Recent Articles and Ramblings
There is a great deal of history between my Titanium Powerbook and me. It began life in July of 2002 as a 667mHz DVI-equipped model. Unfortunately, it soon hit its first bump - involving a cup of hot chocolate of unfortunate inclination - and required nearly 50% of the original cost of the computer to repair. Thankfully, once returned, it served me faithfully for the rest of my years in college and several to follow. It was my first real experiment, although not really successful, with over-clocking, and it benefited from a new logic board (upgraded to 867mHz), a larger, faster hard drive, several iterations of RAM upgrades, and two replacement batteries. But, as all technology does, it eventually failed to meet the expanding demands placed on it by newer and more powerful applications. It was with great regret, then, that I decided I must replace it. I initially thought that I could avoid spending a considerable amount of money by buying a used computer. I bought a 1.2gHz 12-inch iBook G4, having always fancied one of the smaller 12-inch model ‘Books. But it failed to address the very issues that had caused me to buy it in the first place. It lagged nearly as far behind as the Titanium in virtually every way, and I soon sold it.....(more)
Is it just me, or have factory support and factory warranties become something of a taboo for most manufacturers of late (despite what the ads say)? Maybe the chronic abusers finally cried wolf one too many times, or maybe consumers have gotten so spoiled by quality that we expect something too close to perfection. Whatever the cause, getting around the chronic "unable to duplicate" claim and convincing a dealer to perform a warranty repair has become an exercise in refusing to speak softly and a willingness to carry an especially large stick. That has been my experience with Acura anyway. Thus, for reasons that shall remain unaddressed here, I found myself driving a service loaner, in stead of my '06 TL 6-speed, for the second time in as many weeks. My chariot for this particular weekend? A 2007 Acura TSX with an automatic transmission and no navigation. Never being one to be happy with what I have, or to let my pen (or keyboard) lie dormant when it could be criticizing something or someone, I decided to do a little comparing of the TSX to the TL that normally chauffeurs me through the drudgery of my day.....(more)