The Squamidian Report – Nov. 12 / 05
Also in this issue:
The Ontarion
Hi All,
One of the things on our ‘top priority’ list when we bought this house in the mountains of coastal BC was to have the carpets replaces. Actually, that was really on Sue’s list. Mine just said “do nothing and enjoy life”. The old carpets were pretty badly stained, down right grungy. The previous owners had small snot nosed kids and an old dog and who knows what else. To make it worse, the old carpets are, or more correctly, were, white. Then of course, we had our old dogs and me so Sue ordered new carpeting. Needles to say, we are dealing with sales and installers from the city rather than from here. Simply less headaches.
To replace old carpeting you have to move all the furniture that is in the way. That means all the living room stuff including TV, stereo, lamps etc. Stuffing all that into the dining room and main level bed rooms works but it leaves them rather crowded. But it works. The computer loft and Squamidian Central, and stairs leading up to it are carpeted. That means tearing down the main computer setup and the desks and all the cabling. So my main computer was out of commission for a few days but the backup system is in the small spare room so we weren’t put totally back into the dark ages.
The installation was to take just one day, include removal of the old carpet. But only 2 installers turned up instead of the 4 or 5 that were supposed to be here. So it took 2 days. The wrap around stair steps took a lot of time. It’s all done now and the furniture is back in place. I managed to survive on just one computer for a day or so and now the computer room is neat and clean and back together. Rooms are not the same size as carpeting so there are lots of remnants left over to use as mats.
And as Greg so thoughtfully reminded me, “remember to take your shoes off.”
One of the benefits of having to tear down the computer setup is that I got a chance to clean and check everything over. That leads us into another episode of Geek Speak.
Geek
Speak – Computer Dust.
Computers, like all electronic equipment, attract dust. Lots of it! We keep our systems clean but they still get dusty inside. Heat is a major source of damage to a computer, right up there with static electricity. Dust buildup facilitates the buildup of heat by blocking airflow and acting as an insulator. The cooling fans draw in the dust as they pull in cooling air. The fans themselves get coated as well as heat sinks, RAM chips, the motherboard and cards. The hard drive gets a coating. There are vent holes in the case that get plugged.
Depending on your computer’s environment, it should be opened up and cleaned at least once a year. More often is even better. So if you haven’t cleaned out the inside of your computer lately, do yourself and it a favor and do it now. Here’s how.
Turn off your system and let is sit for a few seconds to give the hard drive time to finish spinning down. Now, unplug ALL the cables that are sticking out of the back, including the power cable. If you are unsure of being able to find the right places to plug them back in, use some tape to label each cable and it’s location. However, if you are observant, you will notice that most cables can only plug into one specific spot. And those spots are keyed, the cable can only go in one way. Make sure you pay attention to that and don’t try to force a cable in the wrong way when putting it back together. Handle your computer gently and don’t bang it around. The read / write heads inside the hard drive are delicate.
Now, set the computer box on a flat surface where you will be able to lay it over onto it’s side when the time comes. Remove the side panel, it will be the left hand side when looking at the front. There are two or three screws at the back holding it on unless your system is the type that has thumb screws. Remove the screws and pull the panel toward the back. It will slide out of the brackets that hold it. Set it aside. While you were touching the screws, you were grounding yourself to the chassis (actually, you were equalizing yourself). Do this by touching bare metal at the back every time you move or return to the box. Now lay the computer box over onto the other side for easy access.
At this point there are two options to choose from, vacuum cleaner or canned air. Problem with canned air is that when it blows dust out of one area, the dust has to go somewhere else. May as well use a vacuum and contain the dust. Use a very soft artist type paint brush with natural hair bristles to lightly ‘sweep’ dust off of all the components as you hold the end of the vacuum close to catch the dust. Do not touch anything with the vacuum. Pay close attention to the fan blades, heat sinks and power supply vents. Dust off everything including the bottom of the case and any vent holes. Once done dusting, you are done cleaning. That was easy but you aren’t actually finished yet.
Ground yourself again and then check that every internal cable is well seated. If you are really brave, unplug and re-seat the cables. Same with any plug-in cards. Otherwise, just press firmly on each plug to be sure it is tightly in place. The wide ribbon cables connect the hard drive(s), optical drives etc to the motherboard. Don’t be afraid to gently move them around when cleaning, just remember to make sure they are well seated when you are finished. There are probably some tiny wires or cables running around in there, check them as well. If you do unplug cables, do it one at a time and plug it back in the same way was before moving on to the next one. Most of the internal cables are also keyed for proper plug-in direction.
Now you are ready to put the side back on. Sit the box back up on its base and place the side panel against the side of the box but half an inch toward the back from where it would normally be. Hold it there and slide the panel forward so the little clamps or retainers can lock into place. Replace the screws. Place the now clean computer back where you got it and hook up all those cables that were connected to the back. Pay close attention to the orientation of your monitor cable. Just like serial and parallel cables, it uses a D-sub style plug that has tapered sides so it will only go on one way. Your mouse and keyboard plugs are also keyed for proper orientation. When everything is back where it should be, power it up and it should be just fine. If it isn’t, a cable is not seated properly, turn it off and re-check everything. If you are feeling a bit pumped and proud, good for you. Now do a digital cleaning and clean-up of your hard drive (defrag and scandisk – in that order) and back up all those files you’d hate to loose.
As for canned air, the pros use it so feel free to go that route. It can prove really useful for blowing dust out of your optical drive and floppy drive as well as those hard to reach places behind the motherboard and power supply.
d
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****
Hello
everyone,
November
11th has come and gone and I hope everyone remembered to pay their
respects to our war veterans. Remembrance Day is one of the most meaningful
occasions on our calendar. I’ve made it a point to actually say thanks and
shake the hand of the veteran selling me my Poppy. Not “Thanks for the Poppy”
but “Thanks for providing me and my loved ones with the freedom we enjoy
today”! There are very few WW II vets left and I’m sure they appreciate it when
we remember their sacrifices from years gone by. Thank a Vet today!
*
I guess
we can’t complain about the weather so far this fall. It’s been snowless and
not bad temperature wise and let’s hope it stays this way for a while yet. I
can remember shoveling snow at much earlier dates than this over the years. We
got a call this morning from a friend of ours that is living in Florida for the
next 5 months. They have a condo that they are living in for the winter months
and also have a permanent home in Saint John New Brunswick. They’ve been there
for a week now and said it’s been in the low 80’s each day so far. When I see
the snow flurries drifting on occasion it makes me think joining our friends in
Florida might not be a bad idea. After all, being retired, we have the choice
of where we travel and when we have to come home. We both agree that we love
the changing seasons but the winter can get a little overwhelming after a few
months of snow and ice. I’ll just have to wait and see how tiring the ccccold
gets and decide at that point where to go if we want to warm up a tad. Carole
and I just booked a trip to Las Vegas for the week of November 15 to the 22nd.
We’ve never been there and are looking forward this trip. It’s amazing the
deals one can find on the internet for Vegas at this time of year. We’re flying
out of Toronto on a non-stop flight next Tuesday at 7pm. We arrive in Vegas at
11:30pm. The flight home will be the Red Eye leaving at midnight the following
Tuesday and arriving in Toronto at 7am. With all the choices for shows to see
and things to do once in Vegas we’ve decided to wait until we are there to book
any activities. There are all the amazing hotels and their features right in
Vegas plus the side trips such as the Hoover Dam to see. I’m sure we’ll have no
problem filling the 7 days we’ll be there. We’ll be able to kill several birds
with one stone so to speak by visiting “Paris”, “Venice” and also get a taste
of “Rome” by hitting the major hotels named after those cities right there on
the strip. I’ll break the news to Carole once we are there that this is also
her trip to Paris and Venice that she’s always want to take. LOL! Do you think
she’ll buy into that way of thinking? Hahahahaaaa….. I don’t think so but I’ll
give it a try anyway. LOL!
We know
friends that go to Vegas every year and they say they don’t tire of it because
every year there is something new to see and do. One can only gamble so much
before getting tired of that, especially if you lose. We know other people that
have said they’ve been there several times and have managed to make enough at
the casinos to pay for their trip. Let’s hope that my lucky wife is able to do
the same for us. I’ve told you all before that she is much luckier than I at
the slot machines. They say that the machines in Vegas are more liberal when it
comes to paying out. With machines on every square metre of floor space
(almost) we’ll be tempted at every turn to drop a few bucks. Setting a limit
per day seems like it may be a wise thing to do. Like I said, there is a lot to
see and do and we doubt that gambling will be the highlight. I’ll be sure to
let you all know how the vacation went when we return.
True to
form, Carole has everything well organized long before our departing flight. As
of yesterday, our luggage was packed and everything listed and checked off
several times. Guys are different of course, they can travel with a couple of
pairs of jeans, half a dozen tee shirts and underwear and some cash in a sports
bag. Women have to have at least two outfits per day and be totally coordinated
or else. I came across some travel advice in a magazine today and the biggest
piece of advice that made sense to me and should be impressed on every woman is
“Decide what clothing you want to take on your trip, hang it all on a clothes
line and then walk down that line and remove every second item and put it back
in the closet”. Most people pack way too much and if they’d follow this piece
of advice they’d enjoy their trip more because they’d have less stuff to lug
around and look after. Makes sense to any guy but………….oh well!
We’re
looking forward to this get away and I’ll keep you posted on the outcome. I’ll
also make sure that Doug receives an “Ontarion” to post on the Saturday that
we’re not here in KW. Until we return, I’ll be thinking of all of you and
wishing you were along for the ride.
Better go
finish packing some last minute items. I look forward to getting back safely
with our pockets full of American Cash so I can tell you all about Vegas!
Bye for
now and have a good week ahead!
GREG.
PS:
Something To Think About>
History:
If we don’t make a point of remembering past tragedies, we are destined to
repeat them! “Lest We Forget”
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The Family and the Squamidian sites:
http://members.shaw.ca/doug_b/ and http://www.thedougsite.ca
Have a good one..
the
doug
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