iBook Sale Turns Violent

[Dartful Dodger]

iBook Specifications

[paigeoliver]

iBook Specifications

Those specs are by no means modern, but they are more than good enough for a decent general use computer. The average computer user never uses anything besides their web browser. The bulk of the rest of users only use web browser, office apps, and media player, which that iBook would do fine on.

[ChadTower]

Thus proving that one doesn't have to be poor or stupid to make bad decisions, I personally happen to be both, thus the bad decisions!!!

[Stingray]

I do the same. At any given time I've usually got a stack of half a dozen or so dead or semi dead computers that are waiting to be rebuilt for people. They can't do much, but they're great for the people who I give them to: usually very poor people who wouldn't be able to afford any kind of computer otherwise.

-S

[ChadTower]

What I HATE, HATE, HATE, is when I spend a night building a P250 for someone (it takes a long time to get all of the 98se patches and updates on) and test it and it's rock solid... I tell them what ISP to use, the phone numbers to call to sign up, etc etc... then two days later I get a call that the thing isn't working anymore, only to find they installed AOL 9 on it and AOL crippled the damn thing.

[Stingray]

Mine come with a standard disclaimer. This computer is all yours, it's free, and it works right now. Technical support is not part of the deal.

-S

[ChadTower]

That only works with reasonable people.  With many of the people I know, you're always the bad guy.  You're the bad guy if you are able to get them a free computer but won't.  You're the bad guy if you get them a free computer and it dies.  You're the bad guy if you get them a free computer and they wreck it and you won't fix it.  You're the bad guy if you get them a free computer and you wreck it and you can't fix it and won't get them another free computer.

It just goes on like that.  This is why I'm so used to being the bad guy.

[paigeoliver]

My "helping people with computers" life has gotten A LOT easier since I started advertising the fact that I won't work on computers that have AOL on them.

Try adding that rule in, and enforcing it, and see if it gets easier for you.

[ChadTower]

Well, that's the thing.  I tell them specifically NOT to install AOL, that it WILL NOT WORK, and then they do it and it hoses the OS.

[Stingray]

In which case it just became their problem.

-S

[ChadTower]

Yep, which leads us back to me being the bad guy and annoyed because I knew it would happen and tried to help anyway.

[Stingray]

But we've already established that you have no probelm with being the bad guy.

-S

[ChadTower]

I said I'm used to it, I didn't say I appreciated it.

[mr.Curmudgeon]

Chad,

You are a programmer, right? Can't you develop a small application that runs as a 'service' and blocks an AOL installation? Where it detects something common in AOL discs (or executables) and just won't let them run?

That would stop them from installing off of those discs that come in the mail, and you could use a 'hosts' file to block AOL.com completely so they can't install from the web either.

I looked online already and there doesn't seem to be anything of the sort, but I imagine anyone who created such a thing would become an instant hero and at least these systems would have a fightin' chance. (with additional things like Spyware Search & Destroy inoculation, etc)

mrC

[ChadTower]

Well, 98 isn't really good for that type of active service.  Second, such a service would have to be resident in memory at all times, thus using up precious CPU and RAM on an already limited machine.  So, sure, I could do that, but it's not a good solution.

A better solution would be something like extending autorun so that if it is attempting to run an AOL disc it simply fails and ejects the disc.  It would be stupid, but at least it would not have to be a resident process.  That would also be dependent on my being able to decompile autorun.exe, or rewriting it from scratch, or maybe renaming it to autorun_native and then writing an autorun that would simply detect AOL and die or invoke autorun_native.

Either way, that is an attempt to save people I tried to help from doing things I specifically told them not to do.

Now that I think about it, that autorun wrapper I described above is a decent solution if one had to be written, though it may have to be updated for each new release of AOL depending on what conditions it use for verifying AOL or not. 

Of course, it would not be able to stop someone from just going to the disc and running setup.exe.

[pointdablame]

I actually make people sign a piece of paper saying that I will not do tech support for the exact reason Chad mentions.

I have given away older systems to people quite a few times and given the same warnings, but people are stupid 

They get the computer working, that's my guarantee.  If you screw with it because you THINK you know what you're doing, too bad. 

I find that the signed paper works great because I make them understand that if they do call me for help, they'll be charged fees similar to an average omputer shop.... which for a free PC... no one ever wants to pay

[missioncontrol]

sure you think they understand you when you say DON'T install AOL but once they get the free disk in the mail it's like crack for stupid people...........

[whammoed]

sure you think they understand you when you say DON'T install AOL but once they get the free disk in the mail it's like crack for stupid people...........

I rarely laugh out loud at posts but this one got me for some reason 

[AlanS17]

Yeah, but you can sit with an iBook on the couch. That's got to be worth $200 right there.

[ChadTower]

The evolution of the fat net addict... lab, to home PC on a folding table, to nice desk, to the couch.

[paigeoliver]

A REAL GOOD AOL blocking solution is setting the system up RIGHT, and then removing the CD rom drive. The fact is that they don't need it on an older system, almost anything they would put in there would either mess up their system, be too slow to run, or be a complete peice of garbage shovelware.

If free disc is the problem, then remove the disc drive, problem solved.

Also, it might be a good idea to pull the modem too, they have DSL these days for LESS than AOL dialup, force that on them.

[missioncontrol]

The evolution of the fat net addict... lab, to home PC on a folding table, to nice desk, to the couch.

them there's crumbs in my keyboard.......

[Stingray]

Also, it might be a good idea to pull the modem too, they have DSL these days for LESS than AOL dialup, force that on them.

Doesn't AOL offer some kind of broadband these days though?

-S

[ChadTower]

A REAL GOOD AOL blocking solution is setting the system up RIGHT, and then removing the CD rom drive. The fact is that they don't need it on an older system, almost anything they would put in there would either mess up their system, be too slow to run, or be a complete peice of garbage shovelware.

Erm, the machines I give away aren't THAT old.

[HaRuMaN]

Also, it might be a good idea to pull the modem too, they have DSL these days for LESS than AOL dialup, force that on them.

Doesn't AOL offer some kind of broadband these days though?

-S

No, they will let you piggyback the AOL service off your own broadband service, for a fee...  I hate AOL.

[Stingray]

Also, it might be a good idea to pull the modem too, they have DSL these days for LESS than AOL dialup, force that on them.

Doesn't AOL offer some kind of broadband these days though?

-S

No, they will let you piggyback the AOL service off your own broadband service, for a fee...  I hate AOL.

Figures. Sounds just like the AOL we all know and loath.

-S