Friday, May 16, 2008

Shift, Baby, Shift

Finally, I have my shift together. The left shift key on my laptop broke off months ago, which seriously hampered my typing, not that I type well, or anything. I realize that there is a right shift key, but I never use it and couldn't train myself to do so. Laptop keys are rather fragile and, bizarrely, there is nowhere you can buy just one key. I emailed a seller on eBay who does sell individual keys, but got no reply at all.

You can send back your laptop to the company and pay something like $250+ for them to install a new one and then wait for it to come back. You can also ask a repair shop to do it for you. The prices I was quoted ranged from $90 for the keyboard + $20 for installation, to $75 for the keyboard + $75 for installation. It seems like I would be getting shafted or shifted. I decided to do it myself.

But first, I bought some extra RAM and installed it. That gave me a much needed boost. Then, I bought a brand new keyboard on eBay from a store in Hong Kong for $9.99. With shipping, I paid almost $25. This afternoon, I partially disassembled my laptop, removed the old keyboard, and installed the new one. I am back in business and loving my left shift key. SEE.

* * *

Late yesterday, I realized that this is a long weekend. I knew that, but it just didn't click. I thought about taking half a day off, but managed to find some backup for the whole day. Now, I have a long list of other things to do...

6 comments:

Kate said...

Victoria Day, yes? Do I wish you a happy one? What is customary? Whatever it is, I extend it to you.

I'm glad that you did the work yourself. Some of those repair people are ridiculous. Of course, I live with Mr. Fixit, so I'm spoiled. I used to take things apart, but wasn't so good at putting them back together. Luckily I'm not in charge of repairs.

zydeco fish said...

Yes, Victoria Day. There's no need to wish anything to anybody, but if you have some fireworks, feel free to set them off.

tweetey30 said...

No fireworks until July here. But have a good long weekend.

Anonymous said...

I love three day weekends! We've got one next weekend, and I've taken Friday off, too. Four day weekends are even better!!

tshsmom said...

Umm...I don't want to pee in your oatmeal, but you're supposed to hit the right shift key for SEE. ;)

zydeco fish said...

I know, but I have been conditioned (from self-taught typing) to only use the left shift key. I just can't use the right one. It's a useless key to me...