can this be TRUE?

I took my PC in to have my personal documents put on a CD. NOW the man calls me and says the hard drive is broken and he has to try to fix it. He says he cannot access the documents and may never be able to.

I, myself, was emailing them to my MAC 5 at a time up till the day I took it in so can he be correct or should I just call him and get it back?

I am heartsick as these are documents about my late Mom and my bridge babies. I DID back some up but on a zip drive and my dag blasted MAc does not have a zip!

So its a Mac that has all of your photos and documents that he can't access now?

That sounds a little funky to me. I would grab the computer back and take it to someone else. I think the guy might be trying to charge you more.

Originally Posted by lunasmom

So its a Mac that has all of your photos and documents that he can't access now?

That sounds a little funky to me. I would grab the computer back and take it to someone else. I think the guy might be trying to charge you more.

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No my OLD PC has the photos and files. He is trying to get them but a LOT are not done in .doc but in some other form so he needs to know all the first names of what he is trying to find BUT THEY are all on my OLD PC!

OK...I'm still curious how the hard drive broke after you took it in. Unless you were having problems before, backing up information doesn't "Break" a hard disk.

You can buy and external Zip drive and attach it to your Mac...they're relatively cheap now, since they're not as needed. That's one way you can recover some of your documents.

also, I'm not sure what other programs you used for documents, but aside from doc, the other most common ones for files are XLS (Excel), WKS (Works), TXT (Wordpad/Notepad), & RTF (Wordpad).

Originally Posted by lunasmom

OK...I'm still curious how the hard drive broke after you took it in. Unless you were having problems before, backing up information doesn't "Break" a hard disk.

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It was running sluggish and freezing for a long while and that is why I got a new one. It WAS working - but freezing a day or so before so I don't know why it suddenly gave out!

You can buy and external Zip drive and attach it to your Mac...they're relatively cheap now, since they're not as needed. That's one way you can recover some of your documents.

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Well the man said to bring them in and he will put them on CD for free, but I think I just may buy a zip drive IF it can be attached to a MAC and read PC files?!

also, I'm not sure what other programs you used for documents, but aside from doc, the other most common ones for files are XLS (Excel), WKS (Works), TXT (Wordpad/Notepad), & RTF (Wordpad).

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When I FIRST started using the windows 98 PC I never had to have extensions on my documents! Then it went to get fixed for some reason and when I got it back all my documents seemed to end with a .doc or .exe!

Originally Posted by MyBabies

It was running sluggish and freezing for a long while and that is why I got a new one. It WAS working - but freezing a day or so before so I don't know why it suddenly gave out!

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It sounds to me like your hard drive was on its way out. When the read heads can no longer read the platters (that's what happens on the inside of a hard drive) then you'll notice your computer will start to freeze, it may bluescreen or reboot for no apparent reason. Did you notice any noise? That's another sure sign that it's on its last legs.

Originally Posted by MyBabies

Well the man said to bring them in and he will put them on CD for free, but I think I just may buy a zip drive IF it can be attached to a MAC and read PC files?!

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I would bring them to the guy. See if he already has a zip drive, save yourself a few bucks.

Originally Posted by MyBabies

When I FIRST started using the windows 98 PC I never had to have extensions on my documents! Then it went to get fixed for some reason and when I got it back all my documents seemed to end with a .doc or .exe!

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There is a setting in Windows, "Hide file extensions for known file types". By default, this is turned on. This is why you would never see file extensions on your documents. However, when a tech is working on a PC, a lot of times it's important that they can see the file types, so they change this setting. It doesn't hurt anything at all, it just shows you what kind of files you have.

I really don't think the guy is trying to rip you off. Sometimes, this happens to computers. It sucks but there's not much you can do about it other than make sure to bring your computer in at the first signs of trouble. That means the first time it freezes for no reason

Hope this post helps!

Bye4now!

There is a setting in Windows, "Hide file extensions for known file types". By default, this is turned on. This is why you would never see file extensions on your documents. However, when a tech is working on a PC, a lot of times it's important that they can see the file types, so they change this setting. It doesn't hurt anything at all, it just shows you what kind of files you have.

I really don't think the guy is trying to rip you off. Sometimes, this happens to computers. It sucks but there's not much you can do about it other than make sure to bring your computer in at the first signs of trouble. That means the first time it freezes for no reason

Hope this post helps!

Bye4now!

He is trying to get the files. He is having the computer search for all files with A and then B and so on! I am just hoping he can do it These are files on my Bridge babies and mean the world to me!

It is possibly that the hard drive broke down suddenly. I've had a few happen to me before, but I am capable on working on my own computers, so I have not had to rely on anyone else.

If you are that concerned that he might be ripping you off, you could probably take it and go somewhere else for a second opinion, but it will probably cost you more in the end if you did that.

Originally Posted by Nerelda

It is possibly that the hard drive broke down suddenly. I've had a few happen to me before, but I am capable on working on my own computers, so I have not had to rely on anyone else.

If you are that concerned that he might be ripping you off, you could probably take it and go somewhere else for a second opinion, but it will probably cost you more in the end if you did that.

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It is not that I fear he is ripping me off but only that maybe he is not quite able to do what he says!

He is asking it to search for all files starting with A then B etc. I can only hope and Pray he can do it!