you know you're with geeks when...
Feb. 23rd, 2003 07:20 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
awhyzipI went to the InstallFest that our new Linux Users Group club was holding, because I'm thinking of putting Linux on my old computer. That machine is still at home, so I didn't do anything today, but anyway. So you know you're hanging out with a bunch of geeks when they bored and so they go and fix stuff:
There is a nice-sized TV hanging suspended 20 feet up by the glass wall of the upper Usdan Lobby. No one uses it because it is a) smaller than the giant floor TV and b) hanging suspended 20 feet up. Plus I have long suspected that it is c) broken in some way. The short version of the story is that we had up to three geeks at a time balancing on the handrail, clinging to the window-pane dividers, crouching atop upended couches, all trying to hook up that tantalizing CRTto a little CPU we had there missing its monitor.
The first memorable quote of the time was from Jonathan North Washington, when he'd already spent about 5 minutes trying to hook the power cord of the TV with my umbrella handle. That didn't work, so he switched to the pointy metal end to pry the plug from the socket directly. In my opinion that is a belated time to turn and ask "This box is dead, right?" !
The circuit was dead though, and our resident phonological wunderkind was unharmed. He even got the cord out. The only power cord free, though, was permanently attached to the inside of a podium. (There were some others, but all were being used already for the computers.) It's not any problem to bring the podium over and connect two 8-plug power strips end to end until they reach high enough to meet the dangling plug --- It's not any problem, it just looks funny! And for all further operations, there would be a chunky black podium in the way.
I left before the project was completed, but the TV had power and was even connected to the little computer. To change to TV's channel someone had to climb onto the podium and whack at the buttons with the umbrella, because they were still several feet above. Viktoria got some pictures of this, which I hope to see and laugh at soon.
And that is the story of my day.
Last night I went to Pachanga (international dance party) as part of my birthday celebrations. The highlight was dancing three dances with Axel who is a hell of a good dancer.
This is the last week before we get our February break ("Now in March!").
There is a nice-sized TV hanging suspended 20 feet up by the glass wall of the upper Usdan Lobby. No one uses it because it is a) smaller than the giant floor TV and b) hanging suspended 20 feet up. Plus I have long suspected that it is c) broken in some way. The short version of the story is that we had up to three geeks at a time balancing on the handrail, clinging to the window-pane dividers, crouching atop upended couches, all trying to hook up that tantalizing CRTto a little CPU we had there missing its monitor.
The first memorable quote of the time was from Jonathan North Washington, when he'd already spent about 5 minutes trying to hook the power cord of the TV with my umbrella handle. That didn't work, so he switched to the pointy metal end to pry the plug from the socket directly. In my opinion that is a belated time to turn and ask "This box is dead, right?" !
The circuit was dead though, and our resident phonological wunderkind was unharmed. He even got the cord out. The only power cord free, though, was permanently attached to the inside of a podium. (There were some others, but all were being used already for the computers.) It's not any problem to bring the podium over and connect two 8-plug power strips end to end until they reach high enough to meet the dangling plug --- It's not any problem, it just looks funny! And for all further operations, there would be a chunky black podium in the way.
I left before the project was completed, but the TV had power and was even connected to the little computer. To change to TV's channel someone had to climb onto the podium and whack at the buttons with the umbrella, because they were still several feet above. Viktoria got some pictures of this, which I hope to see and laugh at soon.
And that is the story of my day.
Last night I went to Pachanga (international dance party) as part of my birthday celebrations. The highlight was dancing three dances with Axel who is a hell of a good dancer.
This is the last week before we get our February break ("Now in March!").
