Tuesday, April 27, 2010

Overlooking the Simplest Things

One of the common problems with learning a new operating system is trying to ascertain what to do when something doesn't appear to be working. Under the old system, you may have been quite proficient at uncovering issues and figuring out how to resolve them. With the new system, however, you're not clear what protocols to follow or where to check under the hood!

Last night I was downloading a rather large file. In the middle of the process, my internet connection went dead. So, I paused the download. A few minutes later, the connection went live again and I resumed the download. Of course, you know what this is leading up to: The connection went offline again. Arghhh!!

As it was late, I canceled the download and headed off to bed.

Upon rising this morning, I came into my "home office" to check my email. The internet connection was still dead. So, I spent the next 3 or 4 hours trying to determine if a) my ISP's server was down (we had a bit of storm last night) or b) this was a problem pertaining solely to my computer and/or modem.

I tried as best I could to run down the problem. It appeared that my dsl was running a-ok, I simply could not connect to the server. I tried to reconfigure the modem, but my system kept informing that it was working properly. I ran several wizards and utility programs, but nothing would change the situation.

Finally, I called technical support. The tech suggested that I unplug my external modem for 15 seconds and then replug it in. Magically, the problem was solved! The modem simply needed to be reset.

Too often, we try to make our lives more complicated and complex than they need be. We overlook simple solutions because we're certain a more difficult one will do the trick. If we find that we are straying from our path, we take drastic measures when, in fact, merely walking around a pothole would suffice.

Note to self: Next time the internet connection goes dead, try unplugging/replugging in the modem first!

1 comment:

  1. This happens all the time with our digital cable connection.

    ReplyDelete

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