Unabashed Geek Girl

As a geek girl, I find it amazing that I made it this far into the 21^st century before converting my CD music library into electronic form. I'm all about data retrieval and forward-thinking archives, but I had no reason to convert my music because...well...I didn't have an MP3 player!

But, as you know, all that changed when I got an Apple iPod Touch and undertook the mammoth effort to import my entire library into iTunes. Over 3400 tracks later, I am finally done, and now I'm ready to pass on the savings - er, I mean wisdom - to you. So, if you're in the position I was in, facing stacks of CDs and a mostly empty MP3 player, listen up. In this article I'll show you how you can convert your library with a minimum of anguish and a maximum of happy listening.

Step 1: Update iTunes, If Needed

Since we're using iTunes for this (though you have many other options) it makes sense to be sure you have the latest version so that you have all the latest cool features available to you. To see if you need to download an update (at least, this works on Windows) go to the Help menu and choose Check for Updates.  Read more »

This week I joined the 21^st century - at least, in a musical way. Kathy gave me my Christmas gift early and I'm now the proud owner of an Apple iPod Touch. Isn't it purty? Just like on the commercial!

Look, that's my website I'm browsing! Wait, that's THIS ARTICLE! That's like, taking a picture FORWARD IN TIME! Okay, the iPod Touch is not that good. But, um, I am.

I had delayed getting any sort of MP3 player (the Touch is more than that, of course) because I don't listen to much music. I'm "special needs" when it comes to music; I just don't spend much time with it and my taste is rather unevolved. But I decided I wanted this because, you know, maybe if I had music to listen to, it would make me more successful at working out.

So, Kathy was kind enough to give me my gift early, in the name of health and wellness and cool gadgets. But before I could take advantage of all its groovy features, I had to get used to the iPod Touch.

As it turned out, this involved a lot of swearing for the first day.  Read more »

As loyal readers know, I periodically review the searches that lead people to my site. Originally, I started doing this for site-optimization purposes, but lately, it's become more about entertainment value. Yeah, you think you're just looking for answers on line, but there is a small chance that you are also cracking me up.

Here's the best of my latest crop, by category.

Category 1: If only I could respond real-time

Good side telling the truth to patient - Uhhhh, you needed to look for a "good side" in this endeavor? 'Because it's the right thing to do' is not sufficient? I think I've had you for my doctor once upon a time.

No gowns at my gyno office - Holy cow. I suggest you grab your things and sidle out the back door. Run, don't walk.

Do mice turn into rats? - No, but I should warn you that housecats can turn into pumas.

My aunt made me wear girls slacks - Er, were you just compelled to make a confession to Google, or are you looking for camaraderie?

Another name for gaurage sale - Oh, I don't know. Maybe...GARAGE sale?

Importance of thinking - It pains me that people are searching for an answer.

Nutritional value deepfried packaged noodles - You mean, the answer "absolutely none" wasn't implied by the question?  Read more »

Not everyone knows this, but geekdom has the power to create its own altered state. It can seem like a certain type of person is drawn to the lifestyle of a geek (a particularly socially awkward, bespectacled type) but this is not always the case. Sometimes, the lifestyle chooses the geek and works its own magic.

I like to think that I am not someone you would immediately peg as a geek. I don't play MUDs (online, multi-user dungeon games), I don't wear the same T-shirt for a week on end, I don't tape my glasses together, and I don't drink Red Bull while scarfing down a bag full of drive-thru food at midnight. I have a life.

Well, most of the time.  Read more »

I turned my computer into a Pirate computer!

My current computer -- the desktop model that resides in my red pirate office -- has a glossy black case. It's rather lovely compared to the ugly "putty" colored cases I've had in the past, but it doesn't have much character. Plus, it's huge so that it can accommodate all the disc drives I put inside. I swear, you'd think I was running a server if you saw it.   Read more »

There is cat snot on the plasma TV. We can't have nice things.

Poor Lola continues to be sneezy, with her eye watering constantly. I think the pricey prescription eye drops have helped, though, just because she is not squinting like she did before. It still waters but I think it doesn't hurt so much. At least, I hope not!  Read more »

My computer is on its way back to me! I hope everything is fixed. I'm a little worried, but they did test it...so...I"ll cross my fingers.

Ah, finally, a day of success.

My new drive enclosure was delivered to me from Newegg this afternoon. It works like a dream. Very easy hardware install and no problems at all. I managed to backup my system drive and hookup my data drive. I still can't do everything I did on the desktop system because I either can't install the applications on the laptop or installation is complicated (like with development tools) and I haven't gotten around to it yet. But I have all my writing and know that I have not lost anything.  Read more »

Friday, I ordered a nice drive enclosure (with a fan!) that I can put an internal hard drive into while my computer is being fixed. That way, I can backup the system drive before I ship it off and I can access the data drive while the computer is being fixed. However, the enclosure won't arrive until Tuesday and I need to backup the system right away, so I bought a cheap drive enclosure this weekend as a stop-gap.

Trouble is, it doesn't work. Of course.  Read more »

My computer has been very sick for a couple of weeks and I am sad about it. I was working on the design and programming of a new site as well as a huge writing project when it crashed and burned. I had a bunch of people I was about to return messages to, people who are not in my address book, and then I lost access to Outlook.  Read more »

I'm a thrifty girl by nature, but sometimes I can be a little too thrifty, as recent experience reminds me. Case in point: waiting too long to upgrade software and paying the price--though not necessarily from my wallet.

I've been trying new recipes lately (as well as revisiting some old ones) as Kathy and I revamp our eating plan. My old recipe software isn't cutting it, though, and it's time to upgrade. Here's the embarrassing part -- I've been using Mastercook version 5 all these years. Sierra (the publisher) hasn't been around in AGES – and as a player of computer adventure games, I mourn them. Anyway, back to the recipe software.  Read more »

One day, when I was a teenager way back in 1981, a computer appeared on our dining room table. There was no warning and no explanation. I had never seen a home computer before.

When I looked closely, I saw that the green text on the monitor told me that I was in a meadow with a sleeping dragon and a sign. Obvious exits were south, east, and west. I asked my father what this was. He claimed he didn't know. I knew something was up, but I couldn't resist sliding into the chair. "Go west," I typed.  Read more »

It is one thing to have your computer crash and eat your data after you've been "meaning to do a backup" yet haven't gotten around to it. It's quite another to crash and burn after a week of daily backups, only to find that all the backup files are corrupted.  Read more »

Last week I listed my computer for sale, online. You know, the one that I thought was broken but wasn't, and so then I got a super-cool new one when I didn't really need it? Yeah, that one.

One guy wanted to come see it this afternoon and I made arrangements for him to come by. He had a distinctive name, so I did a quick search online and ended up finding his MySpace page. As a result, I learned what high school he had gone to, about how old he was, saw that he had a pierced eyebrow, likes rap, and I even learned his girlfriend's name.  Read more »

Lately I've been playing adventure games to give me something to focus on. I rationalize that it's a way to fight chemo brain (a dulling of cognitive function that can accompany chemotherapy) by keeping my mind in shape. Really, I'm just longing for a bit of escape.

To help me out, my eldest niece brought me a number of Nancy Drew adventure games this weekend. I had joked with her the day before about the coyotes we have out back, saying that they should come out with Danger at Lime Ridge: Secrets of the Coyotes! So, of course she brought the game Ghost Dogs of Moon Lake.  Read more »

Lately I have been thinking about learning PHP (a programming language). Toward that end, yesterday (at about 2 pm) I ordered a PHP book and an XHTML book from Amazon.com.

Apparently the universe really wants me to do this, because I just opened the front door and there they are. They've arrived in less than 24 hours from Kentucky, and I didn't even choose overnight shipping!

I didn't know Marge and Norm were into programming stuff, but okay, okay! I'll learn it.

After my computer broke, Kathy talked me out of building a new one and into having someone else build it for me. Gasp! That's heresy! I've built my own systems for twenty years, and the one time I didn't I had all sorts of trouble.  Read more »

I went into my office this afternoon to scan something. All of a sudden, the system became unresponsive. I restarted the computer and the motherboard said (yes, mine speaks), "CPU FAN FAILED!"

Oh. My. God.

You know how when someone's heart stops, you have only a certain amount of time to revive them before they become brain damaged? That's how it is with a CPU fan. CPUs run so hot that they must constantly be cooled or they can burn up and become useless. Without a CPU-that big chip on the motherboard-the system is nothing.  Read more »

Do you ever feel like your doctor just doesn't understand how you feel, no matter how you try to explain it? You're trying to describe the worst pain in your life and they tell you to take two Tylenol? Or maybe you have a condition that's difficult to describe to someone who has never been through it, and you need your doctor to understand the severity.  Read more »

Well, help may be on the way.