clocker
05-27-2006, 01:39 PM
Two (of many) customer encounters this week ...
Lady tells me she is quite the computer expert...knows her way around Windows and likes to tinker with the OS.
"I can't get on the internet".
Hook up PC and power it on.
First thing I notice is how clean the desktop is...no wallpaper and only two icons..."Recycle Bin" and right next to it, "Shortcut to the Recycle Bin".
Oh, oh.
Nothing, and I mean nothing!, works...cannot access Control Panel, Program Files, Task Manager...zippo.
Reboot to Safe mode and run services.msc and viola!- eight, count 'em!, eight services running.
Everything else is disabled.
I didn't know Windows would even boot when crippled like that.:stars:
You gotta love the adventurous "power user".:wacko:
#2
...this one starts over the phone...
"I'm trying to load Windows and it won't recognize my new SATA drives."
I'll cut this short...we had at least five conversations before I ran out of patience and told him he'd have to bring the PC in...I didn't sell him the drives and wasn't going to be free tech support for whomever had.
He arrives...
Place old eMachines on bench...
Again...Oh, oh...
Two Seagate 120GB SATA drives sitting on case floor.
Has used an adaptor to go from Molex to SATA power connector.
Has the SATA data cable connected from one drive directly into the second drive.
Brilliant! Absofuckinglutely brilliant!
Geekboy's PC does not support SATA at all.
No headers on the motherboard to plug into, so he decides the best course of action is simply to plug them into each other. Perhaps they can communicate with Windows telepathically.:frusty:
Think that's stupid?
We're just beginning.
I tell him his only option will be to add a PCI SATA host card...but he'll have to figure out what he's willing to give up because all four PCI slots are already populated. One slot has a NIC installed. Naturally, there is ALSO an ethernet port onboard but you can't have too many network interfaces, right?
The other three slots have three identical 4 port USB cards in them.
Apparently you cannot have too many USB ports either...
"But I use all those ports!"
"You're an idiot and I don't believe you."
Turns out, he does use them all...he has every USB device known to man.
Including the ever useful USB coffe cup warmer AND the cold drink chiller. Not to mention the keyboard, mouse, printer,scanner and of course, the "personal cooling fans".
TWO of em.
For stereo cooling, I guess.
It's a miracle that the POS mobo and Bestec PSU haven't melted because I'm pretty sure he uses all these devices at the same time.
He finally decides that yes, he could eliminate one of the USB cards.
The SATA card is slotted in and drivers are installed.
The drives are hooked up.
Still with me?
Here comes the payoff...
The drives are dead.
He bought them used off eBay.
One of these days I'm going postal.
Lady tells me she is quite the computer expert...knows her way around Windows and likes to tinker with the OS.
"I can't get on the internet".
Hook up PC and power it on.
First thing I notice is how clean the desktop is...no wallpaper and only two icons..."Recycle Bin" and right next to it, "Shortcut to the Recycle Bin".
Oh, oh.
Nothing, and I mean nothing!, works...cannot access Control Panel, Program Files, Task Manager...zippo.
Reboot to Safe mode and run services.msc and viola!- eight, count 'em!, eight services running.
Everything else is disabled.
I didn't know Windows would even boot when crippled like that.:stars:
You gotta love the adventurous "power user".:wacko:
#2
...this one starts over the phone...
"I'm trying to load Windows and it won't recognize my new SATA drives."
I'll cut this short...we had at least five conversations before I ran out of patience and told him he'd have to bring the PC in...I didn't sell him the drives and wasn't going to be free tech support for whomever had.
He arrives...
Place old eMachines on bench...
Again...Oh, oh...
Two Seagate 120GB SATA drives sitting on case floor.
Has used an adaptor to go from Molex to SATA power connector.
Has the SATA data cable connected from one drive directly into the second drive.
Brilliant! Absofuckinglutely brilliant!
Geekboy's PC does not support SATA at all.
No headers on the motherboard to plug into, so he decides the best course of action is simply to plug them into each other. Perhaps they can communicate with Windows telepathically.:frusty:
Think that's stupid?
We're just beginning.
I tell him his only option will be to add a PCI SATA host card...but he'll have to figure out what he's willing to give up because all four PCI slots are already populated. One slot has a NIC installed. Naturally, there is ALSO an ethernet port onboard but you can't have too many network interfaces, right?
The other three slots have three identical 4 port USB cards in them.
Apparently you cannot have too many USB ports either...
"But I use all those ports!"
"You're an idiot and I don't believe you."
Turns out, he does use them all...he has every USB device known to man.
Including the ever useful USB coffe cup warmer AND the cold drink chiller. Not to mention the keyboard, mouse, printer,scanner and of course, the "personal cooling fans".
TWO of em.
For stereo cooling, I guess.
It's a miracle that the POS mobo and Bestec PSU haven't melted because I'm pretty sure he uses all these devices at the same time.
He finally decides that yes, he could eliminate one of the USB cards.
The SATA card is slotted in and drivers are installed.
The drives are hooked up.
Still with me?
Here comes the payoff...
The drives are dead.
He bought them used off eBay.
One of these days I'm going postal.