I got my MacBook Pro back on Monday. I went to boot up from a System recovery disk to repair my Linux permissions with the OS and discovered that the drive was not working. The drive spins up, though it goes no further and won’t mount or eject the disc. Then I noticed a missing screw with the bottom access plate of the Mac. So back it goes to service. So much for the great theory of trusting locally owned small businesses, no matter how authorized.

On a Serious Note…

My MacBook Pro took a major dump last week. I had just finished creating a Facebook Group for a local community group and brought it online. I noticed that I was running on battery power and almost empty. I went to plug in the Mag Safe adaptor and heard a sizzle, a fritz and my MacBook Pro powered off. The power adaptor died. It literally zapped.

I live in a region of the US that is about 3 hours from the nearest Apple Store. Which can be really hard, sometimes. We have okay Apple service with the local mega mass electronic retailer here, though I have witnessed unspeakable horror. I have more confidence fixing my issues myself. I have gotten used to that over the years since my first Mac that I bought in college, not that I have had that much to fix. I was hesitant of taking my MacBook Pro in to the mega electronics retailer, simply because I hadn’t done a Time Machine back up in a few days and didn’t have any battery power left to do one. I did go buy a new Mag Safe adaptor, which I was gambling on was all I needed and didn’t do any good.

I called Apple and they referred me to a local authorized service center. I was able to get my Mac in for a diagnostic test. I recognized the owner from somewhere in my past. I knew the guy from back when I worked in TV production. I now work in marketing and customer support. I was extremely happy to see that a familiar face would be working on my computer and that it wouldn’t be shipped off to Kentucky or someplace to strange hands to replace a Mag Safe port module in the computer or something. In the olden times, I would probably just have replaced it myself. These days MacBooks are so jam packed with goodness that I get scared off even thinking of looking inside.

It turns out that my original Mag Safe adaptor was defective and was listed as a shock hazard and was replaced at no cost. I don’t know if the mega mass electronic retailer would even have considered the defect issue. They very well may have, though my gut reaction says no, simply because I am just a number tossed on the pile and I have witnessed those unspeakable horrors which leave me feeling less than confident with their service. It is also a free country and I have a right to take my business where ever I feel comfortable.