npgraphicdesign

Why?

Jooo talkin' to me?

Ho....ly.....sh......!!!

Well you can get a 500Gb external HD for $100 or less. Price also depends how much you care about the brand name and any manufacturer specific technologies (various back-up software, one-touch backups, etc.) That's enough for most people's music collections. Go with Seagate. They have the best manufacturer's warranty out there. Next go with Western Digital. This man speaks the truth. Oddly enough, I just had an issue w/ my external Lacie enclosure. All of a sudden it stopped working. Took the cover off and listened to the HD (which was a Seagate drive ) It kept winding up and then stopping, and seemed like it wasn't getting enough power. So i tested the enclosure itself, and sure enough, the circuit board in the enclosure blew. I plugged it in internally and it works like a charm! Incidentally, I have nothing but Seagate HDs in my computer. On a side note, I'm not a big fan of small (dimension-wise not HD capacity) enclosures that "save space." I'd rather get a slightly larger external enclosure that preferably has a built in fan and also has some air circulation space around the HD inside...

Well you can get a 500Gb external HD for $100 or less. Price also depends how much you care about the brand name and any manufacturer specific technologies (various back-up software, one-touch backups, etc.) That's enough for most people's music collections.

What do graphic designers know about computers? All they know how to do is make pretty pictures. I worked as a jr. technician & computer geek at an engineering firm for 6+ years and put together prototype logic boards and tested them, as well as fix computers once in a while. Why don't you assemble a prototype logic board for a broadband seismometer and then get back to me...

You could in theory, but would you want to? If you're a regular every day user then you don't need to do that. If you're a tech who wanted a portable OS on an external HD to diagnose problems, that's a different story. I think that aardvark's idea makes more sense and it's a bit less risky. How big is your hard drive in the laptop? You could probably get away with $200 or less for both the new internal hard drive and a new external HD. Check www.pricewatch.com, zipzoomfly.com, and newegg.com. Honestly? If the laptop is 6 years old, can you save up and get a new one? You can hunt around and get a refurbished or even new laptop for 300-450 hundred dollars. If all you use it for is word processing, web browsing, etc. then that will be a better option for you. Just some food for thought: Option 1 New external HD + new internal HD for 6 year old laptop - $150-$200 Option 2 Refurbished/new laptop ( try to get a warranty for both) - $300-$450 Option 1

That makes sense. I still don't know if I'd trust someone named Aardvarkeater...

I disagree with this method. If the hard drive is still working in the laptop, don't mess with it till the data can be backed up. If it's a physical problem with the drive, no matter how minor, taking the drive out and putting it into an external enclosure could potentially cause more damage. Keeping the hard drive working long enough to backup the data should be the first priority. Only after the data is backed up should moving the faulty drive happen. 1. Backup data to external HD that has preferably double the capacity of the current hard drive. 2. If possible, clone the whole laptop HD to an image on the external HD. 3. Install new laptop HD and restore HD clone to new drive. (If clone not possible, then install a new OS and restore the data) Good point as well

This looks like fun...and you could take out some stress at the same time... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o-nBn8QmI2U ..and think Office Space + the printer... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5orss3fAEU

That's in the works for my A license training, but...honestly? i don't think I'd be comfortable with doing that even if I could do a perfect pack job every single time.

Can you post the model number of the laptop?

Sounds like an hd issue. I'd recommend the following (if it's your laptop and not a work computer): 1. Take out your HD and get a small external enclosure for it. Check this newegg link for 2.5in external enclosures (http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.aspx?Submit=ENE&DEPA=0&Description=2.5++external+enclosure&x=0&y=0) 2. Buy a new HD for your laptop. Don't know how much your motherboard can handle (in terms of HD capacity) but get something that's the same capacity as before. 3. Install a new OS on the new hard drive, and then use your external enclosure to copy the data to your new HD, or another external hd. Why do i suggest this instead of just buying a large external HD and backing up your data now? Well, if simply tilting your computer makes it stop working, or, consequently, makes it work, that means the hard drive is really on the brink, and the more you use it, the more likely it will fail. Stop using it as soon as you can, swap it out, get your computer up and running w/ a new OS, and then go from there. I've recovered data on my own from about five or six hard drives, almost with no loss. Feel free to PM me or email me, and i can make some suggestions, or simply write a thorough step by step guide so you can do it yourself.

Good suggestion...i might need to get a 2nd job closer to home though, as the DZ is 1hr away...and I would have more expenses in gas then anything else....

Agreed...but most of my cash is going towards bills. I'd rather put something 'fun' on a card and pay it off little by little then immediate expenditures such as bills, bills and bills.

So after 6 jumps into my A license training and I'm absolutely loving it. I know it gets harder and I still have a lot to learn, but I love it. I even dreamt about skydiving last night! So my question...where do I place skydiving on my list of priorities? I have a full time job, college loans, various bills, but at the same time...every time I skydive, it puts a smile on my face and gives an unbelievable energy boost. I know it's an expensive sport, but at this point I'm thinking of getting a smaller credit card (2000 or so) and put all my AFF training on it, including some fun jumps and possible some money towards equipment...then worry about paying it off later. Is it an irrational decision, or have a lot of you put your skydiving expenses on credit cards and just worry about paying it later on?

Don't know if it's clean or not, but it's certainly bad enough... And besides you screwed up the order. So to follow up... One guy walks into a bar. Ouch. Two guys walk into a bar. Third one ducks. Three guys walk into a bar. At least one of them could've seen it...

That was almost funny. Keep trying...

That was my case too. The dz is on a county line and I managed to land out twice in my first 8 jumps, once in each of the two counties. I was asked if I would please let them know what county I planned on landing in. They should set up two separate drop zones, one in each county. Just for you...

Well they are kinda old...they need the money for their senior health care expenses. I love AC/DC, but I can't deny it, that is damn funny!!!! Hilarious!

Yea..i really want to go see the Black Ice tour... Expensive though...

that's what I'm sayin, big old paws. Could be that he'll just have big paws, but usually it doesn't go that way. Samsonite, I was way off Love that line...maybe she should've called the puppy Lloyd.

so cute...and look at those paws...he's going to be huge!

Oh really? feel free to PM me...

I bet you have all that saved in a text document somewhere so you don't have to type it over and over every time a skydiving noob asks a question like this. Yes it's actually very helpful. I still need to read it over a few times and understand it, but it's a great start. Thanks T!