Chromebook

I feel I have joined the computer age. Even though I have been using personal computers since my first Apple in 1979, the feeling that the computer age had left me behind overcame me with the purchase of a Chromebook.

Chromebooks are inexpensive laptops that run Chrome OS. They update automatically and are considered virus safe. They run almost everything through the cloud. I'm not really sure what the cloud is but it seems to me to be a virtual server. It is a place where documents and programs can be stored and used.

The Chromebook works well surfing the net. My problem arose when I wanted to print out a page. I couldn't do it. It prints only from the cloud. I may have been able to save the page to a memory chip and physically take it to another computer with a printer attached, but I didn't try that.

Today I started the set up of a home wireless network through a personal hotspot. After several hours yesterday with tech support, I managed to get the hotspot up and some data paid for. Today I connected another computer to it. It was a breeze to do.

Monday most of my old computers go to the recycle. No longer any room for them and there doesn't seem to any good home for them. Some of them were clunkers that just got the job done. They lacked style, innovation, or mystique. Others like the Bondwell B310 portable from 1990  thrilled with  their design, capacity, blazing speed, portability, and tons of software.

My hoard goes back to my first typewriter, a graduation present from high school. I branched out into computers with the 1979 Apple II plus.