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| 4 JAN 2003 at 12:54am |
InlandAZGuild Master
Posts : 5586
Joined: 4 MAY 2007
Status : Offline | Hmmm - Fredericks maybe?
And before you hate me for that answer - consider the source...
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| 4 JAN 2003 at 1:19am |
MichalNGrand Inquisitor
Posts : 7058
Joined: 14 SEP 2003
Status : Online | Originally Posted By sennebec (3 JAN 2003 11:57pm)
what magazines would all you techno-wizards recommend to help educate a computer-spazz like myself ... ???
Well, I can only speak for myself... but don't expect much help from us "techno-wizards" on this front.
There are very few good computing magazines out there. In most of them it's difficult to tell what's advertising and what isn't. And the content often isn't exactly high quality. I used to like mags like BYTE, PC Tech Journal (both long gone), I still read Dr. Dobb's. But those are far too technical, not exactly beginner reading.
A lot of what I know about computers I learned through experimentation. I highly recommend that to everyone. If you can at all, get a computer that contains no critical data and do stuff with it. Try everything. Believe me, computers are very hard to destroy unless you take a screwdriver to them and start putting in CPUs backwards (been there, done that, bad smelling smoke resulted).
There might be some good books but I wouldn't know because I never had one. I learned what I needed to know about DOS from my DR-DOS manual and the rest I picked up mostly through osmosis.
There are almost certainly some good websites out there but again, I don't know them.
The #1 rule is "don't be afraid". See what happens if you do this or that. Most people seem to be afraid of breaking something and that inhibits their learning. The worst that can happen is that you'll have to reinstall the OS and that in itself is an educational experience.
This may sound strange but I usually learned most from my (or my computer's) screw-ups, when I did something wrong and then tried to fix it (not always successfully). Let me tell you, if you partially reformat your harddrive and you had important data on the disk and no backups (that's me!), it's a great way to learn about filesystems
I forgot my sig.
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| 4 JAN 2003 at 7:38am |
sennebecGuild Master
Posts : 3334
Joined: 15 NOV 2004
Location: US, maine
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By InlandAZ (4 JAN 2003 12:54am)
Hmmm - Fredericks maybe?
And before you hate me for that answer - consider the source...
before i chastise you, inland, let me inform you that i prefer "victoria's secret"...
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| 4 JAN 2003 at 7:51am |
sennebecGuild Master
Posts : 3334
Joined: 15 NOV 2004
Location: US, maine
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By MichalN (4 JAN 2003 1:19am)
Try everything. Believe me, computers are very hard to destroy unless you take a screwdriver to them and start putting in CPUs backwards (been there, done that, bad smelling smoke resulted).
now you've got me scared...
The #1 rule is "don't be afraid".
.... i'll try...
The worst that can happen is that you'll have to reinstall the OS and that in itself is an educational experience.
what do you do if the OS was installed by the manufacturer ? i don't think i have the software...
or maybe i do... ???
This may sound strange but I usually learned most from my (or my computer's) screw-ups, when I did something wrong and then tried to fix it (not always successfully). Let me tell you, if you partially reformat your harddrive and you had important data on the disk and no backups (that's me!), it's a great way to learn about filesystems
a friend of mine says ... "education is expensive whether you go to school or not"
well, michal, thanks for the info...
i'm just searching to understand how these infernal machines work so i might be able to tweak and manipulate when needed...
i still don't understand DOS at all... ???
( i'm soooo embarassed :-[ )
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| 4 JAN 2003 at 10:59am |
RevliskciPrivate Detective
Posts : 724
Joined: 9 NOV 2002
Status : Offline | Most computer magazines suck in explaining things. Either they assume you know what the terms mean, or they treat every subject in such an elementary way that you end up feeling babied.
Get a book instead. There are many books dealing with computer knowledge for beginners and are more comprehensive than the light treatment given by magazines.
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| 4 JAN 2003 at 7:12pm |
MichalNGrand Inquisitor
Posts : 7058
Joined: 14 SEP 2003
Status : Online | Originally Posted By sennebec (4 JAN 2003 7:51am)
now you've got me scared...
Oh, don't be. The damage was perhaps $5 - and as I said, unless you open the case and start messing around, it's extremely difficult to cause permanent damage. And it is impossible to electrocute yourself with 12V DC
what do you do if the OS was installed by the manufacturer ? i don't think i have the software...
or maybe i do... ???
You definitely should have at least a restore CD (I got one).
i'm just searching to understand how these infernal machines work so i might be able to tweak and manipulate when needed...
i still don't understand DOS at all... ???
(i'm soooo embarassed :-[ )
DOS may not be easy to learn initially but it is simple... I'm sure there are some good books explaining DOS but I unfortunately can't give you any recommendations. Hopefully someone else can.
I forgot my sig.
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| 4 JAN 2003 at 7:52pm |
InlandAZGuild Master
Posts : 5586
Joined: 4 MAY 2007
Status : Offline | Originally Posted By sennebec (4 JAN 2003 7:38am)
before i chastise you, inland, let me inform you that i prefer "victoria's secret"...
You're going to have to convince me that is actually better -
There are almost certainly some good websites out there but again, I don't know them.
Try the following site, it's very well organized:
http://www.computing.net/
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| 5 JAN 2003 at 12:03am |
sennebecGuild Master
Posts : 3334
Joined: 15 NOV 2004
Location: US, maine
Status : Offline | thanks for all your help guys...
if you think of anything else don't hesitate to holler !!!
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| 5 JAN 2003 at 12:07am |
InlandAZGuild Master
Posts : 5586
Joined: 4 MAY 2007
Status : Offline | But, you're a goddess now - do you really need our help?
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| 5 JAN 2003 at 3:02am |
| Deleted User | Magazines??? Why? You can find whatever you want if you search via google. iagrams and all ....... (about computers, I am speaking!)
The best way to learn about your computer, as MichalN said, I think, is to tinker with it. You cannot do too much damage unless you use a screwdriver (not recommended)
The worst that can happen is that you have to re-load the OS and if your PC came with a "Recovery CD" only .... there are ways around that too.
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