A man screaming into his open laptop
What is glitchville? It’s when everything in your surrounding area has nothing but glitches in it and there’s nothing you can do. You can call your friend and ask them if you can use their super duper computer and printer. But what you’ll hear is, “They’re under the weather. I’ve got a tech guy coming in about 20 minutes to check them out.” You hang the phone up with a heavy sigh.
That perfect mobile with the clearest line all of a sudden, it has more static than usual. Your computer boots up slower than normal. You can’t get your e-mail open or Google crashes. Anything to do with technology is acting up more than normal. And when you call your friend to use their computer or printer, you discover theirs is acting up as well.
When is Glitchville Coming?
First, backup all your work, your files, all your computers at home and at work before Wednesday, December 9, 2009. Glitchville will last from Saturday, December 12, 2009 until Monday, January 25, 2010.
Do not buy anything to do with technology, like a computer, TV, software, hardware, etc. You will only have to take it back. If you’re stubborn and bought something during this time anyway, make sure you know the store’s return policy. Expect delays and total frustration during this time.
I had a client who was stubborn and refused to listen. He went ahead and bought a brand new printer. I opened the box, took the printer out, installed the software and connected the USB cables. I opened Notepad, typed in some letters and told the printer to print. Nothing. I tried all sorts of things but nothing worked. I reconnected the old printer which happily printed everything still. I knew what the problem was because we were in Glitch City. This printer wasn’t going to work until after the glitchville was over.
Once the glitches had run their course, which was about a month, we took the printer back to Staples and exchanged it for another printer, the exact same one. We went back to his office, I installed the software, connected the USB cables again and voilà, the printer worked! You really need to backup your files at this point anyway, but when things start to go awry on December 12th don’t say you weren’t warned.
Oh, what was the printer you ask? A Brother HL 5040 . . .
I can definitely relate. Am dreading Dec. 9.