Computer Update

[ysabetwordsmith]

Today we tried opening the computer case.  I got it open and spotted some of the fans, but could not pin down exactly where the noise was coming from.

The driver for the printer is now installed, so its duplex function is working.  I was able to print off some poems today.  But trying to send prompter copies is a very slow slog.

I did find where the proper list function of open files is in MS Word.  It now appears at the top of the screen under Window.  It used to be on the task bar at the bottom, which is now an unbearable mess of flopping pop-ups.

I'm beginning to wonder if the increasing trend of things moving, blinking, and making noise on computer screens -- which are often difficult or impossible to turn off -- are created by people who grew up using lots of computers and have difficulty keeping their brains awake.  To my hunter-sight, things moving demand attention; I have to determine whether they are threats, opportunities, or irrelevant.  In my workspace, they're distracting, jarring, uncomfortable.  Exhausting.  *sigh* 

Comments

[kengr]

A useful trick when trying to track down these sorts of things is to disconnect the hard drive(s) before powering up the system. that way you can poke around the various fans and other things with those OS causing extra noise by changing things.

Just disconnecting the power cable(s) should be sufficient.

You can also try disconnecting various fans (other than the CPU fan) between startups in the "no HD" configuration. Only have one disconnected at a time.

That shpuld narrow things down a lot.

[jtthomas]

(These are all things I've had to use as well; if you've already done them, many hugs because it's a hassle.)

Bottom-of-screen thing: https://appuals.com/disable-live-taskbar-thumbnail-previews-windows-10/

Notifications: settings >> search notifications >> turn off notifications

Reduced movement: settings >> ease of access >> simplify and personalize >> turn off animations

Taskbar having file names: right click in taskbar, open its settings, change Combine Taskbar Buttons to Never

[(Anonymous)]

I think the whole flashy movement thing is part of the attention economy. Along with bright colors and notification noises, etc designed to get attention and get folks 'hooked'. (I know colors/notifications can be turned off...not sure how to do it for moving stuff.)

Thoughts

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> I think the whole flashy movement thing is part of the attention economy. <<

That's possible.

>> Along with bright colors and notification noises, etc designed to get attention and get folks 'hooked'. <<

That one has to be somewhat dependent on taste. A quiet, unobtrusive computer was much more engrossing for me, whereas a noisy uncomfortable one keeps making me flee my office.

There is a general problem with corporations allowed to make addictive materials. They do it with food, which wrecks people's health, but individuals are then blamed instead of making corporations stop inventing addictive foods. Most computer games are engineered to target brain functions leading to addictive behavior, but again, people blame individuals instead of insisting that corporations not prey on users through addictive games.

Of course, as with all addictive or habit behaviors, environment plays a key role. Society has exceeded the limits of my tolerance, so I was using my computer to spend time in environments that were safer and more interesting. Many other people have used computer games for similar reasons.

Re: Thoughts

[ng_moonmoth]

>> A quiet, unobtrusive computer was much more engrossing for me, whereas a noisy uncomfortable one keeps making me flee my office. <<

I'm like that, too. I keep my computer's sound off unless I'm actually doing something that has an audio component. And whenever I'm doing that, going around and turning off the sound on all the tabs and windows that might beep at me to keep the audio clean is quite a task.

I did the same thing with my car. First thing I looked up for the nav system was how to get it not to talk at me. When I'm driving, I want anything I hear that I didn't ask to hear be an indication of a problem. That way I can keep my focus on driving, where I think it ought to be. And forget hands-free -- when I'm behind the wheel, my phone is off.

[mama_kestrel]

It isn't just you. Recently I've been seeing options like "hide images" or "hide gifs" on various websites. Since I can't read text and absorb it if things are blinking or moving (automatic videos are my pet peeve - they blink, move and talk<\i>, and often follow downtrend screen if I scroll to hide them), I'm glad at least a few sites are recognizing the problem. I can usually figure out how to turn them off, but that means I have to stop what I'm doing to do that. Grrrr....

Thoughts

[ysabetwordsmith]

>> It isn't just you. Recently I've been seeing options like "hide images" or "hide gifs" on various websites.<<

That's nice. I haven't seen those, but will keep an eye out, so thanks for the tip.

Doug put ad blockers on the new computer. Mostly what this seems to do is change from ad popups to whiny popups demanding that I turn off the ad blocker. What I do is turn off the website. I won't support places like that. It has to be the most pointless type of popup: people who use ad blockers are people who don't click ads.

>> Since I can't read text and absorb it if things are blinking or moving (automatic videos are my pet peeve - they blink, move and talk<\i>, and often follow downtrend screen if I scroll to hide them), I'm glad at least a few sites are recognizing the problem. <<

Yeah, I have similar issues.

It would be interesting to do studies on reading speed, completion, comprehension, eye-gaze interruption, etc. to show how much ads and other distractions on websites limit use. Because that has to be damaging people's work and study efficiency as well as their peace of mind. While few companies give a fuck about people, they usually do care about work and study outcomes.

>> I can usually figure out how to turn them off, but that means I have to stop what I'm doing to do that. Grrrr....
Dele <<

Yeah. The computer is a huge waste of time with enough usable parts for people to keep using it.

What we desperately need is a website listing sites that don't have user-hostile features. A plain list would be helpful, but a database or a search engine would be even better. Preferably, this should include easy ways to find sites with none of the problematic features, and to search for sites that don't have certain features (find "no cookies" "no videos" "no music"). I know what's needed, I know how to describe what it should do, but I lack the coding skill to construct it.

Ideally, websites should find other sources of support than parasitic ads which impair functionality. These include but are not limited to:

* User-paid services that are of limited interest to the world at large.

* Free and premium levels. This is often abused, but can be made to work quite well, and is an excellent way for people to test-drive things.

* Free plus optional perks. Games very often have free use, but you can buy more powerful items or other fun stuff. Kingdom of Loathing has among its most popular features an "item of the month" for sale, which is sometimes meh and sometimes enormously popular.

* Donations. A number of major sites like Wikipedia and certain news sites are supported by user contributions. I chipped in for Wikitongues, for instance, because I want to save endangered languages.

* Crowdfunding, where some people buy things that then become available to everyone. The incentive to buy is that you get to choose what is made or released rather than leaving it up to others.

* Customer service and/or bait. Some companies and organizations put up material because they want it to be out there and/or to attract people who need their goods/services. Sale sites often don't have ads because people buy stuff there. Informative sites may be for the public good or deal with things related to the provider's stuff.

* Grants. These usually come from government or other large institutions to put out things for the public good. Honestly, I think news organizations would be better funded this way or by donations than scrabbling after ads or subscriptions.

* For the love. Many things, such as blogs and personal websites, are created just because the person enjoys making them.

Things that I used to see on websites, but rarely see now that most places used stalker algorithms to serve harmful ads instead:

* Our Supporters page. This was a list of addresses, banner ads, and/or other contact information for sponsors, connected suppliers, etc.

* Recommended Resources page. This was a list of books, websites, merchants, and other things relevant to the website's topic. A few places still have these, but almost all have to listing only books or organizations, not ads for things you might actually want to buy.

* Word of Mouth advertising. I used to see this on blog rings a lot, where people would list their favorite blogs or places to shop. The best ones were in the old craft rings, which was like falling face-first into a fleamarket. :D

I have no objection to ads that sit quietly out of the way until needed. I actively approve ads that relate directly to the core content. (Theatrical ads for other movies top my "do want" list. I'm also happy to see ads for food or cooking gadgets in a kitchen magazine.) Off-topic ads are bad, and ads that impair the usage are actively abusive. Plus it's bad for the host -- you've managed to get a viewer, but they're driven away by ads or other poor design. That's gotta suck. :(