DU member Kali could STILL use some help.

[MiddleFingerMom]

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She ordered, received and installed a new power supply -- no change in her status.
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Below is the original post -- ANY other help, suggestions, thoughts would be greatly appreciated.
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She's way out in the desert with only a cellphone to communicate via text message (and I believe
she can access the website -- but not post very well or easily).
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I'll be relaying any info/suggestions.
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Thanks.
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MiddleFingerMom
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Her computer has CRASHED and she can't even get it turned on (and yes, the first
thing I asked about was whether or not it was plugged in).
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She's communicating with me thru her cellphone in little text bursts that I've
tried to string together.
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Any ideas/suggestions would be greatly appreciated. She's out in the desert on
a ranch in Arizona 60 miles from REAL civilization and no reliable vehicle to
get her there.
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I worry for her well-being... having to go cold-turkey like this.
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Here goes:
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From Kali:
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Help please - dead computer Cheapo Compac Presario SR1810NX XP
new in 2006 wont turn on. Green "on" light flashes fast. Only stops ///
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about a minute AFTER unplugging. Flashing is much faster than normal flash
when dormant. Shut itself off without warning a few times ///
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in the last few months - thought it was our electric but no other clocks/appliances
affected. Other possible symptoms: runs REALLY slow ///
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for about 20 min usually at start but randomly at other times too. (see a previous
post I did on this) After kids play game ("Civilization"?) ///
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often gives pop up warning re: low virtual memory error. Thx in advance - will
check in from library tomorrow ///
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[MiddleFingerMom]

1. Here's additional txt msgs I have from Kali about her situation:

WTF is thing? layers: fan; metal box w/radiator fins on fan side and it is held
by a weird tightening clamp; next a layer of sticky...
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...white contact goo; then a square metal thing w/100 tiny short pins that insert into
a plastic recepticle that has a strange lever on the
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bottom which moves the plate of holes rt & lft 1/8 inch (WTF?!); THAT is attached
to the motherboard. I bent some pins and that ...
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fucked up a bunch of stuff. Thought I got them straight w/tweezers but maybe not.
Hd not running enough & no monitor, but fan runs
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normal now, mouse light is on and off switch works (had to unplug before I tried to
fix pins). Going to look at pins again but what ...
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What is that structure and how important is that white goo?
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[Duer 157099]

3. That white goo is important

The big metal thing with fins is a heat sink, and it goes on top of the processor, the thing with all those little spikes, and YES those are critical

[Kali]

2. I got it - I'm good!!!!

thanks so much for helping - I finally got it! those little pins are important! still want to know what the hell that thing is.

then to top it off my dial-up company had shut me off and I couldn't get on line once I FINALLY got this thing running. Thank god their tech support doubles as billing because THAT dept isn't open on the weekend.:eyes:

[Duer 157099]

4. It's the processor, the single most important thing in there

Be vewwwwy vewwwwwy careful with those little pins!

Also, if you scraped the white goo off when you pulled the heat sink off the processor, do some Googling quick to learn about thermal paste and the role it plays, and get some to replace what you removed. Very important! Don't let it go for long, seriously.

[Kali]

7. yeah I figured out the pins pretty quick

will get some goo as soon as I can - would they have it at an auto parts store? otherwise I'm probably going to have to order it.

there seemed to be plenty on there still - I didn't wipe any off - it just squished out on my fingers a bit. probably more than a rice grains worth still on there

thanks for answering in two places, I'm slow to respond on dial-up but it beats the hell out of nothing! (or cell phones):rofl:

[Fumesucker]

9. Radio Shack used to carry thermal grease (the white goo)..

I don't know if they still do but it's worth a shot if you have a Rat Shack near you.

If there is enough of the grease on there to completely cover the surface of the chip with a thin film of it you should be OK, it doesn't take a great deal of the stuff.

[canetoad]

5. I've spent time straightening out pins

with a magnifying glass and big needle. That thing will all the pins is you PROCESSOR. Your CPU - the heart of your machine.

The boxy aluminium thing that clips on to it is the heat sink, probably has a fan as well. The white goo is thermal paste and assists in keeping the CPU cool. If you remove the heat sink and CPU you should clean off the old thermal paste and apply new stuff.

Glad you got sorted. I could see a disaster in the making with remote diagnosis of hardware by second hand text message.....:)

[Kali]

6. oh god

I never want to use a phone to type ANYTHING important or detailed again!

[hobbit709]

8. I'd fix her right up but it's a long ways from Austin.

Of course most of that is getting out of TX. There's a sign on US290 just outside of Austin that says El Paso 577 miles.

[Kali]

10. Texas, the state that never ends.

I only crossed that part that sticks up once, the husband did some work on the road there for a couple weeks once. Says it was quite an "experience".