uppermost left hand column.

No longer.  Thank the heavens.

With no further ado, here is how you kill the INS key.

1. Start Word
2. Click on the Tools menu
3. Click Customize
4. Click the Options tab
5. Click Keyboard
6. Under the Categories dropdown box, select All Commands
7. Under the Commands dropdown box, select Overtype
8. Under the Current keys dropdown box, select Insert
9. Click Remove
10. Click Close until the dialog windows close.

That’s it.  Wasn’t that easy?  Can’t you just feel that weight lifting from your shoulders?  Well, that might be a little overly dramatic.  Maybe.

I must say thanks to Steve Thomas and the guys at tech-recipes.com both for sharing this information.  You can find the original post here:

Web Development Learnings
 

Happy writing!

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