g.j. (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
in_the_blue) wrote2004-04-10 04:40 pm
in_the_blue) wrote2004-04-10 04:40 pm
Random Recommendation
So last night an adware/spyware program attached itself to my PC and started installing all sorts of obnoxious and invasive software. This sent me on a late-night quest to download a good spyware removal program. I tried a bunch of them and they promised scan-and-remove, but when the scan was done (and each program got different results, by the way) and I pressed 'clean' or 'remove,' I was taken to the program's shopping cart to order the software.
Hmm. Oliver Stone, is this a conspiracy? I wouldn't be surprised if some of these free trials put suspicious stuff on your PC just so they find something, and then you panic, and then you buy the software out of sheer frustration.
So I finally used my brains and went to the Ziff-Davis download page and found Webroot Spy Sweeper, which gives you a 30-day trial. It found stuff I had no idea was there, of course, and got rid of not only the annoying ad generator, but a trojan horse that was hiding and a bunch of other shit too. It analyzed all the cookies and gave a list of suspicious ones. And it let me clean my computer. I'll be buying this one, uh-huh.
I don't work for any of these companies. I was just surprised to find the crap on my new computer already. As much as I like Windows XP (don't shoot me for that), it does give you a false sense of security because it claims to have a built-in firewall. Uh-uh. I'm going back to ZoneAlarm.
And something wiped out Windows Media Player. I had to re-download that.
I had a really busy massage day today and my last client is one of the stylists that just started recently. She's very young and very friendly, but also really loud and careless. While I was in the middle of a massage, she and her clients were having a raucous good old time. Fortunately it didn't bother my client, but it bothered the crap out of me.
When I was finished and my client had gone, I went into the kitchen to get a glass of ice water... but all the ice cube trays were empty in the freezer. Let's think about that one; I have to fill the ones at home too... plus, there was hair-color dye of the very dark brown and permanent variety spillt all over the white counters. For those of you who don't know the story, my coworker Theresa and I looked and looked for a place to buy to go into business together for a long time. We finally found the house we now use (Theresa bought it), and it was a disaster. We spent months cleaning it and fixing it and painting it and repairing it.
When the stylist was done with her clients and already late for her massage, the first thing she did was apologise for the noise. I told her that I wished she could be on my table while she was working to hear how noisy she really was... and that also, there was no reason why I should be spending time scouring hair dye off the counters so they didn't get ruined. I told her that I didn't want to be her mom, but I thought both situations required a little bit more respect. She burst into tears and cancelled her massage.
It was not my intention to make her cry, and I was still willing and ready to do her massage... because I'm a professional, and I don't let things like that get to me in a massage session. I can't. But the tears reminded me of Hannah when she was 6 or 7. So, my coworker said she was no longer in the mood for her massage and she was just going to clean up and go home. She offered to pay for the massage, but I told her no, I didn't want her to pay for a massage until she had one. She sniffled and cried for a good half-hour or 45 minutes.
So I left. I know it sounds callous, and maybe if I were less judgmental or had lower expectations, I wouldn't have minded so much, but... I already have a child at home. I don't need another one at work. I'm not the owner, but I'm co-manager with Theresa.
The lesson in it for me is never to mix business and business. On the other hand, it was my place first, and she does need to learn to respect what it means to work with other people successfully. Who knows what will happen. It kind of left a bad flavor in my mouth.
But hey. At least my PC isn't popping up random ads and installing random software any more.
Oh, and![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
heidi8, that will be Monday the 19th, not the 12th. If you can make it, let me or sff_corgi know. We'd both love to have lunch with you.
Hmm. Oliver Stone, is this a conspiracy? I wouldn't be surprised if some of these free trials put suspicious stuff on your PC just so they find something, and then you panic, and then you buy the software out of sheer frustration.
So I finally used my brains and went to the Ziff-Davis download page and found Webroot Spy Sweeper, which gives you a 30-day trial. It found stuff I had no idea was there, of course, and got rid of not only the annoying ad generator, but a trojan horse that was hiding and a bunch of other shit too. It analyzed all the cookies and gave a list of suspicious ones. And it let me clean my computer. I'll be buying this one, uh-huh.
I don't work for any of these companies. I was just surprised to find the crap on my new computer already. As much as I like Windows XP (don't shoot me for that), it does give you a false sense of security because it claims to have a built-in firewall. Uh-uh. I'm going back to ZoneAlarm.
And something wiped out Windows Media Player. I had to re-download that.
I had a really busy massage day today and my last client is one of the stylists that just started recently. She's very young and very friendly, but also really loud and careless. While I was in the middle of a massage, she and her clients were having a raucous good old time. Fortunately it didn't bother my client, but it bothered the crap out of me.
When I was finished and my client had gone, I went into the kitchen to get a glass of ice water... but all the ice cube trays were empty in the freezer. Let's think about that one; I have to fill the ones at home too... plus, there was hair-color dye of the very dark brown and permanent variety spillt all over the white counters. For those of you who don't know the story, my coworker Theresa and I looked and looked for a place to buy to go into business together for a long time. We finally found the house we now use (Theresa bought it), and it was a disaster. We spent months cleaning it and fixing it and painting it and repairing it.
When the stylist was done with her clients and already late for her massage, the first thing she did was apologise for the noise. I told her that I wished she could be on my table while she was working to hear how noisy she really was... and that also, there was no reason why I should be spending time scouring hair dye off the counters so they didn't get ruined. I told her that I didn't want to be her mom, but I thought both situations required a little bit more respect. She burst into tears and cancelled her massage.
It was not my intention to make her cry, and I was still willing and ready to do her massage... because I'm a professional, and I don't let things like that get to me in a massage session. I can't. But the tears reminded me of Hannah when she was 6 or 7. So, my coworker said she was no longer in the mood for her massage and she was just going to clean up and go home. She offered to pay for the massage, but I told her no, I didn't want her to pay for a massage until she had one. She sniffled and cried for a good half-hour or 45 minutes.
So I left. I know it sounds callous, and maybe if I were less judgmental or had lower expectations, I wouldn't have minded so much, but... I already have a child at home. I don't need another one at work. I'm not the owner, but I'm co-manager with Theresa.
The lesson in it for me is never to mix business and business. On the other hand, it was my place first, and she does need to learn to respect what it means to work with other people successfully. Who knows what will happen. It kind of left a bad flavor in my mouth.
But hey. At least my PC isn't popping up random ads and installing random software any more.
Oh, and
heidi8, that will be Monday the 19th, not the 12th. If you can make it, let me or sff_corgi know. We'd both love to have lunch with you.