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Skepchick HQ is in a blackout

Just a heads up to let everyone know that the other day one of the most important members of the Skepchick team fell ill — Iggy, the Powerbook, who went to sleep and just refused to wake up. I’m unsure of Iggy’s future, but at the moment I do know that I’m very upset, concerned, and unable to access the Internet from home. This also means that I can’t access the gazillions of e-mails I received in the past week, as well as the Skepchick Calendar orders that have come in within the previous month. Please bear with me as I attempt to remedy the situation with as little out of pocket expense as possible.

On the same subject, because I now have to consider purchasing a new computer I have to take into account exactly what I will use it for. Just now I realized that 99% of my computer is devoted to Skepchick, with the other 1% representing the occasional movie playing in the background. I’ll look around for the latest model iSkeptic.

Rebecca Watson

Rebecca is a writer, speaker, YouTube personality, and unrepentant science nerd. In addition to founding and continuing to run Skepchick, she hosts Quiz-o-Tron, a monthly science-themed quiz show and podcast that pits comedians against nerds. There is an asteroid named in her honor. Twitter @rebeccawatson Mastodon mstdn.social/@rebeccawatson Instagram @actuallyrebeccawatson TikTok @actuallyrebeccawatson YouTube @rebeccawatson BlueSky @rebeccawatson.bsky.social

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11 Comments

  1. Iggy! NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

    So sad. I wish I had some spare hardware kicking around to donate to the Cause, but the only computer I have that I'm not using is, well, not quite dead but definitely senile. Although I haven't booted it in ages, so maybe it doesn't work at all anymore.

    Look on the bright side, though. Where by "bright side" I mean "Sexy New MacBooks"!

  2. They are a little sexy, aren't they? And they come with built-in cameras. The downside is that the screen is only 13" (unless I pay an extra grand for the 15" like what I have now), which is a bit annoying because I do use it for all my movie-watching.

  3. Yeah, true. That's the one downside with my MacBook. I guess the plus to having only a 13" screen is that it's easier to drag around with me everywhere, which I totally do now.

    I guess it's worth noting that the speakers are a bit lame. This might not be such a big deal in your apartment, but mine faces right out onto Comm Ave, so the street noise interferes with movie watching all the time. (Damn you, T!) I compensate for that with headphones, though.

    You know, what would be cheaper than upgrading to the MacBook Pros is buying a LCD monitor and a mini-DVI-to-DVI adapter just for movie-watching at home. When I picked up my 19" LCD, I spent maybe $200 on it, and the adapter is another $20. I bet LCD prices have come down since then, too.

  4. Computer screens are the only place where a dude will complain about having 13 inches. Oh! That's right. I took it there. It's Friday afternoon and it's time for a ribald comment or three! Ok, maybe just the one – and I made it about as juvenile as possible just to make a point.

    …not sure what that point was supposed to be, actually.

    I'll let myself out.

  5. Oooh, my condolences, Rebecca! Have you tried mouth to USB port resuscitation? Joshuas Idea sounds pretty good… Be strong!

  6. I'd be happy to send you some money. Probably not enough for an entire new computer, but some. :)

  7. don't forget the apple educational discount!

    If you want one of the high end machines, check out the refurbished ones from Mac. I have bought those consistently and never had a problem.

    wish I could help out :(

    feel free to email me stuff to post, or give me a call.

  8. Nooooo! Poor thing…

    I have one of the earlier MacBooks (without the core 2 duo processor), and I *love* it.

    I thought the small screen would bother me, but it's so clear that it kinda makes up for being a bit small. And is totally easy to drag around with me. I would agree with the suggestion to get a second display for home – you can totally watch movies on the bigger screen and do Skepchick stuff on the MacBook screen…

    (I have an old CRT monitor that I use at home for extra screen space.)

  9. Thanks guys. I'm at the library right now researching ways to possibly fix Iggy. I have a good lead, but if it fails I'll head to the Apple store and play with the shiny new toys.

  10. Dang. Good luck with this. You shouldn't be out of pocket too long – your fans will curl up and die.

    Like the Wicked Witch under Dorothy's house, but without the green smoke.

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