Overheating and Suburbs
My computer has recently taken a dump on itself, prompting me to completely reinstall everything on it. It turned out, after the reinstall, that my problem seemed to be related to my graphics card. So, this morning, I opened up my computer, pulled out the video card, and saw that its red color was completely undistinguishable, under the prolific layer of dust. I shook the majority of the standing dust off, making an impressive allergy cloud in the middle of my bedroom.

I found that the dust caking was so heavy around the fan on the card that the fan wasn't able to easily spin. I determined that this must have been my problem, so I unscrewed the fan from its housing, and watched the screws slip into a pandimensional vortex, never to be seen on the prime material plane again. I decided to worry about that when it was urgent, and set about clearing the dust out of the disparate corners of the heatsink and fan, with an old(I hope) toothbrush. If I had directed all the removed dust into a pile in the middle of the floor, I could have wallowed in it.

After everything was shiny again, I turned my attention back to the screws I needed to secure the fan to its housing on the video card. I began taking things apart, to see if they had any screws in them that I could use, and I was rewarded in my search when I encountered the body screws of my old camera. I set about reattaching the fan with the unlicensed screws, and after about five minutes, had the card back in the computer, and turned it back on.

The first time, the computer sounded a bunch of alarming beeps, indicating to me that the video card wasn't seated properly, so I pushed it back in, and hit the power again. Beep! I removed the screw holding the card in place, pushed the card flush against the slot in which it was cradled, hit the power button, and no problem came after that. I carefully reattached the screw to hold the card in place, turned the power back on, and the beeps returned. It seems that the screw was the problem, so I took it out, closed up the case, and turned on the computer again.

It seemed fine, but after about ten minutes or so, about the same time I had finished paying my bills, the screen went crazy, as if the computer was showing me the fun results of its new drug habit. I turned it off, swore aloud, punched a pillow a few times, and got in the car to buy a new video card.

I don't think I can describe my feelings about many things with the word, "hate," but I hate Overland Park, KS. As in, if someone can have a town for their nemesis, mine would be Overland Park. Unfortunately, OP is where the highest concentration of computer and electronics stores in the metropolitan area is, so I began my search at Microcenter, at 94th and Metcalf. They didn't have anything, so I drove down to 115th and Metcalf, to Best Buy, and picked out a new video card for an ungodly sum, as the form factor for my card(AGP) is a dying breed, and dying breeds cost a lot.

I drove home, and saw that I had put almost fifty miles on my car, just to get a damned computer part. The good news, however, is that it works now. At least, it works so far. I suppose the jury is still out.

I need a beer.

Tosspot chimed in with:
When don't you need a beer John?

And thanks for reminding me that I need to uncable my Dell desktop and deracinate the dust bunnies residing therein. It's been quite some time.

Overbuilt Park is a glaring example emblazoned on the landscape of everything that is wrong with American culture - indeed the very microcosm on display of a feckless society.

6:14 PM, Jan 27, 2006

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