If you're broken, STAY BROKEN

[Steve]

There seems to be something of a phenomenon about my person when it comes to hardware failure.

For example, today I have been reinstalling my watercooling system, or at least that was the plan. It's not an easy feat, given that the case isn't all that big and there are two radiators, two waterblocks, a pump and a hell of a lot of pipework to fit in it. Still, I've done it before.

This time however, things weren't to be successful. I got it all installed and after a couple of hours filling and leak checking I fired the system up. Woo and yay, she booted without error. Shortly afterwards things took a turn for the worse though. STOP error in fastsx.sys - that'll be my RAID card then. "Fair play" I think, I've probably not installed it properly after fiddling with all those pipes.

Just to be sure I restart the computer and this time the RAID card's BIOS decides to go a little bonkers, essentially confirming my thoughts. So I turn the machine off and check that the card is firmly installed. It is, so I turn the computer on again. This time the machine isn't keen enough to even POST. Oops!

Time to get a little more active. I reseat the RAID card (which amidst a tangle of tubing is no easy feat.) A smile appears on my face as the machine comes back to life. The joy is short lived, as the card isn't even detected.

Many words came to mind, "arses" being one of the tamer. I decided it would be a good idea to remove all the watercooling (after spending quite some time getting it all setup) and go back to air, in the hope that the card would work.

Of course... it did. The card wasn't wet, the card wasn't bent, the card was seated properly, nothing was shorting out. So, a dead piece of hardware comes back to life - something not unfamiliar to me.

To recall another occasion where this happened (most spectacularly) I BLEW UP a £3500 printer. There was SMOKE. Still, after turning it off and on again the damn thing worked for three more days before deciding it was probably time to give in.

What can we learn from this? Well, don't let me near your hardware because it will temporarily die, then probably give in altogether a few days later.

[mike_w]

That's better than the problems I normally get. My problems are always intermittent problems - things rarely break completely, so it's near impossible to find the culprit!

[Steve]

That's better than the problems I normally get. My problems are always intermittent problems - things rarely break completely, so it's near impossible to find the culprit!

I used to share your problem actually. I'd like to say I've acquired enough technical knowledge to know what the problem is, but in reality I've just acquired enough redundant hardware (read: crap) to be able to rule things out.

[Howard]

If something of mine stops working it gets thrown in my hardware drawer and replaced. It'll then stay there for a few months until I decide to use it in another computer build or something, which will either mean it mysteriously works, or reminds me it was broken.

[3dcandy]

I have a mate who's new to pc's...his is unbelievably unreliable. except when I turn it on...
Bearing in mind, it's my old rig...which never ever ever failed...I'm stumped!
just can't wait to get his txts these days...

[unrealuniverse]

I have a mate who's new to pc's...his is unbelievably unreliable. except when I turn it on...
Bearing in mind, it's my old rig...which never ever ever failed...I'm stumped!

i've found that hardware seems to somehow know who is using it and either works or doesn't. Everything i seem to use seems to just work or if it doesn't shake the tower a bit, turn it back on and there you go.

[Jonny]

Yeah, sometimes my stuff decides to have an "off day" and temporarily die on me. It also amazed me this morning when I cleaned out my PC that there were so many quick fixes in there - electrical tape, zip ties, odd screws. I'm surprised it didn't just completely die on me sooner.

[Steve]

That printer deserves a memorial, its soldiered on in its final death throws.

Actually a nice man came out and replaced two of the four heating elements and the printer lives on!

[unrealuniverse]

Actually a nice man came out and replaced two of the four heating elements and the printer lives on!

i suppose you are happy now then