Never be afraid to hit ESC

I solved my own computer problems with a tap on that key!

Well, it was a new situation. Windows simply refused to load.  Panic led to the usual call to a help desk in some warm country.  Today it connected me to a very helpful woman who spoke very good English.

We unbooted and rebooted and tapped ALT and F11. Various screens came up and we followed instructions. 

The screen went blank, except for a lost-looking cursor.

We closed down again and rebooted and tapped F8 repeatedly.  Ditto result.

She advised me to get a technician or maybe a new laptop and wished me a great day.

All that rebooting and tapping had been rather interesting.  So I tried it again, in various forms.  I think I worked my way through all the F keys. 

Then, just as the blank screen was threatening again, I hit ESC.  Why, I don't know.  Maybe from habit, because that is how you get out of full screen mode after watching YouTube.

And the miracle happened. A polite message came up.  Would I like my computer to fix itself?  Definitely.  And it did.