June 16, 2002

computer aids and AIDS

Arrggh. I just spent an hour and a half trying to install a VPN client on my
computer so that I can work from home occasionally. Everything seemed to go well,
except that it wouldn't let me log in. We have a contract for support with an 800
number that's supposed to be 24/7 but of course the people who can actually help
on this appear to be there only Mon-Fri. Which is why I will mention that this so-
helpful support company is IBM. At least I can charge the time.

I'm
reading yet another biography of Isaac Asimov; his wife Janet Jeppson put this one
together, condensing the three volumes he'd written into one at the request of a
published. Some of it is thus matter I'd read before, but some of it is new from
letters to her and she's also added some comments. The biggest change is that
Janet and Asimov's daughter Robyn decided to tell the truth about his death. This
surprised me quite a bit, but apparently Asimov died of AIDS, contracted from a
blood transfusion back before they were testing the blood supply. It was kept
quiet because of the enormous stigma attached to the disease for most of the time
he was ill. (Well, there's still a stigma, of course, but less so, I hope. Back in
the late 80s/early 90s, educated people were still talking in public about how
they'd never want to touch anyone with AIDS and viewing it as necessarily the
result of the afflicted person's own risky choices. Nowadays only some people do
so, at least a partial advance in our social fabric. (She said,
sardonically))

And now I've done my computer chores (the VPN thing,
not this update) and it's still early enough to be comfortable outdoors, so I'm
going to go put the patio furniture we finally acquired last week to good use.

Posted by dichroic at June 16, 2002 04:59 PM
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