Posted in 2026, life

Technology

I usually have pretty good skills with technology but I’ve reached the end of my rope with my printer.

It is my home printer, a simple Canon TR8520, which, for its inexpensive cost, has always worked well for scanning and printing pictures, and printing emails and such.

I periodically have problems with its connection between my phone, or iPad, or computer which can be very frustrating. But now, it is a whole different situation.

Code 5011! Evidently this code means it can be any number of things. Hardware, wi-fi connection, or paper jam. In my case it could be wi-fi because ours did go out on Sunday and I accidentally left something I wanted printed in the queue searching for most of the day?!

I have a much older and larger Canon printer that has lost its ability to print photos well so I use it primarily for scanning. Since I had something to photocopy, I went to my craft space next door to do that. Oh my word, the theatrics that this printer goes through just to print something! Then it pops up that 2 cartridges need replacing and one is near the end of its life. I felt my blood pressure rise. “Great”, I thought. “All this technology and I can’t get one single piece of paper to print anywhere.” Thankfully, it decided to allow me to photocopy the pages I needed.

Although I’m tempted to throw my printer out the window and start fresh, I’ll call “my computer guy” and see if he can fix the TR8520 for me. I have too many ink cartridges left to cast it aside right now.

Posted in 2025, leisure time, thoughts

In The Not So Distant Past…

If you would call 30 years ago, not so distant, that was the time that we acquired our first computer. It was a no-name computer put together by someone who knew what they were doing and it gave us access to the World Wide Web. Back then we were tethered to a desktop and a dial up modem. If someone had told me we would have mini computers in our hands, I would have thought they were crazy!

I think about those times now with the need to constantly update myself on what’s going on in the world. Such a “fear of missing out”!

What did I do back when our only link was the desktop and dial-up? I might knit, or read, or watch tv, and back then, I was definitely playing with our son!

I am really glad all this technology wasn’t available to me 30 years ago!

An Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly