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The Alt Weekly

4.0 (1 review)

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Times Union

Times Union

1.1(52 reviews)
9.5 mi

This newspaper has gone down hill Longtime subscriber…read moreI accepted a digital offer for .25 cents as my previous subscription was much more & they kept on billing my other account as well as the new account After asking for a credit Osman (Supervisor) stated no refund many people have duplicate accounts! SO he admitted I am not the only one being double invoices at 2 different rates. William Randolph Hearst is spinning in his grave! reported to BBB today

When we moved to Albany my wife and I began to take the Times Union digitally as we felt we should…read morehave a reliable source of local news. However, after a few years we both cancelled it as we found little actual local news -- as most of the articles are quasi advertisements. Overall, it's a collection of AP articles, cartoons, and many many many ads. If you want to the local high school sports results it's a decent resource. I did find the periodic opinion pieces by Churchill interesting even if I didn't agree with 2/3 of his opinions (read both conservative and often mean) If you occasionally find an article of interest popping up in your internet browser you will quickly learn it's behind a paywall -- the Times Union isn't giving anything away for free. Last week I was particularly irate when the TU had sources of information about the abrupt change in Albany County primary voting polling stations but with no sense of public service the TU wouldn't allow non-subscribers to access that information. I define that as a total lack of commitment to the community. We take the NYT and unfortunately the Times Union handles distribution for the NYT, WSJ, and NY Post as well. When our papers haven't arrived it has been impossible to get through to anyone at the Times Union -- though I have spent considerable time drilling through their website for contract information. After NYT reps were routing complaints to the TU for months with no resolution, I finally had to write the TU and indicate I was filing a complaint with the Better Business Bureau. Once I did that magically my delivery issues then vanished. Periodically the driver delivers the paper edition of the Times Union instead of the NYT in error. The paper edition is simply without value. Glancing through it takes about three minutes -- tops. It's articles focus on the sensational: thefts, fires, shootings, gruesome murders. What would want would be something about referendums and civic issues but usually that's nada. I guess the TU stays afloat from ad revenue. Occasionally a rare good investigative article is written but rare is the operative word.

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The Computer Mechanic - Erik's desk

The Computer Mechanic

4.7(3 reviews)
2.3 mi

While I'm usually the techy in our home, occasionally I get stumped and have to call in backup…read more Fortunately for me, I stumbled upon The Computer Mechanic in Schenectady! Before I get into it, let me give you some background... In my home, an annual trend has slowly formed with the simple phrase, "Something happened to my computer". It started with a pricey Macbook, where liquid was accidentally spilled onto the device. The Apple store happily offered a fix that cost nearly as much as a new computer -- which led to me purchasing a newer Macbook -- only to have the motherboard die 9 months later with another hefty $800+ fix. So now we have significantly less expensive, and oddly more powerful Chromebooks! Well the other day, the same chilling phrase echoed in my home, "Something happened to my computer". I researched and tried everything I could find online, positive that I was following the right directions, but to no avail. So I decided to seek outside help (!sacrilege!) and came upon The Computer Mechanic's Google Maps result and website. I filled out the online form, and within minutes, I had a short and to the point response. It was after hours, so the next day I hopped into my car and drove over. Being an 80's Nerd myself, the business was exactly what I had hoped it would be. Quiet, lots of computers and parts everywhere, a beautiful wall of old motherboards, and uncomfortably bright glow of several monitors. The guy behind the counter took the Chromebook and said, "when do you want it back by?" To which I replied, "when could it be done? I mean, I have no idea how long it will take." He said, "it shouldn't take too long", and it was late afternoon, so I suggested the following day. Then I confirmed that I provided my email and phone number on the webform and left. The next day, I emailed to check in, and they said it was read. I showed up, cracked a few jokes that didn't seem to land, swiped my Credit Card, and was out the door in minutes. In all honesty, these guys were really great and seemed to know what they were doing. They were even running their "Wipe & Reload for $60" special, so it cost practically nothing compared to places like Geek Squad. It's definitely a no-frills experience. But when you just want to get your computer back up and running, without being upsold on a bunch of garbage you don't need, this winds up being the absolute best type of experience one could hope for. And because it was so inexpensive, I can afford to go to The Computer Mechanic instead of wasting hours trying to figure it out myself. The next time I'll absolutely be back for my annual, "Something happened to my computer" pilgrimage.

Erik and Oscar are very knowledgeable. Pleasant to work with. Can fix any computer or electronics…read more Highly recommended.

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The Alt Weekly - printmedia - Updated October 2026

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