I'm Fully-Equipped, Adequately Prepared, EXTREMELY Excited, and I'm Coming (with Video Content)

No, I'm not talking about anything pornographic!

Hello WA friends and community!

What this post is referring to is the fact that, after experiencing several months of enduring ongoing problems with my computer setup which turned out to be overly expensive and too complicated to resolve, I took all my old computer equipment to a reputable computer sales and service retailer in my area, and traded it all in on a brand new, very powerful desktop computer setup.

Not only did I get an awesome and powerful computer I can now use to start creating, editing and posting video content like I've been wanting and planning to do for a long time, but I also got a lifetime warranty and service for my system, which includes annual upgrades and maintenance, and technical support during regular business hours when I need it.

Prior to this, I've always purchased used computers and peripherals, thinking that the money I saved going this route was a good trade off for having to set everything up and resolve any technical problems myself.

Using this method, I've gone through at least four computers in the last 10-15 years. Perhaps that is common, but with this new setup (and support) I'm confident that this computer purchase will be my last for many years to come!

Of course there will be upgrade and maintenance expenses, but with those I'll be taking the guess work and my own lack of knowledge and experience out of the equation.

The retailer I went to for my new system is called PC Laptops, and they have several locations in the state of Utah but they've been in business for over 20 years and have a large and loyal customer base and proven track record.

The specialist I worked with sat down with me, listened to all the problems I'd been having with my existing system, then asked what I was wanting a new computer setup for. He then custom-built a system specifically to meet my needs!

Here is a picture of me picking up my new computer with the specialist who custom-designed it for me.

My problems all began when I signed up for a 90-day trial of Adobe Express, which was the software I thought I needed to be able to edit my video content. But when I tried to use the program, I got some kind of webgl2 error with a message stating "Your System is Not Supported".

I tried, but failed to find a resolution to this problem, even after asking the community for help. It was just too complex for my limited knowledge and understanding, and I ultimately gave up.

Besides, shortly after that, I began experiencing problems with my video card where it would blank out for several seconds and the monitor would start to go into sleep mode, not receiving any data from the graphics card. This continued for a few weeks until one day it just went out and didn't come back on, even after restarting my computer.

Having insufficient knowledge and experience to know what graphics cards I could upgrade to that would be compatible with my system, I just went to eBay and bought the exact same brand and model of graphics card that had gone out and replaced it.

That worked, temporarily. Within a week or so, my monitor began cutting out again like before, which indicated to me that the increased demands I was placing on my graphics card must be too much for its capabilities and I was truly in need of an upgrade.

I enlisted the help of a friend who is much more computer savvy than I am, and he pointed me to a more powerful graphics card that he believed was compatible with my computer. I purchased it, only to discover when we went to install it that I would need a better power supply than what my computer had in order to power the new graphics card. So he pointed me to a power supply he thought would be compatible and I purchased that as well.

When we went to install the new components, my friend discovered there were some specific cables I would need to order that we didn't have, so I ordered those as well, bringing the total I'd already spent on trying to upgrade to around $300.

Alas, when we had all that he thought we needed and we installed everything, it wouldn't start up, (even though the components worked fine when tested individually).

Having reached the limits of his knowledge and expertise, my friend apologized and suggested I take everything to PC Laptops, where he'd purchased his gaming and work-from-home system, and get a new system with a lifetime warranty and ongoing service options, so that's what I finally did.

Unfortunately, my problems were not yet resolved.

As I was setting up my new system, I attempted to install my old version of Adobe Design Suite, which includes programs like Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign and Acrobat - all programs I need and have used for years doing what I do - Adobe informed me that my version was so old, that they wouldn't support an upgrade.

Thus, I was basically forced into signing up for Adobe Creative Cloud, which not only has those programs I mentioned that I need and use regularly, but also includes Premier Pro, Express, Firefly, and a lot of other programs I need or can use as I progress into the realm of video creation, editing and publishing.

This was both scary and exciting!

Exciting because I can finally begin doing the video stuff I've been wanting, (and needing) to do for so long in my niche!

Scary because, having used credit to purchase my new computer and the components I'd bought trying to upgrade my old system, I was now into this "project" for over $4000. Furthermore, an ongoing subscription to Adobe Creative Cloud is around $60 per month, if I remember correctly.

So yes, I'm now well-equipped and definitely ready to get going, especially now that I need to use my system to start generating more income so it can start paying for the cost of obtaining it!

Here's a picture of my old office and setup:

And this is a picture of my new setup:

I failed to mention that prior to all of these problems, I began having problems with the two printers I had been using for years, and ended up purchasing a new printer sometime in December, so there's that expense, as well.

Bottom line is now that I'm thus fully-equipped, I need to get my butt in gear and start creating and editing my new video content. There will be, of course, a bit of a learning curve with the new software and with entering the realm of making videos, something I haven't done much of up to this point.

So, I'm hoping to have your ongoing support and encouragement as I begin this new chapter and adventure, and I hope you're looking forward to seeing some new training and other content from me in video form.

Thanks for reading, and I hope everyone has a wonderful day!

Kevin