The rich keep getting richer

By Todd Stadler · Saturday, February 17, 2001 3:33am

I ordered a new computer the other day. But I won't be paying for most of it. Work is doing that for me, because they're stupid. Or generous. But big businesses aren't often generous, so I'll stick with my original statement. The only things I'm paying for are upgrades beyond what the original package offered. A better monitor, more RAM, that sort of thing.

Along those lines, I also ordered DSL for myself. Faster and faster. It'll be nice to have something approaching work speed at home, since on those few occasions when I do work from home, the ol' 56k modem proves incapable of gracefully handling VNC (virtual network computing - see exactly what you see on your screen at work, anywhere).

I also bought Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop today for half-price from the University of Oregon "bookstore" downtown. Scare quotes are warranted because I noticed on walking into said store that there were no books. I actually walked out and made sure I hadn't missed the bookstore next door or something. All they sold in this store were UO-themed clothing items, calendars, pens, toys, and such. And, hidden in the back of the store, the software I was looking for. Still, they thought I was a troublemaker because I was wearing my bright orange hooded sweatshirt, orange being the main color of OSU, UO's in-state rival. Right. Because I'm a big fan of the Beavers. Because university rivalry here in Oregon is so important to me.