View Single Post - is the day of building computers over !

Enforcer · Rated NC-17

I still build systems for my inner group of friends, but mainly it is because we are all on a barter system of sorts with each other. Building computers is what I know, buying beer and fixing cars is what they know, it works out. For the most part I have no trouble with them and spyware because I educate them one time and one time only on using ad-aware and basically tell them that this will be the last I hear of it. Mostly they know how to avoid most viruses and are able to use their computers without incident. Worst case has been one case where I had to re-build the computer because of crap programs, and basically that guy is still buying me a beer when we all go out for it. One system I'm looking to soon is to utilize Norton Ghost and a USB Drive to store an image of a completed computer for each of my friends, so I have someone to fall back on in case something really goes wrong.

Family is a different system. I am fixing trivial problems once in a while but I do recommend to them getting Dells since their needs are little and they get the warranty so I don't have to deal with hardware. I am making an exception to this rule for my parents, but that is because I have half the parts already on hand and its a good way to put them to use instead of sitting in a box. The caliber of user is different than with friends, so I try to stay out of it as much as I can with any family memeber.

Thankfully I am approached more for advice than anything else, commonly somone will come up with an ad or something and ask me if thats a good buy or not, and I tell them. Very little am I asked to tutor anyone in using a program, and honestly if I get repeated little requests from friends I'll typically shrug my shoulders and tell them to look it up in the help. They may hate me in the short term, but being able to look up a solution themselves is a skill they learn and then don't even realize it.
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Jinsei to uchuu to subete no koate wa.. yonjuuni