And had no problem using my salvaged laptop running Ubuntu. (Should anybody disbelieve, I still have my email account from the institution.) I think the comments about total illteracy only partially address the issue. Her complaint is no different from "My dog ate my homework" or, "My printer broke." To put it succinctly - "Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance." I transferred to a four year university, and I hear the same crap, people blaming technology for their lack of foresight.

I hate little blinking lights, mostly because the minute they start going, I'm helpless, they draw my attention. Besides, I don't need an LED to tell me the computer is on, I can tell if it's on, I don't need one to tell me the HDD is spinning, it's loud enough by itself, I don't need one for my network connection, volume/mute, or (in the case of a laptop) if the battery is charging, charged, or if the thing is even plugged in, I have yet to meet an OS that doesn't make abundantly clear the status of your power, network, sound, and battery. It's hard bloatware.