Computer 'crashed'...

[incka]

I turned on the electricity and I heard a cracking sound, the monitor, scanner, etc turned on, but the computer would not.

Has the computer blown or is it just the fuse in the plug?

[incka]

It's not the fuse...

So is my whole computer ruined or just the power supply?

Is it worth fixing when it is almost two years old and only got £450 at the time?

I backed up a week ago, however I will loose my accounts update and several ad network reviews, plus thousands of emails.

[r2d2]

Could be - try another lead, or change the fuse. And another socket to be sure, or check something else in the socket.

If its all ok, and still nothing, probably ur power supply.

[r2d2]

I had my power supply 'go' last year, it took the motherboard with it, but I would hope ur harddrive would be ok.

You could get another power supply for ~£20.

[incka]

How much for installation though?

I checked another power lead already.

[r2d2]

Its not that difficult. Just take a note of what cables are plugged in where and then plug in the new ones.

If not, Im sure PCWorld would fit it for you, but dont expect the assistant to know any more than you do about computers :) Surely you must know someone who could do it?

[incka]

I do know someone, the only problem is he is in St Johns, Worcester, which is too far away...

PC World take weeks to fix anything.

I'll try doing it myself. Could I pick up the parts from PC World?

[Dan Morgan]

You can pick up PSU's in at PC World cheaply. Its literally a 2 minute swap. Head over to their generic parts rather than trying to get anything branded.

[Westech]

Be careful of static electricity when working in your PC. (Static electricity is the stuff that shocks you when you touch a doorknob.) Even a shock that is too small for you to feel can damage PC parts. Make sure that you touch something metal and grounded to discharge any static you've built up both before you begin the repair and frequently during the repair so you don't zap your computer.

[incka]

OK. I've never got static from door knobs, only trampolines and cars.

[Mike]

Maybe get those static gloves or a static mat at PC world?

[incka]

Damn, I forgot the static thing. At least it's working. And I probably did touch a lot of metal before going in it (screwdrivers, doorhandles, case, etc). Gareth fitted it for me.

[r2d2]

Is actually good to touch metal as long as it is earthed. When doing things other than changing PSU, I leave the power lead plugged in so the whole case is earthed.

Good work getitng it working though. Recovered all ur emails etc? Should always backup your PST files along with normal backups.

[incka]

HD is fine.

I can't get to my emails until incka.com propagates.

[r2d2]

You could put incka.com in your hosts file.

Heres a guide: http://www.outpostfirewall.com/guide/faq/hosts.htm

hosts file is in C:\WINDOWS\system32\drivers\etc on XP.

[AndyH]

I backed up a week ago, however I will loose my accounts update and several ad network reviews, plus thousands of emails.

Ummm, from what you described it has nothing to do with the hard drive so all your data will be fine.

[incka]

Yeah, I was talking about if it had blown my HD, but it didn't.

[Jaffro]

rare for Hd's to go now days. I've blown loads of power supplys :D hehe but they're only cheap.

You may want to consider getting an external drive incka, i got one a few years ago (40GB Maxtor USB2.0) then took it apart to find it was only a standard HDD in a case with a USB bridge. I've now taken in out and have it in my desktop, when i need it on usb2 i can pop it straight back in again. Am also considering buying a new hd to put in the external case as they're so cheap at the moment, could probably find a decent 'internal' hdd and use it as an external without the higher cost :D helpful with data too.

Anyway, other stuff like RAID will increase your chance of saving data if your hard drive does fail. I lost a lot (or i thought i had) when an old hdd died, downloaded a program called, ermm, R Studio i think it was, it recovered everything as if i was copying from one hdd to another :) damn useful!

edit: PS good job on getting it fixed!

[Chris]

I do not have, but want to get, a Maxtor One Touch external hard drive. There is a button on it that you press and it automatically backs up your system.

[incka]

I just back up to my server once a week... Only important files.

[freekrai]

I do not have, but want to get, a Maxtor One Touch external hard drive. There is a button on it that you press and it automatically backs up your system.

I have one of those for backing up my development work.

Works nicely.

I usually do a weekly back up then store the drive in my safe.

When my house got robbed and my computer (and all other expensive electronic stuff) got stolen in June, having that backup saved my butt.

[incka]

My suggestion: Move away from a city into rural canada. Less crime there. :p


I might get one... Depends on how much I earn in December. If it's over 5k profit I will...

[freekrai]

My suggestion: Move away from a city into rural canada. Less crime there. :p


I might get one... Depends on how much I earn in December. If it's over 5k profit I will...

I grew up in rural Canada before I moved to Kelowna. City's only got about 100,000. But also has the distinct privilage of one of the highest crime rates in Western Canada.

I'd probably move, if I didn't like it here so much.

Oh well, at least this time I've got content insurance to cover the new stuff I had to buy to replace the stuff that got stolen.

We border the only desert in Canada, so that gives us the most unique climates. 40 degree summers.... very little snow... But some of the best snowboarding in the country at the same time.