This weekend, I learned a couple of lessons about data backup, purchasing a new computer, and migrating data. Having maxed out the upgrades to my laptop, Robin & I decided that it was time to purchase a new computer given the low prices and having a more powerful PC for work & study.
After doing a bit of study, I purchased a 17” Dell Studio notebook for $750, which trumps my previous laptop in every way possible (which I paid $1200 for back in 2007). I also picked up an extra AC adapter (so I could leave one at my desk, and then have a separate one for travel/work).
So, onto the lessons learned. Having recently purchased a new hard drive & experimenting with Windows 7 on my previous laptop, I had become pretty proficient in backing up my data, so that was all set and ready to go. I had data backed up on my external USB and anything else ready to go to transfer over the network from the old laptop.
I start setting up the new computer, installing software & migrating data. I get everything just about done, and decide to play some music while I finish up a few last minute installs & migrations. It’s when that happens that I notice that there appears to be something wrong with my speakers, as there’s a terrible crackling sound coming from the left speaker. This is terrible! I’ve got a defective computer, and I didn’t know until I had spent nearly 8-12 hours moving data. I debug as best I can and ultimately decide that it’s a hardware issue that cannot be rectified by updating drivers or new software. What a bummer! I call BestBuy and see what my options were, considering I had just taken the time to move ALL of my data over to this new machine. They tell me to bring it in & they’ll replace it & possibly just swap the hard drive from the defective one to the new one.
I package everything up & get to BestBuy, prove that it’s defective (pretty easily I might add). But then they tell me that they really don’t want to swap the hard drive (just in case it was part of the problem), and tell me that I can still do it, but they’d have to charge me for it. Even though I had quite a bit of personal data on there, I left it in the Lord’s hands that they’d wipe the drive clean, and just opted to take the new notebook and do the whole process over again. I had the kids with me, and they were acting up, so that was really my only option without coming out of more money when I didn’t feel like I should have to given the machine was defective.
After I get home & get the machine past all of the default setup stuff, I immediately took a cue from my previous experience and test the audio (cranking it up to the max), as well as testing all the other items. After I was sure this one checked out, I continued to migrate all of my data & reinstall my software. Surprisingly enough, it only took me about 4-5 hours the second time around, probably because I had a better idea of what I needed and where stuff was in my backups. So, I had the computer 95% done by Sunday morning, ready for church; I saved the remainder for Sunday evening, since I wouldn’t need it until Monday.
It was definitely a relief to have a working machine, other than almost having another scare with the audio this morning. I noticed that there was some popping/static while listening via my headphones. Since I knew it wasn’t likely to be hardware, I updated all of the major drivers (audio, video, chipset, wireless, and BIOS), which apparently fixed my issue. As of now, I only have a minor problem with one application in particular, but luckily enough it’s not dire because I’m able to do similar work in another program.
That being said, I’m enjoying the new machine and pray that it holds up and does everything I need for years to come for both work & ministry/study. The main lessons learned in this: 1) keep usable backups, and 2) test everything on a new computer to make sure it works before taking the time to put all of your data on it.
