Don't get your computer built in Georgia

[polarbee.livejournal.com]

Computer came in with pretty standard complaint. Slow, popups, shutting down. Checked it and discovered that sure enough it had a heap o viruses. Just to be on the safe side I started testing the hardware. Wasn't really kicking out any errors. Went into the BIOS. Hmm....that's funny. All of the CPU temp warnings had been disabled. So I reenabled them. Immediately the warnings started going off. So I pulled the heatsink to clean it as it was pretty caked in dust. Found underneath it a lovely AMD processor. With nary a sign of heatsink paste in sight.

It had been built for our customer by some company down in Georgia before she moved up here a year ago.

Damn.

Comments

[major-error.livejournal.com]

...and no graphite thermal pad on the HS?

It seems the level of customer dis-service is trying to find a new high.
Neglecting a thermal transfer medium is one thing, but disabling the alarms too? oy!

[polarbee.livejournal.com]

No pad. Although the CPU did do a nice job of heat etching itself into the bottom of the aluminum heatsink.

[major-error.livejournal.com]

I don't think it's /that/ unusual....even with paste, my old Athlon 1.4 at home has done a fine job etching the water-cooling block clamped to it.

[hisamishness.livejournal.com]

Sounds like it was built by the guy who applied to my shop once -- he had put a multimedia kit in, found it wnet easily, and thought that was all there was to being a tech.

;-)

[compsth.livejournal.com]

*gasp* there's more?? ;)

[kizayaen.livejournal.com]

Yeah. All of us who build computers in Georgia suck very badly.

[polarbee.livejournal.com]

Course, I've seen blazing examples of complete stupidity from other Alaskan shops as well. I think idiocy is universal. :)