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WARNING: Foul Language is incoming. If you cannot handle it then don't read this.
So everything was going great. I had my Broken Phoenix story all outlined and ready to go. Then my computer decides to "crap" out and my internet adapter went dead. That normally wouldn't be an issue for most people as they can just plug an ethernet cable in and that's the end of it. Well, I can't really do that because the modem and router are in the basement and my laptop is on the second floor. There's no way there's an ethernet cable long enough for that. So I F*cking had to send my computer off to get that repaired. That's all fine and dandy. The place I sent it to does a free virus check on every repair and I had no issue with it. Well I get a call from the repair place saying that I need a new hard drive and if I wanted they would do that and transfer everything over for like 10$ more and i'm like "OK....." .
Well today I got my computer back and everything seemed to be in order. The new internet adapter works flawlessly. They even put in a 1TB hard drive for me which was generous. But then I go searching for my story files and all but one file was there. My Outline was nowhere to be f*cking seen so I called them and they said that some files were not able to be transferred over because of the new Hard drive and new OS and I had to get new versions of some files. For the most part that was no big deal as I saw that coming for some files that have Windows 10 versions but then I asked them about my outline and they said that the file had gone corrupt when transferring it over. When I heard that I was furious(I didn't show it on the phone but I was internally furious.) well now I lost all of what I had to plot out my story and now I need your guy's help trying to f*cking figure out where I should go with this story. I don't remember most of what I had on the outline so I can't just re-do it. Any insight would be appreciated.
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Do you have the old hard drive
If you have the old hard drive you may be able to put it in a USB external hard drive enclosure (Staples / Best Buy) then connect it to your computer. Once connected you could search for the file.
I don't have the old drive sadly.
If I did I would probably do what you just mentioned
I question whether it
I question whether it actually had any problems or they simply screwed up, but then again I am pessimistic
Do you recall much of what you wanted to do? Maybe trying to recreate the outline will jog your memory. It might even work out some kinks in the story that you hadn't considered, I know it has happened with me a few times when I did this.
I'm told STFU more times in a day than most people get told in a lifetime
Couple of things
First thing is if you do not have the old hard drive go back and tell them you want your old drive if they give you any gruff ask for a manager, they told you they would transfer everything and they did not, thus not only did they not fulfill the agreement, they lost IMPORTANT FILES.
After you leave with your hard drive go buy one if these ;
USB to SATA adapter
Doesn't have to be that exact one but one that functions the same.
Wrap the old drive in some paper towels, then in a ziplock bag and put it in the freezer over night. The next day have your computer ready, all the adapter cabled all plugged in and ready. Pull the drive out of the freezer, plug it in and quickly search for the most important files first and copy them to the new drive.
If it becomes difficult to copy files after it warms up you can repeat the process as often as needed.
We the willing, led by the unsure. Have been doing so much with so little for so long,
We are now qualified to do anything with nothing.
Freezing the hard drive
If your regular freezer doesn't get it working, you can try packing it in dry ice for an hour. Supermarkets carry dry ice here or you can get it from any company that services fire extinguishers.
Waterdog
Computer repair people aren't always smart
Every time I trusted someone else with a store front and a "computer expert" image I lost data or the whole damn HD. The last time I wanted my HD cloned. They "knew" exactly how to do that. I knew it would take less than an hour to do the job but I was busy at the time. Every time I asked about my computer they hadn't got to it yet. Two weeks later I got it back, the HD wasn't accessible. They claimed it was impossible to mirror the HD. I EXPLODED! The idiots had no idea of the difference between clone and mirror. My HD was trash by the time they got through trying to format it to match the HD they were trying to mirror it to.
YEARS of research was gone. Don't tell me back up back up back up. I know. That was the reason to clone the HD BEFORE it went south. That was going to be my backup.
God, if I ever let any computer geek close to my computers again, please shoot me and put me out of my misery. I've built computers from MB up, wrote computer programs, and debug systems, and I let someone else touch my computer? I need a lobotomy is what I need.
Hang tuff kid. You aren't the only one who let the idiots learn on your dime and your life's work. I know it doesn't help but you are in the company of a HUGE number of people.
Don't take life too seriously. It's only temporary at best
always,
Barb
Oklahoma born and raised cowgirl
As a "geek" myself,
I understand your frustration. The jokers that appropriated the geek nomenclature are imbeciles (not all, but a majority). Our local branch has one person that gets in trouble for helping the customers, go figure :( I tell friends to demand to see the backup before they muck with anything else. Most of the time, I just back up their stuff before they send it off (most of the time, the geek response is "Sorry, the drive was bad/corrupt/etc. or some other cock and bull story. Most are just minimum wage people with little training :(
Finding it again
I'm so sorry that happened to your files.
But since you have already said the new drive is essentially empty, and you don't have the old drive, and you don't have backups, then you have no choice.
It's very clear what you have to do: move on, and try and write your story/stories again from scratch.
Important lessons are hard lessons to learn. I guess you've had one of those now.
But if you are anything like me, the fun in writing is there. If you can't find it in yourself to recreate your old story, then write a new one. If writing a story is a chore, then I guess you've lost a big chunk of what it was in you that allowed you to write in the first place.
I hope you find it again.
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