Filipino Computer Hardware Servicing Technician from Roxas, City Capiz Philippines (Region 6 Western Visayas) for more information contact me via email at renanorola@hotmail.com

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Diagnosing Computer Problems, troubleshooting computer problems

April 17, 2008

Fixing your computer is one thing; actually diagnosing the problem with your PC is another. If your computer is giving you a strange error, or if you are having problems pinpointing random problems such as blue screens or continuous reboots, take a step back and follow these initial steps to troubleshoot the problem:

Make sure you PC is plugged directly into an AC outlet. If your computer is connected to a power strip, power down the PC and disconnect it from the surge protector. Plug the PC directly into the wall to eliminate the power strip as being a potential problem. It is not uncommon to see a UPS or generic power strip become weak or fail altogether. With that said, if you use a power strip, make sure it’s switched on. If you own animals or have children, it’s not impossible for the switch to get turned off.

Make sure the voltage selector switch is set to the proper position on the back of the computer where the power supply is located. If you live in the United States, this should be set to 115. Normally, this will not change, as it’s a hard switch to accidentally move. But if you purchase a new power supply of buy a PC second-hand, you should check this to make sure it wasn’t moved.

If your keyboard or mouse doesn’t work on boot, make sure all connections are secure. Check to make sure there are no bent pins if these are PS/2 connectors. If your mouse and keyboard are USB, try moving them to a different port. If that doesn’t help, find a PS/2 keyboard (with the round connector) and plug that it. It’s possible the USB ports have been turned off or the keyboard and mouse is set to PS/2 in the BIOS. Access the BIOS setup and change this setting to USB.

If the computer randomly reboots, you can turn off the automatic restart in Windows by right-clicking My Computer, then click Properties and under the Advanced tab, click the Startup and Recovery button and uncheck the Automatically Restart option. This will produce a blue screen when the error occurs. The error code will at least give you some type of reference point when diagnosing errors.

Listen for beeps and write down and errors or recent upgrade history you have with the computer. Knowing the history and listening to the subtle noises the computer makes is key for a technician when repairing your computer.

Posted by renanorola at 2:11 pm | permalink | comments[1]

Tips for being a successfull programmer

Everyone who is on a large-scale project can benefit from this simple, yet amazing advice. It’s the best way to make sure your code works. It can be summed up as follows:

Why? As you are writing your code, everything makes sense to you. Your train of thought is fresh and you don’t forsee any errors. However, after about a week or so of not touching your code, the patterns you formed in your brain as you wrote begin to diminish. By the time you return to your code, you are looking with the critical eye of someone who never saw this code before.

Novelists have the same problem: Everything makes sense to them, but nobody else understands it. Then, the author re-reads the passage and says: "Wait. I was trying to say [insert point here]". Then, s/he rewrites it more clearly. This is a good strategy to implement when writing code.

The larger the project, the more you can benefit from this. As I type, I am checking about a thousand lines or so of code. I need my comments; otherwise, it’s incomprehensible. Even so, I’m finding tons of things I did that were redundant, prone to error, or just plain wrong altogether.

Of course, those who do programming for a career can’t just tell their boss they’re taking a week off to "de-familarize yourself" with the project. But that’s what teams of programmers are for: To help watch for errors. This advice is better suited for the solo programmer.

 Also be sure to compile your code every now and then to make sure there are no, compile errors, and syntax errors. That way when the project is completely finished all you have to worry about are the run-time errors.
 

Posted by renanorola at 1:58 pm | permalink | Add comment