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20241102
a year ago
So I Tried.
I put on my propeller beanie, watched the videos and cracked the case on my primary computer. Things did not go as desired.
After putting in new RAM and Video card, I was getting a warning beep from the tower and the prompt "check video cable"
I backed off, and tried the new power supply first with just the new video card and old RAM, ng. Next the new powersupply and the old RAM and video card, also ng.
To make life interesting, the lugs popped off the wi-fi module -- which is the size of a postage stamp -- and the lug posts are the size of a grain of salt. These old eyes and fingers were challenged in deed.
So, in wisdom I learned from building flying models, it was time to put the tools down.
I had a pleasant lunch and then I went to an office supply store to get a new HDMI cable, and some compressed air (mighty dusty after 5 years in that case, despite surface vacuuming).
I did a good deed and helped a couple of ladies confirm the laser cartridge they needed. I was dressed in a red tee shirt and tan chinos and I looked like a clerk, so I used my 1 score and 19 years of computing skills and lent a hand.
When I got home, I was rewarded by popping on the minuscule lugs and proceed to go forward. I restored the PC to the original build and (after blowing out the dust) it fired up nicely and the video display was crisper with the new cable.
So, I'm back to square minus-one with the parts; I will need to contact the sellers to see about swapping the power supply (since it couldn't even run the original configuration, I imagine it's DOA)
I hope I can return the memory, and IDK about the video card. Worse comes to worse, I will sell them as gently used.
Lessons Learned
1: Verify your own data. I trusted a YouTube video by a streamer with a high watch rate. He got the RAM type / size wrong in his Amazon shopping list, as I found out the hard way -- even though the store page said they would work as well, but throttled. Thing was, they had plastic sleeves over them and two wouldn't fit side by side that well, so I aborted the install.
2: Practice the procedure in your head. I watched the videos and knew the steps by heart; this made the scary step of changing the power supply a piece of cake
3: Outcomes are not guaranteed. So the power supply is red tagged and I will contact the seller, and I spent over five hours troubleshooting and reversing the build, but I DID restore the computer to original spec.
4: Take the Win(s)
A: I learned how a modern computer is assembled (haven't done this in 10 years) and I got the hands on in the attempt
B : I got to clean out all the fans and inside of the PC, and got a nice new video cable
C: Reaffirmed that clinging on to a desired outcome -- especially when it falls flat, doesn't do a thing for you, except spoil your day.
Sure, I had to sit with a cup of coffee and mull things over, but I wasn't kicking my toolbox (can break toe that way) or cussin' up a blue streak. I just let it be.
Other ways I'm Spending my Limited Amount of Time
In other news, I found another furry author in one of my telegram groups. I watch them now, even though I can't keep up with my reading list as it is. It's OK though, I just treat all these stories as choices at a buffet and nibble here and there as the mood fits.
Finally, I got silly at the retail store and got a pair of decorated deer antlers (with colored lights); I'm practicing my Shikairo dance for a holiday party I may attend in Kigu and Antlers
I put on my propeller beanie, watched the videos and cracked the case on my primary computer. Things did not go as desired.
After putting in new RAM and Video card, I was getting a warning beep from the tower and the prompt "check video cable"
I backed off, and tried the new power supply first with just the new video card and old RAM, ng. Next the new powersupply and the old RAM and video card, also ng.
To make life interesting, the lugs popped off the wi-fi module -- which is the size of a postage stamp -- and the lug posts are the size of a grain of salt. These old eyes and fingers were challenged in deed.
So, in wisdom I learned from building flying models, it was time to put the tools down.
I had a pleasant lunch and then I went to an office supply store to get a new HDMI cable, and some compressed air (mighty dusty after 5 years in that case, despite surface vacuuming).
I did a good deed and helped a couple of ladies confirm the laser cartridge they needed. I was dressed in a red tee shirt and tan chinos and I looked like a clerk, so I used my 1 score and 19 years of computing skills and lent a hand.
When I got home, I was rewarded by popping on the minuscule lugs and proceed to go forward. I restored the PC to the original build and (after blowing out the dust) it fired up nicely and the video display was crisper with the new cable.
So, I'm back to square minus-one with the parts; I will need to contact the sellers to see about swapping the power supply (since it couldn't even run the original configuration, I imagine it's DOA)
I hope I can return the memory, and IDK about the video card. Worse comes to worse, I will sell them as gently used.
Lessons Learned
1: Verify your own data. I trusted a YouTube video by a streamer with a high watch rate. He got the RAM type / size wrong in his Amazon shopping list, as I found out the hard way -- even though the store page said they would work as well, but throttled. Thing was, they had plastic sleeves over them and two wouldn't fit side by side that well, so I aborted the install.
2: Practice the procedure in your head. I watched the videos and knew the steps by heart; this made the scary step of changing the power supply a piece of cake
3: Outcomes are not guaranteed. So the power supply is red tagged and I will contact the seller, and I spent over five hours troubleshooting and reversing the build, but I DID restore the computer to original spec.
4: Take the Win(s)
A: I learned how a modern computer is assembled (haven't done this in 10 years) and I got the hands on in the attempt
B : I got to clean out all the fans and inside of the PC, and got a nice new video cable
C: Reaffirmed that clinging on to a desired outcome -- especially when it falls flat, doesn't do a thing for you, except spoil your day.
Sure, I had to sit with a cup of coffee and mull things over, but I wasn't kicking my toolbox (can break toe that way) or cussin' up a blue streak. I just let it be.
Other ways I'm Spending my Limited Amount of Time
In other news, I found another furry author in one of my telegram groups. I watch them now, even though I can't keep up with my reading list as it is. It's OK though, I just treat all these stories as choices at a buffet and nibble here and there as the mood fits.
Finally, I got silly at the retail store and got a pair of decorated deer antlers (with colored lights); I'm practicing my Shikairo dance for a holiday party I may attend in Kigu and Antlers
Sadly, our lone PC Tech in town, shuttered a couple years ago (Yet another COVID business casualty), and we're all scratching our heads about who/where to turn to, now?
Trust is vital to all of us (In our community of a few hundred, nearby town of 18k too, I suppose?), and warranties/back-up/help as needed which I know is a long haul for anyone building PC's to manage.
I see lots of places promoted online, but hell, what do 'I' know of them? Nada.
My roomie/BF dropped $700.00 on an HP Amazon PoS two years ago, and regretted it the first day we turned it ON and instantly began experiences lost signals, video, auto-shutdowns, etc., etc., etc.. Utter horseshit, and if it were a vehicle we'd have taken the thing directly BACK from where we purchased it.
Sadly, PC's are now a modern day appliance that you just have to have.
Now, to find one worth the $$$...
Glad to hear you were able to revive your old Magical Box at least! I do admit, if I HAD a clue about these things, tinkering around with their innards would likely become an obsession!
P.S.
Your last comment sat me back with a huge smile on my face. Many years ago, we dressed our Mini Stallion up as a reindeer, and during our weekend jaunts into town, to visit the public part with our two Doggos, he'd show-off and make those jingle bells sing as he set his hooves down and tossed his head, making those tied to his mane chime, too!
Thank you. I sure miss the little guy, and those wonderful days...
Propeller caps unite!
The 'Beanie and Cecil' cartoon intro., for those of us old enough to have enjoyed it!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kgh59Bdckj8
Urban Dictionary calls Propeller Heads as ones well versed in tech.
Prop hats were sold at Egghead Software and are also a badge of 90s IT tech guys, back when I was a UNIX sys admin and had to handcrimp and wire pinouts on DB-25 connectors I got at Radio Shack.
I have a guy the next town over, and I know how it is to have to trust someone with what is essentially your digital and fiscal life (seeing all your data and passwords). I had to change over 50 passwords when my drive died and he put a new one in.
I grew afraid to crack open the case, (having not done component upgrades since 2014), but regained my nerve when my PC reached the end of serviceability -- like old cars, you kind of have to fix old PCs yourself.
And while a lemon is a lemon (Amazon refurbish is sus -- as that was my power supply, when it was supposed to be new), but I've had good luck with HPs as an end-user computer for 3 Operating Systems -- XP, Win 7/10, and now Win11 as an end user.
The biggest problem is that computersare like appliances or cellphones nowadays: they only have 3-5 years of serviceability in them and then they can't do the new stuff.
So you need to budge $1500 for phone and $3k for a decent gaming / digital art computer ever three years if you want to stay current. (I use Androids, so my phones are under $200)
You can extend a computer's life by upgrading components , but HP is proprietary with their components.
Also, the processor is key, and upgrading that isn't worth the candle in most cases, thus you are forced to buy a newer one -- which makes a sort of sense.
Going to the Big Box stores for their help squad is like going to the dealer to get an oil change; they'll upsell you to a new unit if they can.
Also, these are not the kinds of item you want to send via Fed-Up (think the old Samsonite luggage adverts in the gorilla cage) back and forth for service to some far away shop.
If I knew what I know now back in March, I could have saved myself some coin putting in my own hard drive, but even then, I had to resolve a restore problem with backup files.
What is Amazing is the amount of data that used to fit on 5 removable backup tapes each the size of five 33rpm album covers sandwiched together back in 1992, fitting on a drive smaller than a cassette tape is just pawsome.
Sometimes newer is better if you have the coin and sometimes you just have to make due with last gen stuff.
The mini stallion story made me smile as wekk. Maybe mini horses and I would get along, they sound very domestic and more dog like than a free spirited maverick.
For now, we've got (The scant few of us who have MORE knowledge 'bout these things), venturing out into Portlandia/et al, and checking out smaller brick-and-mortar PC businesses (That normally cater to the College folk).
So we're mostly standing by, patiently tapping our collected toes.
Dropping 1k/More on ONE electronic device just isn't something 'We' want to do, or will do, lightly. That's a lot of $$$ (Most of us are elderly, fixed income OR working ranch/barter types, where we count our pennies just to keep the dollar bills in line), and as you mentioned, the damned things don't even last longer than a couple years or so.
What little I DO know, is the absolutely staggering differences in power/storage/ability in these things. I remember seeing a Texas Instruments appear one day at our H.S. Library, and we thought that was the cats' meow! (LOL omgs, that thing had less power than our wrist watches, today!)
*sighs*
Well, all of us still know how to use a land line, write in cursive, and communicate Olde School, so I suppose we're not totally SoL?!
;-P
Yes, cursive -- almost a code today. I'm sorry I got rid of my manual typewriter but after 25 years I couldn't find anyone to service it.
I think in early days (talking the vacuum tube UniVacs) the geniuses said they'd only need 6 computers for the entire world.
Future Studies always fall short one way or another.
Truth be told, if I was just crunching numbers and word processing, I could run the same software for more than 10 years or longer.
The exorbitant price comes when you seek to create virtual reality in your games and images on the computer screen and in the visor. The difference is that of a bottle rocket and a rocket capable of breaking the gravity well and reaching the moon. And of course we went to to moon doing "slip stick" engineering.
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