Well, nothing is more frustrating than a computer not working. My Dell laptop suddenly refused to boot. This limited our internet capabilities and MagicJack phone calls. Luckily Linda’s Apple laptop still worked and kept us going. She was able to install MagicJack and once again we could make calls to the US. I have heard some people say negative things about MagicJack but from our view, the $49.00 for MagicJack Plus has paid for itself many times over in just a couple of weeks in Ecuador. The calls are clear with no delay and all we have to do is plug a cheap Emerson brand phone we bought at WalMart into the MagicJack port.

I spent an hour on the phone with Dell customer support just trying to get to the right support tech. This, in spite of the fact that I have hardware and software support agreements with Dell that do not expire until March 2014. However, my problem, according to Dell, is not covered under either agreement. But, for a one-time fee of $129.00 plus tax, they would attempt to fix the problem over the phone. After much insistence on my part that I would not pay unless they guaranteed to fix the problem over the phone, I gave them our credit card number and they had me try a few things. With no success, they announced that they could not fix the problem and would need to send me discs. Not a workable alternative given that I am in Ecuador.

So we started asking around to see if anyone could recommend a computer repair shop. There is one located on the road to SuperMaxi called CompuHelp. Thought we would have to take it there. But Mike, who is helping us with condo rehab bids, mentioned that his son is studying computers at the finest university in Ecuador. Luckily he was going to be in Salinas last night so Mike took the Dell home with him.  This morning Mike called to let us know that the laptop was fixed. He even brought it over to us at the Alamar. He refused to take any payment for the repair. After much persistence on our part he finally agreed to accept $20 for his son.   Mike is really a different and refreshing gringo in Salinas. He is fluent in Spanish, a maestro at construction, and will always give you an honest answer. Believe us when we say it is very difficult to find working gringos in Salinas like Mike.  

Some good advice is to always ask around the expats for recommendations when you need a service performed!