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Technology Computing, programming, science, electronics, telecommunications, etc. |
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#1 |
King Of Wishful Thinking
Join Date: Jan 2001
Location: Philadelphia Suburbs
Posts: 6,669
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Close Call
This morning I woke up and thought I'd overslept. The clock said 12:57. It took me a few moments to realize we'd had another brief power failure in the middle of the night.
I didn't think anything of it until an hour or so later when I went to turn on my desktop. Click. Silence. Then I knew I was screwed. A few months ago we installed a 'power leveller' in the house. The main reason for this is that our wired smoke alarms would go off briefly with any power surge, Last night the smoke alarms did not go off. So even with the power leveller and a surge suppressor, I had a dead computer. I tried all of tricks I could think of. Turning the surge suppressor off and on. Resetting the CMOS jumper. Nothing worked. My power supply had a green LED that was dark. I couldn't remember if the LED was always on or only on if the computer was on, but this gave me some hope. So I disconnected and disassembled the power supply looking for a circuit breaker. I didn't find any but I did see something like scorch marks on one of the parts. This gave me hope that I had a dead power supply and possibly not a dead motherboard. Now my computer has been deteriorating for the past few months. I've had overheating and other issues. It's a Presario 2600 with an AMD Sempron and 1.5GB of RAM. With the extra software I've loaded and the ever increasing demands of McAfee Antivirus, it seems to be getting slower. I am in the market for a new computer, but I wasn't intending to rush. So my first visit was to Second Source to see if they had a used power supply. On the way there I was guessing $10 and this turned out to be the price. I brought my old power supply with me and they confirmed that it was DOA. Again that spark of hope. I got home and installed the power supply. I had a moment of panic before I remembered that I had disconnected the power switch from the motherboard. So I've bought myself some time.
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Exercise your rights and remember your obligations - VOTE!I have always believed that hope is that stubborn thing inside us that insists, despite all the evidence to the contrary, that something better awaits us so long as we have the courage to keep reaching, to keep working, to keep fighting. -- Barack Hussein Obama |
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#2 |
I know, right?
Join Date: Aug 2008
Posts: 1,539
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Our power went off briefly last night, too. Weird.
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#3 |
Professor
Join Date: Jun 2009
Posts: 1,622
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Conspiracy...
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#4 |
Doctor Wtf
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: Badelaide, Baustralia
Posts: 12,861
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*thinks* when did I last back up my hard drive?
Too long ago. Damn, there's another thing that needs doing.
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Shut up and hug. MoreThanPretty, Nov 5, 2008. Just because I'm nominally polite, does not make me a pussy. Sundae Girl. |
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#5 |
Read? I only know how to write.
Join Date: Jan 2001
Posts: 11,933
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#6 |
The future is unwritten
Join Date: Oct 2002
Posts: 71,105
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Watch out Rich, tw's setting you up for a lecture.
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The descent of man ~ Nixon, Friedman, Reagan, Trump. |
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#7 |
cellar smellar
Join Date: Oct 2001
Location: californy, baby!
Posts: 403
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Well, this definition resembles the mouse picture above, but that's not what we're looking for. From context, I assume a "power leveler" is a machine for stabilizing the voltage coming into the house. I'd love to provide a link, but Google can't find any useful links for "power leveler" (except for companies that provide the above linked service.) I suspect it's not the correct formal name for the machine.
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#8 |
Snowflake
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Dystopia
Posts: 13,136
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power conditioner
voltage regulator
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****************** There's a level of facility that everyone needs to accomplish, and from there it's a matter of deciding for yourself how important ultra-facility is to your expression. ... I found, like Joseph Campbell said, if you just follow whatever gives you a little joy or excitement or awe, then you're on the right track. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Terry Bozzio |
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#9 |
Read? I only know how to write.
Join Date: Jan 2001
Posts: 11,933
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But there is not such thing on AC electric. Voltage is stabilized back at the substation since that equipment must be large, expensive, located behind security fences for safety reasons, carefully maintained, and remotely monitored.
One item to adjust power - to decrease electric bills - was a synchronous motor that ran constantly and powered nothing. I doubt anyone has a large spinning electric motor constantly running and mounted to the basement floor. What is a power leveler? |
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#10 |
Snowflake
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Dystopia
Posts: 13,136
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__________________
****************** There's a level of facility that everyone needs to accomplish, and from there it's a matter of deciding for yourself how important ultra-facility is to your expression. ... I found, like Joseph Campbell said, if you just follow whatever gives you a little joy or excitement or awe, then you're on the right track. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Terry Bozzio |
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#11 | |
Beware of potatoes
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Upstate NY, USA
Posts: 2,078
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Quote:
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"I believe that being despised by the despicable is as good as being admired by the admirable." |
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#12 |
Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location: Not here
Posts: 2,655
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I think it has something to do with World of Warcraft.
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#13 |
Read? I only know how to write.
Join Date: Jan 2001
Posts: 11,933
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#14 |
To shreds, you say?
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: in the house and on the street-how many, many feet we meet!
Posts: 18,449
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This'll do the job.
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The internet is a hateful stew of vomit you can never take completely seriously. - Her Fobs |
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#15 |
Read? I only know how to write.
Join Date: Jan 2001
Posts: 11,933
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Assuming you do not have a garage that large, then what is that power leveler?
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