Funny stories (hardware related).

[Luis]

Hey,

 

It just occured to me that most people should have some funny stories with their hardware... For example...

 

When I first built this computer, I purchased a used Core 2 Duo E6750 off mercadolibre (some kind of ebay for latin americans). When I first built my computer I didn't know much so I forgot to mount the motherboard on the plastic isolators that prevent the computer from touching the metal side of the case so when I turned it up for the first time I saw some cool sparks slowly come out of the CPU fan. The whole CPU & motherboard were dead. So I contacted Intel's tech support and told them I had just bought it in a store and it was installed by a technician (really made it look like it was a faulty copy), so they requested some pics and I sent them... a couple of days later I got a mail saying that I had to ship my CPU to Intel in order to get a new one. I shipped it via UPS (they payed a premium shipment) and 7 days later I got a new one, not only a new processor, a retail copy... Not the OEM they use to ship with warranties... So I basically fooled Intel... =D.

 

What's your funny stories?

[Song]

I once tried to threaten a CRT display with a power screwdriver.

It was a freaking stupid idea and I don't know why I did it.

While on that, I somehow managed to break a very small of piece

glass out of the display somewhere in the middle of it..

It never bothered me while using the display but it was a constant

reminder of my stupidity.

[Ross Scott]

A friend of mine managed to cram SDRAM into a motherboard, despite it being idiotproof. I'm not sure how he managed to get it to fit, I guess he broke off the dividers on the board. When he turned it on, it started smoking, didn't exactly boot after that.

[Alyxx Thorne]

My best friend's father is a bit of a techno-retard and is constantly making statements that are just wrong. For instance, he is convinced some iPhones have Android on them.

[Kirkreng]

For instance, he is convinced some iPhones have Android on them.

If that were true I would have an iPhone right now.

[BTGBullseye]

Used to put together computers from junk components that were either partially destroyed, or were incompatible with the rest of the components... Never had any software-based crashes on any of those computers, just HDD and PSU based crashes.

[ProHypster]

One of my friends was a complete retard who blew my graphics card once by putting in the wrong wire in a slot on the back of the computer.... to be honest this was a few years ago, and I don't know how something like that can even happen now as I try to remember it... but I do remember that he tried to stick the wire into any slot on the back (Actually attempting to put it into any slot by force) of the pc since he thought that would solve the lag problem of a game....

I also remember that after that the electricity of the apartment went down, so I'm guessing he put a wrong wire in the Power supply....

 

-________________-

 

Since that day I never allowed him to come to my apartment.

This was in Germany by the way.

[Alyxx Thorne]

One of my friends was a complete retard who blew my graphics card once by putting in the wrong wire in a slot on the back of the computer.... to be honest this was a few years ago, and I don't know how something like that can even happen now as I try to remember it... but I do remember that he tried to stick the wire into any slot on the back (Actually attempting to put it into any slot by force) of the pc since he thought that would solve the lag problem of a game....

I also remember that after that the electricity of the apartment went down, so I'm guessing he put a wrong wire in the Power supply....

 

-________________-

 

Since that day I never allowed him to come to my apartment.

This was in Germany by the way.

I don't know who I feel more sorry for. Him for unintentionally blowing up your computer or the computer for being blown up by someone who had no knowledge of computer hardware.

[ProHypster]

So I am not a victim IYO then...

[Alyxx Thorne]

Of course you are, that goes without saying really. Just saying he is just as much a victim of his own stupidity.

[alphabetagamma]

My friends girlfriend spilled something on his laptop once. Not really sure what really happened to it but it ended up with his battery draining into the outlet

[Bugthing]

Well.. I once patched up a broken ATI GPU fan with a case fan. It didn't fit and there were no screwing holes or anything. It ran too hot to use tape or glue, so I used a wood clamp to attach the case fan to the GPU. I only had to saw off the handle because it initially didn't fit on the mainboard.

 

The guy at the store where I bought the fan told me it would never work. I told him that, between a 5 euro fan and a 400 euro new card, it was worth a shot.

 

You really only need to know where the fan outlets are on the mainboard. It ran more stable, more cool and more quietly than the original 'onboard' GPU fan (I think it was a 9800xt type ati), for many more years until I switched it with a fanless Zalman GPU.

Edited June 8, 2011 by Guest (see edit history)

[Bugthing]

Oh, I also once tried to 'mythbust' how vulnerable computer parts really are, using an old Pentium 3. I tried to deliberatly static-shock every part that went into the mainboard (and the mainboard itself), but it caused no problems whatsoever. Then I made a whole bunch of scratches on the mainboard with a screwdriver, no efect.

 

It didn't start showing problems until I screwed open the CPU casing and poured coca cola directly onto the CPU. I put some in the PCI sockets as well, I just figured something as acidic as coca cola would just have to rust something though. But I think it wasn't so much the acid as a think, sugary paste that did the trick. Inexplicably it started working again a week or so later, after I left in on for an extended time. I think the heat or vibrations eventually took care of the layer of sugar the coke had left behind.

[Axeldeath]

I remember when my aunty called me over to her house to fix her laptop because it wouldnt start up. After hours of stress I figured out she hadn't put a CD in properly when she closed the slot and she'd shoved it in so far the CD actually got stuck inside the laptop and fubar'd the hard drive.

[Luis]

For instance, he is convinced some iPhones have Android on them.

If that were true I would have an iPhone right now.

 

Actually, you can put Android on the 3G and 3GS but not in the iPhone 4 as far as I know...

[J.C.]

I just found this on Engadget

 

 

A mouse with a digital mini scale... I'm still trying to find any practical uses for this, that aren't illegal

[CooL]

A friend of mine took his entire computer apart when he was trying to clean it. It's still sitting there in pieces. This was 2 years ago.

[Luis]

A mouse with a digital mini scale... I'm still trying to find any practical uses for this, that aren't illegal

 

Oh, that could be useful to weigh my... oregano.

[Doublenature]

So a couple of months ago, my laptop fried, and never started again. It was my best friend for about a year. But the reason it fried was probably dust in the fan right? Ok, fair enough, dust gets in everywhere, but then I wondered: why put the air "exit" under the computer? It must be one of the worst designs ever! I had to have the computer "hanging" over an edge otherwise it would instantly overheat. Whos stupid idea was this? Why not just put the "exit" on the back and make it bigger? I dont care how it looks, I want it to work!

Edited December 9, 2011 by Guest (see edit history)

[Alyxx Thorne]

Yeah, laptops are very prone to overheating because of that design. It's just how it is, I suppose.