Will I ever learn, Or, Keep my fucking hands on my own computers, PERIOD.

Well. There you go, Alberto.  Are you happy?  Huh?  Is what you are feeling right now ENOUGH to ram the message through that you need to CONSTRAIN your computer activities to those computers that BELONG TO YOU???

DATE:  Thursday, May 15, 2008
TIME: 0838

Bert just called my desk at work and immediately launches into a story about how his kitchen computer is virtually unusable and upon startup has something like 50 browser windows popping up all over the desktop.  He also states that his son's desktop wallpaper has been replaced by an animated image of some kind.

Bert is under the impression that I had something to do with these problems because this past Friday or Saturday I downloaded a few .AVI movie players in the hopes of trying to get some movies I had recorded on an SD memory card to play correctly on his kitchen computer.

The behavior he is describing to me is Malware or virus-related, from the looks of it.  Bert wonders if my surfing for the .AVI movie players caused some kind of Malware to be installed on his PC.  His reasoning is that 2 days after i install some software on his computer, it acts like it has some kind of infection on it.

Now, there are multiple vectors of possible infection for a computer running Windows XP, as we all know.  Chief among them are rogue websites and poison attachments delivered via email.  Even with computers that are ensconced behind the relative safety of a router and that have both an active firewall and a regularly updated virus program, infections are possible.

Of course, I have NO ONE TO BLAME BUT MYSELF for being in this brier patch.  Had I behaved like the responsible computer professional with 20 years experience that I like to think that I am, it would have never dawned on me to ***DOWNLOAD ANYTHING**** on a computer that DOES NOT BELONG TO ME.

IF I had not sat there and tried to get those AVI files to play, Bert could not point a finger of suspicion at me. 

That I had to tolerate/stomach being told that he suspects that there is a chance that It was I that caused the current problems with his computers is outrageous and insulting and it makes me THROW UP A LITTLE BIT IN MY MOUTH.

Once again, here I am, at the age of 41, being treated with a complete lack of respect and treated like some idiot, reckless and irresponsible teenager who traipses blithely around the Internet clicking mindlessly on links with no regard for the possible dangers of downloading executable files.

Damn, but this shit pisses me off royally. I am mad at myself for placing myself in the position where I can be treated with disrespect. 

The bottom line is, had I not gone within 10 feet of that computer, much less downloaded and installed anything on it, I wouldn't be sitting here right now with acid indigestion, typing harder on the keys of my laptop than I should be, sitting in utter disbelief that anyone could possiblhy even *think* that I might succumb to downloading and installing a piece of malware onto a computer.

I am too old and I have way, way to much experience and I have amply demonstrated my expertise countless times to countless people to be in this situation.

I NEED TO LEARN THE LESSON ONCE AND FOR ALL:  IF I DON'T TOUCH A COMPUTER, I CAN'T BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR ***ANYTHING*** THAT HAPPENS TO IT. 

It's simple, really.

I think this time I have learned my lesson for good.  This past weekend was the last time I use Bert's computer for ANYTHING.  There is *NOTHING* I need to do on his computers while at his house that can't wait until I have access to the 7 or 8 FUCKING COMPUTERS THAT I CURRENTLY OWN.

Never again.  EVER.