If the PC has network connectivity, install some Home Automation software in the laptop and VNC to control it. It can sit quietly in a closet and control your house.
Years ago, I signed up for a cable modem. I was running Windows 98SE at the time (didn't want NT, and XP wasn't out yet).
I had a network card, but until that point I had used dialup for access.
The tech installed the modem, and sat at my machine for a couple of hours, trying to get a response from the servers. He finally gave up and proclaimed that my NIC was bad and to get another one. He told me to call their tech support line on the weekend with the new MAC address, then he exited quickly before I could tell him I had another one on the shelf.
After installing the new card, I tried to call. As you have probably guessed, tech support wasn't answering on the weekend!
For the next week, I called multiple times and each time I had to go through multiple techs to get to their back line - each level asking me to do the same tests that the previous level did. They NEVER gave me a case number, despite me asking several times. At the end of the week, their final answer was to format the hard drive and reload!
Being stubborn, I decided to do some more digging. I finally managed to find some information that showed me how to completely remove TCPIP from Win98 and reinstall it. It fixed the problem.
MUCH later, I had someone from the cable company call to ask about the installation. I related the problem, and that after a week of frustration, I fixed the problem myself. They asked how I did it - I refused to tell them! I said that their technicians didn't have the technical expertise to understand.:-)
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If the PC has network connectivity, install some Home Automation software in the laptop and VNC to control it. It can sit quietly in a closet and control your house.
Years ago, I signed up for a cable modem. I was running Windows 98SE at the time (didn't want NT, and XP wasn't out yet).
:-)
I had a network card, but until that point I had used dialup for access.
The tech installed the modem, and sat at my machine for a couple of hours, trying to get a response from the servers. He finally gave up and proclaimed that my NIC was bad and to get another one. He told me to call their tech support line on the weekend with the new MAC address, then he exited quickly before I could tell him I had another one on the shelf.
After installing the new card, I tried to call. As you have probably guessed, tech support wasn't answering on the weekend!
For the next week, I called multiple times and each time I had to go through multiple techs to get to their back line - each level asking me to do the same tests that the previous level did. They NEVER gave me a case number, despite me asking several times. At the end of the week, their final answer was to format the hard drive and reload!
Being stubborn, I decided to do some more digging. I finally managed to find some information that showed me how to completely remove TCPIP from Win98 and reinstall it. It fixed the problem.
MUCH later, I had someone from the cable company call to ask about the installation. I related the problem, and that after a week of frustration, I fixed the problem myself. They asked how I did it - I refused to tell them! I said that their technicians didn't have the technical expertise to understand.