Re: [newbie] choice of computer - fix contacts
On Wed, 01 Nov 2000, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Ron, Treat unreliable connections with Stabilant22. Given that I had the problem on two motherboards, and they went away when I removed the cache RAM stick, I have been tempted to blame the RAM itself ;-) But I'll see if I can find Stabilan here in Darkest Paraguay. Cheers, Ron the Frog, on the banks of the Paraguay River. -- Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. -- Arthur C. Clarke --- http://personales.conexion.com.py/~rolgiati ---
Re: [newbie] choice of computer - fix contacts
Ron, Cards are easier to deal with than sockets. If the problem moved from board to board with the moving of the cache stick, yes, it is likely that the problem is with that RAM stick itself. So try this before the Stabilant22. Assuming that the motherboards are fine with other cache. It could also be both. Or just an unhappy combination, which Stabilant22 will work on. RAM is especially sensitive to static, as I'm sure you already know. So use care when trying what I describe. SIMMs, DIMMs, etc. are all basically small circuit boards with memory chips mounted on them. Using a strong magnifier (12x jewelers loop equivalent as a minimum) look for hair-line cracks in the circuit traces on the circuit board, especially where the (socket contact) pads narrow to normal trace size and go up to the RAM chips, and around where each chip is soldered to the traces on the board. Both sides. If you don't find anything, as I suspect that you won't, proceed to the contact cleaning. If the contact pads themselves don't look clean and shiny, being especially careful to use static control procedures, literally rub the pads with a paper towel. A horizontal scrubbing across all of the pads is fine as long as you are using your fingers to press the paper towel to the contact pads. Just pinch the folded (double thick) paper towel on the contacts (pinching front to back) and slide the board back and forth sideways. [I usually hold the stick and run my fingers and the paper towel back and forth. Just don't get too vigorous.] If a particular pad does not clean up well in this way, carefully use a pencil eraser (not an ink eraser!), stroking the pad itself from the card down toward the bottom edge of the contact pad. Wipe the eraser leftovers off with a paper towel -- again downward only, NOT side to side as you had done before. Try it and see if it works. -Gary- In a message dated 11/2/2000 6:23:08 AM Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: On Wed, 01 Nov 2000, [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Ron, Treat unreliable connections with Stabilant22. Given that I had the problem on two motherboards, and they went away when I removed the cache RAM stick, I have been tempted to blame the RAM itself ;-) But I'll see if I can find Stabilan here in Darkest Paraguay. Cheers, Ron the Frog, on the banks of the Paraguay River. --
Re: [newbie] choice of computer - fix contacts
Ron, Treat unreliable connections with Stabilant22. It can work magic, as long as the problem is in the sockets and not broken contacts in the multi-level motherboard beneith them [see below for how to test]. TV radiofrequency contacts, high end stereo, computers, any low voltage contacts. I wouldn't have believed that one product would work so well in such widely different environments and uses if I hadn't used it these ways myself. A 15 mL service kit (about $30 in the U.S.) is more than sufficient. This stuff is manufactured in Canada by: D.W. Electrochemicals Ltd. 97 Newkirk Road North Richmond Hill, Ontario L4C 3G4 CANADA Write them and they will give you any local dealers. I do know know about a web site though I would expect them to have one. If there are no local dealers, and you might be surprised that there may be since this stuff is used in service of critical electronics, you can mailorder directly from them. Now the warning, I only found that it helped about twice a year when I was working as a computer technician. Hand "rock" the socket itself sideways (you don't want to be rough with this) (without touching anything in the socket or allowing it to NOT move freely as the socket is rocked -- disconnect any chassis attachment, loosen cables so that the board moves along with the socket, etc.) while operating whatever is in the socket. Not touching any bare contacts may be difficult, that's to be expected. If things go berserk its the motherboard not the socket. If it's the motherboard it's unreparable beyond what you can achieve by wedging toothpicks under the socket, etc. If it's the socket the Stabilant22 WILL solve your problem. -Gary- In a message dated 11/1/2000 1:35:03 AM Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: My thanks to all who helped, Frankenstein has woken up again and is working; Took the MB that supported 4 banks of memory, put on it the fastest CPU, and apart from a flaky cache RAM-stick and having to juggle PCI boards around to get them to work, no problem. I can now wade through 1200 emails that have accumulated in between time ;-( Thanks again to all for the kind advice. Ron the Frog, on the banks of the Paraguay River.
