Devil Works

(I’m about to have a big whine here, click you back button now if you don’t want to read it)

I think I’ve mention somewhere before that I bought a new laptop with Windows Vista Home Premium Installed. It had a few annoying things that I managed to reconfigure and the problem with slow unzipping that I’ve written about here and here.

Last night I installed a couple of automated updates, Vista said it needed a reboot, so instead I turned it off and went to bed.

When I got back from work tonight I switched it on and got a corrupt file message, Vista refused to boot and told me to insert my Windows disc. Now the problem with that is that this computer didn’t come with a disc. All the files are on the hard drive, but I wasn’t given an option to search the hard drive.

The computer didn’t come with much of a manual either, everything is on the disk.

So after punching a bunch of different buttons, 15 restart attempts later I have accessed the recovery utility that’s on the disc. I’ve got three restore options. I go for the one that restores the windows files (considering it wouldn’t boot I thought that was my best option) The only catch is that it’s a back up I did when I first turned the computer on out of the box. I know, bad habit, my own fault etc, but it shouldn’t have freaking corrupted it’s own file when it updated.

I’ve spent hours tweaking it to how I like it and all that stuff is now gone. But that’s not the end of it. Once the computer is up and running again, I get a little pop up telling me that the version of Windows I’m running is non genuine.

So I jump through some hoops, turn the laptop upside down and enter the Product Key. Vista still thinks itself is non genuine. It suggests I do a phone activation. I dial and get asked to enter 9 sets of 6 digits (yes that is 54 digits) to validate my Vista installation. But that didn’t work, so I get put through to a call centre to speak to someone with a strong accent. (Here’s the only part where I can compliment Microsoft, the call was pretty much answered straight away.) He’s reading his script and if I ask something outside of it I just get silence.

He asks for my product key so once again I turn my laptop upside down to read it to him. I pause after each set of characters, expecting some sort of confirmation he’s heard me but he remains silent. So I just keep going and hope for the best. Then he asks for the brand and model of the computer, this is an easy question, the answer is on the top of the laptop.

Then he gives me my 54 digit activation code, that’s correct another 54 digits. I know Microsoft has a monopoly on Operating Systems, but to expect to need billions of billions of combinations is just arrogant. I know that it probably has something to do with check sums and algorithmic combinations but for F@#ks sake I shouldn’t need more numbers than were on the credit card I used to buy it.

Well if you’re reading this then I’ve obviously got things working again, it’s going to take a while to get my installation set up how I like it again. At least I’m operational but it’s several hours of my life I won’t get back.