The Cellar - View Single Post - How do I "scrub" an old computer with Widows XP?

IamSam · 03-09-2013, 04:41 PM

Thank you for the info, guys!

But the plot now thickens:

I also did a little research of my own on the Internet and posted my question on two other very large boards that have forums especially dedicated to answering members' questions about computer problems. (They gave me pretty much the same info as both of you did).

With all this helpful knowledge in mind, I got friend one's computer out of the back seat of my truck and started to set it up. And son of a bitch, I couldn't plug in the monitor because that little metal housing (don't know the terminology) that surrounds the prongs where you attach the monitor on the back, plus the screws that go on either side were gone. Not only that, but the prongs themselves were all bent up and out of alignment - no way ANYONE was going to be able to plug in a monitor to THAT.

I decided to quit while I was already behind and called up friend one to ask him who in the world took apart that monitor from the tower? I've worked on that old computer before (friend one is so clueless, he calls me up for every little thing in regard to his computer), and the monitor hook-up on the tower was just fine.

Friend one tried to implicate me as the culprit, but no way did I buy into that, and I let him know that he was off base in no uncertain terms. While I'm hardly an infallible computer specialist, I bought my first computer back in the days of DOS, and I've had any number of computers since, and even tinkered around with them a little "under the hood." And I DO know the proper way to attach and unattach components from a tower.

It was obvious to me that someone who was very impatient and didn't even want to bother to loosen the screws (or didn't even know that they needed to be loosened), worked the monitor attachment back and forth in an attempt to remove it, causing the male prongs to become bent and out of alignment. Then to add insult to injury, they yanked as hard as they could on the cord, finally freeing the female end along with the screws and everything else.

Now who do I know who can be very impatient and knows nothing about computers? Could it be friend one? Hmmmm...

So now friend one wants me to go in there and remove the damaged part and replace it with a new one. The thought of doing this gives me no joy. Sure, I can remove the outer backing, but it's been a long time since I've found it necessary to tinker with the innards of a computer, and I have no idea what I'll find; plus, I don't have the right tools; plus, this small town has nowhere to find electronics parts. I'll have to find the gizmo on the Internet somewhere and have it shipped. Or I could make the 100 mile round trip to Durango and buy the part there.

And after all that, I STILL get to figure out how to do a factory restore of XP onto the damned thing. I'm glad to help out a friend, but this is becoming ridiculous, so I told friend one, "no can do."

Or do components just snap into the innards of a computer like legos these days and cost under $10 to buy?

03-09-2013, 04:41 PM	#8
IamSam Now living the life of a POW Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: The Lost Corners of Colorado Posts: 202	Thank you for the info, guys! But the plot now thickens: I also did a little research of my own on the Internet and posted my question on two other very large boards that have forums especially dedicated to answering members' questions about computer problems. (They gave me pretty much the same info as both of you did). With all this helpful knowledge in mind, I got friend one's computer out of the back seat of my truck and started to set it up. And son of a bitch, I couldn't plug in the monitor because that little metal housing (don't know the terminology) that surrounds the prongs where you attach the monitor on the back, plus the screws that go on either side were gone. Not only that, but the prongs themselves were all bent up and out of alignment - no way ANYONE was going to be able to plug in a monitor to THAT. I decided to quit while I was already behind and called up friend one to ask him who in the world took apart that monitor from the tower? I've worked on that old computer before (friend one is so clueless, he calls me up for every little thing in regard to his computer), and the monitor hook-up on the tower was just fine. Friend one tried to implicate me as the culprit, but no way did I buy into that, and I let him know that he was off base in no uncertain terms. While I'm hardly an infallible computer specialist, I bought my first computer back in the days of DOS, and I've had any number of computers since, and even tinkered around with them a little "under the hood." And I DO know the proper way to attach and unattach components from a tower. It was obvious to me that someone who was very impatient and didn't even want to bother to loosen the screws (or didn't even know that they needed to be loosened), worked the monitor attachment back and forth in an attempt to remove it, causing the male prongs to become bent and out of alignment. Then to add insult to injury, they yanked as hard as they could on the cord, finally freeing the female end along with the screws and everything else. Now who do I know who can be very impatient and knows nothing about computers? Could it be friend one? Hmmmm... So now friend one wants me to go in there and remove the damaged part and replace it with a new one. The thought of doing this gives me no joy. Sure, I can remove the outer backing, but it's been a long time since I've found it necessary to tinker with the innards of a computer, and I have no idea what I'll find; plus, I don't have the right tools; plus, this small town has nowhere to find electronics parts. I'll have to find the gizmo on the Internet somewhere and have it shipped. Or I could make the 100 mile round trip to Durango and buy the part there. And after all that, I STILL get to figure out how to do a factory restore of XP onto the damned thing. I'm glad to help out a friend, but this is becoming ridiculous, so I told friend one, "no can do." Or do components just snap into the innards of a computer like legos these days and cost under $10 to buy? __________________ This space left intentionally blank. Last edited by IamSam; 03-09-2013 at 04:46 PM.