Parallels Desktop, HP P1006, Trans-Siberian Railway, And Dmitry
A Story Demonstrating How Desktop Technology Has Evolved and Relations With Russia Have Devolved in the Last 15 Years.
Originally Posted at “Old Ones Dream” April 23, 2013.
Novosibirsk in 2017 - Photo Courtesy of Wikipedia
When we headed out to the Maritimes last July (2012), the stuff I took with me included an MS Windows PC laptop so that I could remotely get the monthly bills out and production payroll done, and I took my new pride and joy MacBook Air for everything else. Soon after arriving in Nova Scotia the Windows laptop went graveyard dead (I did have a backup of everything) leaving me somewhat crippled in my ability to remotely access the Windows network at the office. The immediate problem was solved by implementation of Parallels Desktop on the MacBook, which amounts to running a Windows PC in a virtual partition on the Mac. That enabled me to run the business applications that I needed during our trip (Bay of Fundy, Cape Breton, and Newfoundland). Once I got home there was some fine tuning to do because my old HP LaserJet P1006 printer, notorious for not playing well with others (printer sharing), would not print correctly from the Parallels box.
I worked some on the phone with Parallels technical support. Then the case was escalated and I got a call from a Seattle area code and Dmitry was on the phone. We worked together for a while and the problem was solved. I asked Dmitry if he was in the Seattle area or off-shore. He laughed and said he was “half-way around the world in Siberia” and had me Google the Wikipedia link to Novosibirsk. I said OK I’ve got it and Dmitry said to me “see the tall building with the big banner to the left of the highway?”. I replied “Yes”. Dmitry said to me “the banner says Parallels - wave to me!”. We had a good laugh and I asked him about Lake Baikal and he said it is a long drive from Novosibirsk. I told him that I had long wished to visit Lake Baikal while riding on the Trans-Siberian Railway. He said “It is very cool ride…, lots of food, …and girls!”
I told him that I would call him when I got ready to get my ticket, and he could give me the tour.
I’m convinced we live in a amazingly interconnected world, with Internet and air travel. You experienced this in 2012 and I think it’s even more true now. Your story is a fine illustration of this.