how to replace my old PC at work ?

  • Thread starter Thread starter Beladi Nasrallah
  • Start date Start date
 There are important things in
life than to worry about your new PC.
Click to expand...

Over the past 3 years, everyone with a pulse got a new PC, and an LCD
screen with it. The performance of my PC was al'right for me. Besides,
I use an LCD at home, and I wanted to use a CRT just for a nostalgic
value (and better image quality as well). However, there are moments
when you realise that something which had to be done since long time
ago, has to be done now. It was this moment. Firstly, the employer
redesigned the internal website a few months ago. It was obviously
targeted at people with LCD screens, because my screen did not fit the
whole menues anymore. Thus my PC became inoperable; I could not use
the web-based system to order things. But the penny dropped only few
days ago when I could not work with a large (30 MB) document sent to
me by my boss -- the MS Word screen froze for good each time when
AutoSave activated. It probably had to do something with the corrupted
Windows, however I thought it was time to replace the PC, and thus to
fix the whole lot of accumulated problems.

I was not expecting anything extraordinary, and I did not behave as a
"spoilt child" as some of you perceived. I did not want to obtain the
used stuff discarded by other people (however little it was used). All
of the other people got _new_ computers which was the standard. So
that I would expect the same. By the way, I am employed by the
government.
 
Beladi said:
At work, I am still using the same old PC. It is already 8 years
old. It has a CRT monitor. At the same time, almost everyone using
more modern PCs with LCD screens. The internal policy (formal or
informal, I do not know) is that you get your PC replaced every 5
years. Finally, I decided enough was enough. My PC developed some
glitches, like inability to display correctly some modern programs
like MS Word and Internet Explorer.

A few days ago, I happened to have a chat with the IT manager. He
told me that there would be no new PCs purchased next financial year
because of the budget cuts. He informally offered me to take a PC
which he bought for the HR manager, but who discarded it after a few
months of use. I rejected, because I felt entitled to a brand new
PC..

I recall that when I was hired into this job almost 2 years ago, my
new boss told me that they would get me a new PC. It never
happened. I never pushed for a new PC, because this would mean that
they could get ideas for me to do computational modelling (which I
hate). And my old PC was OK for me.

But I think my PC gets too old. I am thinking to press my supervisor
for a new PC (maybe it will come out of the departmental budget).
But I suspect that he may tell me to take the 3 year-old PC of my
colleague who recently left. I do not want to take it, because I
feel entitled to a new PC just like everybody. Besides, the PC is
filthy -- my former colleague used to have lunches over the
keyboard. And I hate him.

What should I tell to my boss, so that he would not make me to take
the PC of my colleague ? I tell him that the PC is filthy, but he
will counteract it with telling me to wash it (and get a new
keyboard). I may tell him that this PC is only incrementally
better, and will probably work correctly with MS Word, however
there might be some future applications with which it might not
work. But I am afraid that he will counteract it with the
suggestion that the PC should be al'right for now, and if I
encounter the problems later, then they may hopefully get me
another PC then.
Click to expand...

<snipped>

Beladi said:
Over the past 3 years, everyone with a pulse got a new PC, and an
LCD screen with it. The performance of my PC was al'right for me.
Besides, I use an LCD at home, and I wanted to use a CRT just for a
nostalgic value (and better image quality as well). However, there
are moments when you realise that something which had to be done
since long time ago, has to be done now. It was this moment.
Firstly, the employer redesigned the internal website a few months
ago. It was obviously targeted at people with LCD screens, because
my screen did not fit the whole menues anymore. Thus my PC became
inoperable; I could not use the web-based system to order things.
But the penny dropped only few days ago when I could not work with
a large (30 MB) document sent to me by my boss -- the MS Word
screen froze for good each time when AutoSave activated. It
probably had to do something with the corrupted Windows, however I
thought it was time to replace the PC, and thus to fix the whole
lot of accumulated problems.

I was not expecting anything extraordinary, and I did not behave as
a "spoilt child" as some of you perceived. I did not want to obtain
the used stuff discarded by other people (however little it was
used). All of the other people got _new_ computers which was the
standard. So that I would expect the same. By the way, I am
employed by the government.
Click to expand...

Draft a memo - email it to those who would control this. Ask for the new
PC.

There's nothing anyone here can do for you. You chose your job, you know
your situation better than anyone here. Nothing you can describe here would
likely include enough of the nuances for anyone to do anything for you.

As for the web page not working on your CRT - sounds like a resolution
limitation - not because it is a CRT.

Take the slightly used computer, make it known that you don't like the fact
that other people got new PCs and your only option was a rejected PC... If
you have any value to whatever division of whatever government you work
for/within - who knows what will happen. If you don't have any value -
well - who knows what will happen? ;-)
 
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