My wife’s laptop of 4+ years broke. It was a fine Chromebook which I bought for her because, like most people, 95%+ of what she does involves a website browser and basic office software like a word processor and spreadsheet. Chromebooks have this habit of working great for what they do.

Try Number 1: Get it Fixed

I found a computer store that can fix laptops … all communication is via WhatsApp and they have strange hours … in the morning for a few, then after 2pm for a few … some businesses are like that. It’s very UnAmerican where we expect you to be open from 9am to 9pm.

He sends me a link to get there using Waze. Best way to give directions for anything in this country. This is superior to giving an actual address.

For 100 shekels delivery, he sends it to a friend because he can’t fix it. The friend is able to get it to turn on again for a few hundred more shekels … and just do this and that if it happens again … some capacitor somewhere is blown.

That works for about a week.

Try Number 2: Buy One in Israel

Most Israelis have no idea what a Chromebook is and even in computer stores, many barely have a clue. Asking one clerk … no idea … another says, “oh yeah, I know what one is” and thinks they’re all low powered / why would you want one?

Actually … many are quite high powered and don’t need the tech specs like a windows computer because windows is plain old bloatware.

Tried three stores. Gave up.

Try Number 3: Buy One on Amazon

Bought on that met the specs we want … it’s an “enterprise” version. Unless it’s connected to a business, it won’t work. Tried every trick to get it out of that mode – nothing works. The key presses to bypass are disabled, won’t boot off a USB stick, and even taking a high voltage power line to it to reset everything only results in flying me back a mile like I just heard the first commandment from Hashem in the desert. Meanwhile, the Chromebook is not budging.

Returned it – paid some shipping fees to US. Got my money back.

Try Number 4: Buy Another One from Amazon

We almost fell for it again. Only some will ship to Israel and those that will are outlandishly expensive or … enterprise version.

Try Number 4: Buy One in France

Ah! Amazon will ship to a locker in Avignon where I’ll be! Perf – nope. My wife says check it out carefully – make sure it’s not enterprise; make sure everything will be the same …

Did you know France doesn’t use a QWERTY keyboard? They use AZERTY. It’s a slightly different keyboard layout.

That won’t do. My wife is used to simple and working. Tinkering with computers until they kind of do what you want as long as you cock your head 65 degrees, reformat your hard disk every few months, and go into a command line interface to manually type in commands every reboot to get it to work … turns out most people don’t find that “fun”. I consider it a great security feature.

Try Number 5: Visit America

A really homesick kid gets a visit to America for a few days to attend her old school and see her old friends. We get a good Chromebook delivered there. We’re inundated with requests to bring people things back from America.

The Chomebook gets left at security in JFK airport.

(The other kids much prefer to be here.)

Try Number 6: Buy a Windows Laptop

My wife hates it. So do I. Constant popups and things that get in your way. Ads are popping up even when the web browser is closed … even fixing that, Windows keeps trying to sell you anti-virus and expiring this and that …

Ah, I tell her, I can put ChromeOS on it! Will be just like a Chromebook.

Try Number 7: Install ChromeOS on the Laptop

ChromeOS the operating system that Chromebooks run and you can put it on other computers.

It won’t install on my wife’s laptop because it won’t recognize the WiFi card and there ain’t nothin’ you can do about it.

Try Number 8: Install Linux that Looks like ChromeOS

ZorinOS: Linux designed to look like other operating systems. Never tried it before – install it side-by-side with Windows. The keyboard and mouse will stop working inexplicably … only the touchscreen will work. Sometimes you can go in the settings and fix it – often need to reboot.

PopOS: My preferred Linux flavor … I disable a lot of stuff and make it look really simple. I delete Windows entirely this time rather than deal with their security to change around the hard disk settings. No going back this time. Same problem with the mouse and keyboard going bye bye sometimes.

Turns out this is a problem in all Ubuntu-based distributions. So … let’s try something completely different: Fedora. It won’t install. Hangs in the same place each time.

Ah, let’s try PcLinuxOS – to which my wife won’t give me her laptop anymore. but … but …. this time I know I can get it working properly! “Leave it alone! I’ll just reboot the laptop when I have this problem until I find a Chromebook.”

(Turns out the problem happens when the computer goes into “power saving mode” with low battery … disable that ‘feature’ and all is well.)

Try Number 9: Search Harder for a Chromebook in Israel

Found a website with some for 4x what they should cost and only very slow ones … and this is apparently why Israeli computer stores – who know what a Chromebook is – think they’re so bad.

Try Number 10: “Will someone bring me a laptop to Israel?”

My wife receives a response from a woman in Florida saying that she understands what it’s like and will bring my wife a laptop. (What it’s like to use Windows? What it’s like to try and get package to Israel? What it’s like to have a husband who tries to fix things?)

Then … war breaks out and the lady’s flight is canceled.

“Should I try another way?” asks my wife. No! What will happen next? A war already break out this last time!

Finally …

The war ends. The lady rebooks her flight. The laptop is in Jerusalem. The laptop is delivered to a relative in Jerusalem and my wife meets this relative at the airport to welcome new Olim to Israel at the same time and the laptop is received.

The new laptop from America costs less than the parts in it because there’s some sale and it comes with all sorts of free extra doodads in the box. My wife turns on the laptop and sets it up … completely without my help, as Chromebooks are simple and work.

Well, sort of. My parental controls are improperly blocking the internet on the new laptop every once in a while, which didn’t happen on the other laptops. I think I’ve fixed the problem.

From an end-of-year class presentation in a class I taught.

The Entire Aliyah Diary

Arrival

01. Aug 19, 2024: Preparation In America
02. Aug 25, 2024: First Few Days
03. Aug 29, 2024: Moving In

Cultural Adjustment Fun

Cultural Adjustment Difficulties

On The Roads

Shopping

11. Oct 13, 2024: Packages. (חבילות.)
34. Feb 17, 2025: Finding Obscure Things
41. Mar 23, 2025: New Shopping Habits
44. Apr 6, 2025: Pesach Shopping & Osher Ad

Government and Bureaucracy

Politics and Thought

Travel: South Israel

Travel: Central/North Israel

Travel: From Israel to …

54. June 4, 2025: Marseille and Avignon