New Wine Chromebook

My Dell laptop is from 2007. It weighs as much as a suitcase jammed with full wine bottles from a Napa Valley vacation. And about the same size. And even though I replaced the battery not too long ago (maybe 7 years), it is just an old system. 

Due to the ubiquitous of the smartphone, I rarely use it anymore besides printing or scanning documents. And, sometimes that is necessary. Since the laptop and peripherals are all ancient, with the HP Laser Printer probably being 1995, the Dell laptop 2007, and scanner 2010 (the baby), if I had replaced the laptop, then I would have had to also buy a new printer and scanner. And the question was why? The last time I had to find drivers for the printer it took hours online.    

The laptop also has baggage because it was the computer that I mostly wrote my dissertation on back in 2007/2008. At the time, my old desktop was dying, had very old and incompatible software where Temple University was at tech-wise. So, I had to upgrade. It was a matter off academic survival. I  took the old computer hard-drive out back one bright Saturday morning and smashed in with a sledgehammer. I put 8 years of frustration into every blow. I remember that I cracked and split the cinder bock the hard-drive was being sacrificed on. I must say that the destruction was quite satisfying. The conclusion of suffering is a celebration like no other.

To close the loop on needing a device to write with and video-conference on (a very much new reality), I decided to buy a high-end Chromebook. We use Chromebooks for the students at the school where I work and all use the Google Suite of applications so I have developed some deeper understanding of the package. I was also of the conclusion that one  reason I had stopped blogging was the clumsiness of the laptop and short battery life. When I sat at my desk upstairs and typed on the laptop (where I had to leave it plugged in because of all of the wires and poor battery life plus it is the desk where I did the Ph.D work) I felt like I was back working on the endless dissertation. 

Now, I am trying get comfortable with the keyboard and glitchneess of the Chromebook. Because it is always saving to the distant web somewhere, there is a lag in the the type-to-text and I am misspelling every other word. In other words,  I am very frustrated with the transition. But, over time, I will adjust and acclimate. I  have to leave the comfortable obsolescence of laptop behind and tolerate the new learning until it is normal. New revelation creates the need for new learning. And learning ain't fun or easy all of the time. We want to make it play when it is more like work.   

Trust me. you don't have any idea of how long this has taken me to type this. Next week I may even post a picture.  If there is a next week blog. Remember. I am asymmetrical. Screw reviewing  this more for formatting and etc. Time to post! No looking back.