“You make it seem so simple.” How often have we told a repairman that as we watch a malfunctioning device come back to life? Our car mechanic looks under the hood and immediately determines why the car won’t start. Even our lowly computer techs listen to us as we describe how our binary friend refuses to start and before our portrayal of the problem is complete the computer comes to life under their magical administrations.
How do they do that? Surely there are schools and training that come into play. In my case, I once worked for a major company that over ten years spent close to $40,000 to make sure that I could keep their computers, servers and employees operating at peak efficiency. There is the multitude of Tech forums and online magazines (e-zines) that give insight to common and obscure problems.
There is a principle attributed to the 14th-century English logician and Franciscan friar William of Ockham called Occam’s Razor. This is often paraphrased as "All other things being equal, the simplest solution is the best." How does this apply to what techs do when they miraculously resurrect our malfunctioning PC servants? Let’s follow along as a tech makes a house call. The problems are real; the names are changed to protect the innocent. (Martha, he’s talking about you.)
“Help, I can’t get my email and when I go to my home page it says the page cannot be displayed.” “I restarted my computer and it still won’t let me get my mail.” The tech walks into the room, eyes moving purposely over the computer, screen, wires, outlets, printers and other hardware. As his eyes scan the modem, he notices that the DSL light isn’t on (if using Embarq) or the Online or Cable light isn’t on the Comcast modem. He reaches down, pulls the power cable out of the modem, counts to ten and plugs it back in. In a few moments ALL the lights come on and he opens Outlook Express and the client is astounded as email comes pouring in. He opens Internet Explorer and the home page pops up ready to serve up our Internet requests. Occam’s Razor.
“I don’t know what is wrong. My laptop is frozen and I can’t shut it down. I pulled the power cord out, the screen goes black but as soon as I plug it back in, the screen takes me back to where I was. Does this mean I need a new computer?” The tech reaches around and pulls out the power cord. But he knows that on a laptop, the battery immediately takes over and keeps the computer running. He turns over the laptop, pops out the battery, waits a moment or two, reinstalls the battery, turns the laptop back over, plugs in the power cord and presses the on button. The laptop fires up and goes through the normal startup procedure waiting for the user’s commands. Occam’s Razor.
“The computer is dead. The monitor is on, the printer works, the lights on the modem are blinking but the computer won’t start.” Our fearless tech notices that the components are all plugged into a surge protector. First he verifies that the plug is firmly seated in the back of the PC. Next he pulls the plug out of the surge protector and plugs it into a different socket. Press the power button on the tower and the computer fires up, just a bad socket on the surge protector. Check for power. Occam’s Razor.
“My computer takes for ever to start and then runs so slow I can make a cup of coffee and come back before the computer is ready for me. I switched to high speed Internet and it didn’t make any difference. Do I need a new computer?” The tech knows that the high speed Internet connection only affects the speed from the Internet TO the computer. It has absolutely no effect on the speed of the computer. After explaining the relationship between the computer and the Internet connection, he then begins to take out the trash. The tech uninstalls every program on the computer that is not being used. It is amazing how many programs put themselves in the computer’s start up even if we don’t use them. Kodak Easyshare and MS Messenger just to name a couple. If you don’t use it, get rid of it. Now the computer won’t take forever to start up because it won’t have as many programs to start.
Occam’s Razor.
|
Grumbles From The Keyboard: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love My Computer: Courtland Nederveld: 9781467985895: Books
|
Epicuria: An Adventure That Really Cooks!: Court Nederveld: 9781456561734: Books
No comments:
Post a Comment