Computer Frustrations

Sorry but I have no pictures again this week. In fact, it seems like I have not had much time for doing anything other than work for the last couple of weeks. After spending 5 months wondering when I would start working on my project, I now wonder when I will find a bit of free time for myself.

Monday I went to Bongo to work on one of their computers. It is a fairly old computer that someone had upgraded to Windows XP. It does not have the power to run that operating system well, so I suggested taking a step backward to Windows 2000. I probably should have suggested Windows 98, but that might have been too far back. They agreed and so I came to do that installation. Imagine my frustration when I discovered that the computer could not be made to boot from CD. I was finally able to use another computer to make boot diskettes so I could complete the install, but I was not very happy with the performance afterward and wonder if I made the right recommendation. I had to return later in the week to get the printer to work. I had not even thought about that when I did the installation. Printers just work. But I had to download the installation software from the internet in this case and make an extra trip to set that up for them.

I spent two days at a Teacher's College in Navrongo. The first day I spent some time working on the teacher's personal computer that he had compromised by uninstalling his virus protection incorrectly leaving the computer in an unstable condition. I was able to resolve that after more effort than planned. Then I set up the three VSO computers that I had come to work on. One computer would not boot so I reinstalled Windows. Then I started working on some other computers that had been donated sometime in the past. In this case, the computers came from a Ghanaian firm in Accra. They were brought and plugged in but never tested. I had looked at them before but did not have any tools at the time to help much. Now that I had some tools I was ready to give them another look. Of 16 computers, only 5 worked. In many of them the hard drive had failed. In others, the systems would not bootstrap to the point of even determining what else might be the problem. One only had 8 MB of memory - how many of you can remember computers that small? I was able to piece together one more computer from all the others ones, making 6 working computers from that donation. Along with the three from VSO, he now has 9 computers to teach 200 student teachers with. Does that sound challenging?

I spent much of the weekend working in the VSO office. The office is networked but the original installers laid the Ethernet cable along the most direct path. That meant that many of the cables were in pretty bad shape because the direct cable path was usually across the path for foot traffic. The way the cables were laid also made it difficult to reorganize the layout of the office. So I had been tasked with rewiring the office.

In Canada, I would have gone to the local computer store to get pre-built cabling of appropriate lengths to do what I wanted to do. The longest patch cable that I have found here is 2 meters long, so was of no use to me. So, I had to build my own cables. In brief, the cable consists of 8 individual, colour-coded wires that are run through a sheath in 4 twisted-pairs. The wires are inserted into a clip in a specific order. The wires are so fine, and the opening to the clip is so small, that it is hard to keep the wires in the right order. Once the wires have been inserted into the clip, they are crimped into place. This has to be done before plugging them into any connection. And it is only after crimping them that you are able to test the wire that has been built. If it doesn't work, the connector or clip is cut off and a new one is used. So, each unsuccessful test wastes at least one connector. Saturday, I wasted 8 or so and finally gave up because I was tired and too frustrated to see clearly.

This morning, after some advice from a friend in Canada, and with fresher eyes and hands, I was able to finish what I started on Saturday, so the office is wired more neatly now if nothing else. I plan to add a couple more cables to make it more user-friendly for the volunteers that come in with their own laptops, hopefully allowing them to be more productive at home and minimizing the need for pen drives and floppies in the future.

Does that sound like enough work for one week? The good news is that I have been able to do all of this without getting wet. It rained one day while I was working in Navrongo. I think I might have already written about that day. My work took long enough that the rain had finished before I left for home. I am learning to look ahead for rain, and to alter my travel plans when it looks like I might get wet. Ghanaians understand the rainy season here, and understand not travelling when rain is threatening or when it is actually raining.

Keep posted. I plan to travel some this weekend, so maybe there will be some photos next time.