To Our Readers
THE human brain is a marvelous thing, forever analyzing data sent in by the senses, sorting it, looking for patterns, seeking truth and beauty, making sense out of experience and finding order in chaos. Zen and the art
of computer repairIt seems to function best if we leave it alone, letting it putter along in the background. Often, when I try to force mine to think, it doesn't do quality work. Take for instance a problem with my home computer I was trying to solve.
I'd installed a new component, a network card. When I was done, the new hardware worked fine but the sound had quit. I pulled the machine apart, put it back together, checked all the connections, reinstalled the sound software, reloaded Windows 98, and downloaded and ran a Windows Registry cleanup program.
In other words, I forced my brain to come up with hypothetical solutions again and again. Each solution was more sophisticated than the last. None of them worked. Days passed in silent frustration.
Thursday morning I got up, turned on the machine and went through my e-mail. Wistfully, I put the DVD of "A Bug's Life" in the computer and started it up. At least I could watch the cute blue ants move, albeit soundlessly, while I finished my coffee.
As the disc started to play and FBI warning appeared on the screen, I was inexplicably moved to reach behind the computer, unplug the speakers and plug them in a different outlet. Suddenly, the sound of the Walt Disney Studio anthem filled the room!
My computer has a jack for front speakers and another for "surround sound" rear speakers. I don't have back speakers, so I'd used the front speaker outlet. When I was really trying to solve the problem, my conscious mind wouldn't even consider using the rear speaker jack. It wasn't logical.
Ah, but that good ol' unconscious brain had been fiddling with all the possibilities -- logical and illogical -- and found the solution, just in time for some Christmas music.
John Flanagan is editor and publisher of the Star-Bulletin.
To reach him call 525-8612, fax to 523-8509, send
e-mail to publisher@starbulletin.com or write to
P.O. Box 3080, Honolulu, Hawaii 96802.