'puter repair

On Wed, 5 Mar 2008 07:20:26 -0600, with neither quill nor qualm, "Karl Townsend" quickly quoth:

It's a Dell.

Sounds like either power supply or motherboard. Check for +-5v and

-- I am Dyslexic of Borg. Prepare to have your arse laminated. --Troy P, usenet

Push in all the connectors.

It's over 1 1/2 years old - replace the power supply.

If that doesn't fix it, it's a Dell - throw it away and get a REAL computer.

Ever hear of "The DELL from HELL"?

No, I have several Dell Optiplex systems that I got used for next to nothing about 4 years ago and all still work fine, including one that is my 24x365 mail and web server.

What do the LEDS on the back show? From what you describe it sounds like a memory card got flaky. I would open the case, blow out the dust bunnies, reset ALL connections, replace the 2032 CMOS battery and see if it fires up.

I would test the power supply using a voltmeter (touch pins of the four pin power supply connectors for IDE hard drives).

You deserve a power supply tester. The last one I got was $7 Test the supply, unplug all peripherals except the MB and one memory module. If it stays up, plug one thing at a time in. But, Id bet on the PS.

the rest of the computer is called a power supply tester.

if a computer died during a move, reseat everything, and dust it out while it's open.

Yep.

Absolutely. It is the connectors 99.999% of the time if it worked pre-move and doesn't post-move (and didn't get run over in transit). Even just sitting unpowered for a number of months can cause connector oxidation problems that will be cured by pulling and reseating all connectors.

I had a hard drive act as the most expensive power supply tester you've ever seen... especially after the dudes in the white jackets got their pound of flesh for getting the data back..

Best regards, Spehro Pefhany

If you had to get a data recovery, you didn't have a recent back-up, did you? NO SYMPATHY!!!

It's old enough that you may have defective electrolytic capacitors on the motherboard. They caps near the CPU have to be low ESR, and a lot of chinese caps were made with defective electrolyte. I am still seeing flaky motherboards with bad or leaking caps.

Michael what do you know about the Army Security Agency? Millwright Ron

I used to build my own, and shy away from all "pre-built" boxes. At work, they shoved a Dell down my throat. I didn't like that particular "clamshell" box, but otherwise I was so impressed I've replaced everything at home with Dell commercial-grade, Optiplex systems, and been darn impressed. I even got one that was thrown by FedEx and had stuff banging around inside the cabinet, and repaired it and it is my company web server!

That original desktop has been running since 2002 with no glitches, and once was up for 470 days straight until a power glitch got it. (Linux, of course, is the OS.)

I think there may be a big difference between Dell's home-grade and commercial (Optiplex) systems.

Jon

Jon Elson wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@wustl.edu:

There certainly is, and even Dell will tell you so.

The Optiplex line is a much better-built, custom-spec'd, series.

I am Dyslexic of Borg. Prepare to have your arse laminated.

ROTFLMAO!!!!!

Errol Groff

I use my leaf blower after pinning the fans with toothpicks...DON'T over-rev them!

Do you often see the caps split open?

What do you base that statement on please?

I've been inside a lot of systems, never had a problem or complaint with Dell's build quality - after all, they're using the same commodity-grade parts most other builders are using.

The advice to replug all the connectors makes good sense. Not sure that if the fans are spinning up at all, that it makes sense to suspect the power supply.