The Computer Guru Weblog

Avoid E-Machines

2007-02-21T12:18:00.000-08:00

Eric,

In your socko conclusion to your E-Machines review, the one in which you were kind enough to spend several paragraphs discussing my opinions, you say the joke's on me, and (presumably) people like me (so many of us!) who don't appreciate these machines for what they are...

But really, the joke is on you, the problem is, you just don't see it.

But here's how you COULD see it:
Taking E-Machines at their word that they are in fact the McDonalds of computers, and assuming that everyone but the poorest and/or least enlightened members of our society know exactly what McDonalds is all about ( http://www.mcspotlight.org/media/books/schlosser.html ), simply rewrite your product review as a review of the cuisine at your local McDonalds!

Even the idea is ludicrous, which should help you peel back the veil a little bit; a few paragraphs more, and you'd see exactly what your review is really doing, at bottom (albeit in the computer arena):

"Walking past the freshly-painted golden arches, we were greeted with a tasteful dining area, precisely-molded plastic chairs and elegantly shaped mud coloured cafeteria trays. We waited on a short, cheerful line, while pleasant classical muzak poured over the loudspeakers, carefully tuned so that the noise of the fryers was barely audible. A polite young man, who appeared to be doing everything he could to keep his facial pimples under control, took our order. Several minutes later, our meal arrived, so quickly! We rate the service TOP-NOTCH!

"The hamburger bun was moist, the meat tender and juicy. The fries, 'though not quite as good as the pomme fritte at nearby Bistro 315, were perfectly tasty...the thick milkshake, also tasty, and miraculously, made entirely without dairy products...or any natural products for that matter...but despite the artificial ingredients and preponderance of chemicals, it tasted every bit as good as a real MILK shake! Sure, the final calorie count was in the high thousands, and we all felt a little ill afterwards, and Dad's going to need a costly quadruple bypass after a few more of these "happy meals," but still in all, really, quite a bargain, when you consider what a meal at the nearby steak house costs..."

Here's the truth:
"E-Machines used to really, really suck. They still suck, but not as bad as they used to suck, maybe. E-Machines has learned a thing or two over the years, but so has every single one of their competitors, meaning they are still at the bottom of the heap, still, relatively speaking, shit, just like they used to be. A computer is more than a pile of components. There isn't a single major PC Manufacturer who doesn't build a better machine. Dells and HPs, to name two, are much, much better than E-Machines; it's a discredit to both of these companies to even mention them in the same breath, and I'm sure the engineers at these companies, who know exactly what is what, would howl with laughter at your praise of these cut-rate boxes.

What happens with E-Machines is exactly this: the POWER SUPPLY UNITS self-destruct, requiring a costly repair. Sometimes this is the only thing that happens. More often, when the Power Supply Unit fails, it damages the main board also, and even the processor chip, turning the machine from a computer into a boat anchor.

"The problems with E-Machines tend to show up after extended use, and after serious attempts to upgrade them, so sparkling short-term test reviews are pretty meaningless. Moreover, E-Machines is unscrupulous enough to send out superior machines to easily-duped reviewers (remember, this is the company that shipped systems with overclocked chips FROM THE FACTORY in order to enhance their specs!!!). E-Machines are usually purchased by people who are ignorant or poor or cheap or stupid or all of these, in some combination. These people don't know what is good and what isn't; their opinions don't mean anything. Anyone would be better off buying something decent, a low-end Dell, a Compaq, whatever.

"But the lure of a bargain will always appeal to bargain-hunters, be they bargain hunters by choice, or by necessity. And there will always be computer journalists spinning happy fairy tales, feeding the machine, keeping it going...imagine all the praise that must have been heaped on long-dead and little missed Packard-Bell machines by publications very little different from yours..."

This is all for my blog, so don't feel you have to respond if you don't feel so inspired. Anything I need to know about E-Machines can be learned -- not from your review -- but from reading the incredible quantity of bad user experiences littering every corner of the internet, and from actually servicing the damn things here in my very busy and profitable shop.

Thanks and Regards,
Steven Salemi
The Computer Guru
Santa Fe, New Mexico USA

Backup, For God's Sake, Man!!!

2007-02-15T16:06:00.001-08:00

Dear Chip and Diana,

The way to protect yourself against data loss is to backup your work. In my book, www.makepeacewithyourpc.com , I devote an entire chapter to this subject. I say it over, and over, and over again: backup your work!!! If I had a dollar for every time I'd said it, I'd be wealthy by now. If I had a dollar for every time a user failed to heed this advice after I'd said it, I'd be doubly wealthy. But when a user simply fails to follow this sound advice, what can be done?

I frequently install automated backup systems which can backup all your work reliably, every day, with no effort whatsoever on the user's part -- all automatic. The user does not have to lift a finger. I use such systems myself. Naturally, these backup systems cost some money, although they are well worth it. Some clients are wise enough to have me install these backup systems for them; many others do not choose to do so, presumably because they do not wish to incur the expense, however modest. In this scenario -- automated backup systems are available, but the client does not choose to use one -- what can be done?

Hard drive failures are an unfortunate fact of life. I replace dozens of failed hard drives every month, every brand of hard drive (Maxtor, Seagate, Western Digital, Fujitsu), on every brand of machine you care to mention (Dell, Compaq, Gateway, E-Machines, HP). I sometimes receive brand new hard drives that do not function -- DOA! Because I use premium hard drives in my custom-built systems, the hard drive failure rate on my own machines is well below average -- but still, it happens. There is no way of getting around the fact that a hard drive may fail at any time, without warning. In such scenarios, data loss is often total. There is no way to predict it, no way to eliminate it, absolutely nothing to be done about it except -- you guessed it: back up all your work at all times.

FYI, technically speaking, I am only obligated to replace the failed component to comply with the terms of my warranty. I am not obligated to restore the Windows operating system or Windows applications, most of which were not even purchased from me! That means I could charge a user as much as $ 300 or more to replace a failed hard drive within the warranty period, unless they wanted to put Windows and all their applications back themselves. Because I am generous and because I offer premium value for money, however, I do NOT charge my customers for the significant amount of labor required to put Windows and Windows applications back, although I would be within my warranty rights if I did so.

If you have any questions about the procedures I follow in the event of in-warranty hard drive failures, recommended backup procedures or methods, computers or hard drives or technology in general, please don't hesitate to contact me.

More Messages for Mike

2007-02-15T16:04:00.000-08:00

Mike,

I've also been thinking lately why I have so little trouble with Windows and Internet Explorer, and why so many of my clients have so much. I have uncovered a few possibilities, beyond the usual oft-discussed necessity of keeping Windows, Antivirus, and Antispyware software up to date.

First, I use professional grade top-quality more-or-less-state-of-the-art hardware costing about 3-6K or more per tower. Most of my clients are running semi-obsolete consumer-grade towers that cost from .5K to 1.5K max. This means not only premium quality components EVERYWHERE but massive quantities of RAM and HARD DRIVE. A really fast system can cope better when under stress. A lesser system may break under stress (putting aside the issue of why it's under stress in the first place).

All my systems are DOUBLE-FIREWALLED, meaning that they are running not only the basic built-in XP Firewall - but also -- a HARDWARE FIREWALL IN THE ROUTER. So if you are using a router, Mike, I would check and see if the ROUTER has a Firewall, and if that firewall is switched on. If it doesn't have a firewall, toss it out and get one with a firewall. If it has a firewall but it's switched off in the router setup, SWITCH IT ON.

I have not found a need for internet security programs, given all the above, but one supposes they could help, especially for the unlucky and trouble-prone, provided one can live with the fact that they often break and clog things up etc. McAfee stuff works well, and Trend PC-CILLIN makes a nice internet security suite that seems a lot more robust and trouble-free than Norton Internet Security. Something like this, installed and running nicely on a healthy system, might keep one out of trouble. I usually install it on non-XP systems because they usually don't have firewalls otherwise, but it will run with XP no problemo.

Active versus Passive Spyware protection. Ad-Aware is passive. Spybot is active. I'm using Pest Patrol (remember that one?) LATEST VERSION and Ad-Aware and Spybot. Keeps things quite clean. Easier by far to keep clean than to get dirty and then clean up afterwards. Can one have too much Spyware protection? I doubt it. Firewalls and Internet Security Programs fit into this category.

By way of example/illustration, I recently redid my system and after a few weeks there is ONE PROBLEM and ONE PROBLEM ONLY with this very complex system (***FIVE*** PRINTERS are attached, for example): a "setconfig" utility program associated with my HP LASERJET 1300 crashes and gives an error message on startup. This is an annoyance rather than a functional problem, and it's the only problem. No Spyware problems, no IE problems, no Windows or IE crashes or freezing, nada. Ever!

So what else can I say but, reasoning by experience, "It Can Be Done."

Trouble In Computer Paradise!

2007-02-15T16:01:00.000-08:00

Mike,

One of the downsides of my incessant (by necessity) hammering away at the subject of Windows Updates, AntiVirus, and AntiSpyware updates/protection is that it (mis)leads people into thinking that these three areas are the ONLY cause of computer problems, and/or that paying attention to these three things will eliminate ALL problems.

Alas, none of this is true.

The truth is, a computer can be hijacked and spyware infected and messed up even when full attention is paid to these three areas. Spyware programs simply don't get everything off, and when a computer reaches a certain critical mass, nothing whatsoever can be done except a clean reinstall. That's bad news #1.

Bad News #2 is that the kind of problem you are describing is often the result of small rogue programs or "applets," anything from laser printer configuration "applets" to Apple Quicktime startup programs hanging up and interfering with the proper operation of Windows/IE. There is nothing the average user can do to sort out these rogue programs/applets because it takes an expert to go through the start up/running programs ONE BY ONE and kill or nuke the programs that may be intefering. It is tedious trial and error, and again, it takes a pro.

Since I use up all my energy (and then some) giving the "WIndows Updates, Spyware, and Antivirus" lecture over and over again (to little effect, most of the time), I have no time (and my clients have no patience) for the lectures that would (in an ideal world) follow: The idea that, after you get your system done over by the guru and you are in that two week honeymoon period where it actually runs well before it gets messed up again, you should IMAGE the entire windows install with all programs and data etc. Then, when it gets sick, and when your own best efforts (including system restore) fail to make it run properly, you can "REIMAGE" the drive and get perfection back. But I wouldn't dare mention what such a hardware and software solution would cost (even though I know to the penny, having acquired just such a system last week, to replace my previous one, which replaced the one before that, and etc.).

But as I said, this takes time, energy, attention, and effort. I think I'd get along better in life if, when asked by people "what should I do?" I would simply answer, "I Don't Know." This is the best answer I can give to those bravehearts who would attempt to rectify their own computer problems. If they could walk that way, they wouldn't need the talcum powder.

Steven Salemi
The Computer Guru
Santa Fe, NM 87501 USA

E-MAIL: ssalemi@earthlink.net
TEL: (505) 992-8462
WEB: www.computer-guru.com