Computing

Are computers super cool? Or are they the most annoying things we've ever encountered? I guess both are correct questions / statements. I'm watching a movie on one monitor and intermittently shopping / buying a couple CD's on the other.

Incidentally, the movie is A Patch of Blue with Sidney Poitier. I'd recommend it as a powerful story told from the perspectives of a black man and (primarily) a blind woman who's lives touch each other in a profound way.

Anyway, oh yeah... computers... handy. This morning I e-mailed my aunt in South Dakota. My dad's oldest sister, she's also the longest surviving sibling. She loved the pictures I shared with her of our recent snow. It would have been much more time-consuming and expensive to mail copies of the pictures. Sharing them via my free photo site was instant and virtually free since we both already pay for internet access. Virtually free. Get it? The internets is a virtual world and the pictures were... okay... right. You get it.

I used to constantly experiment with different hardware and software on whatever computer I had at the moment. Now, I mainly just want it to work. But I'm glad I have the knowledge to replace or repair hardware components myself, saving a bundle in labor costs.

I still like trying different software programs if I think something new might be superior to what I already have. Particularly if it's freeware or open-source, as is over 90% of the software I use. I'm still using Windows as a closed source, expensive, proprietary OS but I haven't paid for anything else. Oh, and I haven't pirated anything either!

I just looked through my installed software and that's really true. It's pretty amazing if you think about it. As I obviously am. Not sure if it's worth a blog entry but you get one anyway. For free.