If not from the video card, then where?

Unfortunately, often a conflict or defect in anything in the computer can cause problems that are not easily traced. The diagnostic programs can sometimes create more problems because they do not identify the problem correctly and instruct the user to fix something that is not broken. Similarly, checking System info in win 95 or running scandisk can sometimes fix only the obvious problems. Often, these problems have nothing to do with the current problem. Device manager can tell if the address or IRQ is wrong or if the device is recognized by win 95. However, it can also show conflicts that are not necessarily there.

I am writing this article in the hopes of making the novice computer user a little aware of the complicated inner workings of a computer. When dealing with circuit boards, mother boards, sound cards, modem boards, etc, one is dealing with hundreds of soldered joints. My husband, who is an electronics technician, took a modem board from my old 486 and looked at it under a microscope. He found a tremendous number of poorly soldered connections. Anyone of these with the temperature changes that a computer undergoes when running and when in the turned off mode, could cause the joint to crack. This hairline crack could either, cause the board to not work, cause it to work sometimes if the current position that it was in caused the crack to be closed, or with temperature changes caused it to work periodically. However, this same crack could appear on the mother board and show up in a multitude of ways none of which point directly to the mother board.

This is only one example of a possible source of a problem. Other problems can occur when programs conflict, a motherboard bios is too old for certain devices, chips do not work well together, nor do all external peripherals, etc. As an example, the color of the scan created by my film scanner was suddenly way off. When I called the company they asked if I had an internal scsi zip drive. When I stated that I had just gotten one, they told me to remove the tools. However, these tools cannot be easily removed, and I had to redo my whole system.

I am not writing this to scare new users, computers are with us for good. I am, however, writing this to point out that problems are not always what they seem and are not always easy to find or fix.

The following is a list of ideas on how one can help the technicians who fix your computer.

Beware of people who immediately go into the registry of win 95 and start removing entries. Most technicians will only use this as a last resort if at all.

Beware of people who can answer all your questions. They are probably guessing. A good technician knows when to say I do not know for computer problems can be mysterious even to the most highly trained individuals and often a lot of hunches and guess work are involved in their solution.

When you bring your computer into a store or call a mail order tech if your computer was purchased in that manner, here is a list of things to do:

1 Have a list of all peripherals, IRQ s and if possible all drivers. Look at your disks, go into the about part of the help menu, look at properties, the device manager, etc. Identification of the driver is usually somewhere. Sometimes it may even be necessary to fax, phone, or hand carry additional data to the store or service center. If you do not know where to find this information, look it up in a manual or if you still cannot find it ask the technician in advance.

2 Keep a log of the problem especially under what circumstances it happens.

3 Try to adequately describe the problem even if you are not sure if you are making sense. Do not be afraid to sound stupid. Even if you are, so what! It s your computer that needs to be fixed and the more information you can transmit the better.

4 Back up your data in case the operating system has to be reinstalled. BUT if your system is not working DO NOT back up your entire system because you can be backing up the problem. I have known too many people who have gone to a store, have had the technicians reformat their drives and install win 95, for example, and then have gone home and reinstalled the backup that has the BUG IN IT and then complained that their machine didn't work. Full backups have their place if done on a clean machine. Otherwise, they can be nothing but trouble. However, one should always, as stated earlier, either backup or copy all data files including graphics to some separate storage device.

Lastly and unfortunately, especially if your computer is no longer under warrantee, the problem may not be solved immediately or in your first trip to the technician. This is especially true with those intermittent problems. If I had a wish list for the computer industry, I would ask all the manufacturers of both software and hardware to stop throwing in all the bells and whistles and continually making chips to only increase the speed and power of the computer. I would instead ask that programs be better tested and the bugs removed before I bought them; that more of the peripherals and cards be compatible, and that all products be quality checked before they leave the factory. I guess I could also wish to live in a mansion and be active and healthy until I am 500 years old. I guess I have only 400 and ? To go.

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