As most who follow my blog might remember I have two computer systems two monitors, and two speaker set ups … you get the idea.   I use one for watching videos / movies which I call the video computer and the other I use to blog, look up stuff, and I call that one the blogging computer.  The system works for me.  

A month or more ago I was having trouble restarting the XPS blogging computer that I bought in 2016.  I found a workaround by using the reset / testing button on the power supply and using the start button.  However that is no longer working.   Why knowing this did you shut the computer down in the first place I hear people asking?  I had an important program that just refused suddenly to work. It let me move the keyboard and mouse between computers with complete easy by simply going to the edge of one monitor to move it to the other.  The problem was the program suddenly claimed that it couldn’t see another computer on the network.  I tried everything I could think of including reinstalling the program, restarting the router, uninstalling the either net connections, unplugging and plugging the cables.  I tried the restart 3 times with each computer.  The only thing I could think of is I had a radical handshake that the only way to cure was to turn off the computers, then restart them.  I figured I could use the workaround with the power supply to start that computer.  It failed.  The power supply won’t stay on long enough for the bios to hand the start up to the hard drive.  

Why is this an issue.  I was able to move all the open tabs from one computer to the other computer via Vivaldi, a browser that Barry told me about and I strongly recommend.  The program allows you to set up a session memory for however many days you wish.  I have mine set for three days.   So after the blogging computer wouldn’t start I could go into the synced cloud of my devices and move all the windows with all the tabs into the video computer.  Unfortunately it is stressing it out badly.  

However what I couldn’t move is the video files I had just done this morning.  I finally figured out two different programs to record the videos that look and sound great.  I did two this morning to go with posts I set up two days ago.   I can’t get to those videos files.  I could if I take the C drive out of that computer and plug it into a very inexpensive device I bought that allows me to plug all the different kinds of drive into it up to three at a time and read them all.  But I won’t do that because I found a replacement power supply that will be here tomorrow.  But I have a doctor’s appointment tomorrow, and Wednesday Ron and I were going to go shopping, and again Friday I have another doctor’s appointment.  Told everyone I have some real health issues.  

I had made and was uploading what I think were really great videos.  I finally got the programs to work.  They were uploading to go with the four posts I had ready to go.  They were short, sweet, and looked / sound good.   I can still post the posts without the videos.  Which I will now do.  But I am frustrated.  But these computers are 9 years old.   Ron and I talked about it.  To get me the computers I need to do the work I do would take at least $1,800.00 times two.  But if it comes to that we will do it.  But my next computers will be at least an Intel 8 chip, the highest ram architecture possible I can afford, and as I learned that in the modern age higher ram makes a huge difference now in how a computer operates.   In my days when first learning about computers ram and memory were much less important than the processor speed.   I have found out with my own computers the one with a slower processor works far better / faster with a huge memory boost than the one with the bigger processor but locked into a far smaller memory.   

So we put the computer on the counter and opened it up.  Then we copied all the power supply specs and plugged that into Dell the manufacturer.  They no longer have that part available which I already suspected when I went to my Dell page with my products and when I clicked on parts it offered me only three cables.  Useless.  But Amazon had the power supply I needed.  It was not that expensive, fit the chassis and had the same power in / out rating.  Plus it could be here tomorrow.  So I won’t lose the computer, and will still be able to upload the new videos somewhat late.  Ron chided me for know the power supply was failing and not ordering the replacement.  I was trying to save money.  It will be all good.  Thanks for reading.  Hugs