h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

*has an IWA*

Yesterday my computer couldn't stand the thought of letting IE work..tonight it doesn't like ICQ...what can i do?

hit it. Hard. With a virtual stick

*Sounds of banging and drilling heard in the corner*

*pipes and humming conduits are going behind a white shroud like sheet that covers the work*

*Contemplates what might be going on behind the sheet as he picks up breakfast JD.*

*looks worriedly at sheet*

Good morning Joanna! I like that recommendation of the virtual stick. Impact engineering works for me too. What's going on over there under the plastic sheet? *picks up carton of donuts for cafe* Back later. Must check on cafe.

*Asks for honey doughnut*

*hands over honey donut*

Its slightly more practical, Lil, than my other favoured piece of advice when things go wrong: cry.

Thanks.

*over the banging noises coming from under the sheet*

Hi, Joanna. I came by to pick up a box of doughnuts for the 24-Seven. And a MCA for me, too, please.

*hands box and MCA over to WM*

if I'm not here when you call, the 24-Seven donuts will be in a box with the Aroma Café ones, clearly labelled naturally...

*stares at sheet trying to work out what on earth is going on*

That'll be great.

I was about to back-click (did I just invent a euphemism?) to see what the hub-bub is all about, but I see that you are as mystifed as I am.

Good evening,

need a bit of sweets after a hard day IRL, uff!

May I have a honey one?
Oh, and I wouldn't say no to a hot cappucino, is it possible?

*hands over drink & donut*

Sorry for the slow service eat and enjoy...

Thanks, Joanna.

Now I can go back to RL, cause I have the donut-strongness! *g*

*sound of humming grows and the MH tank starts beeping worridly. Braying heard under the sheet briefly*

*poking head out*

Is the tank all right?

*Asks for honey doughnut*

Hello everybody

*Too preoccupied to talk*

*An immense roar and flash of light silhouettes Joe against the inside of the sheet*

*Sound like a softly slopping river bank heard from within*

*pokes head out*

Almost ready

E, sorry I wasn't in to try and answer this yesterday...

Did you perhaps notice a correlation between the temperature outside and the computer problems? Most machines these days are running about as hot as they can without failing. Unfortunately, on a *really* warm day, you see a spate of mysterious machine failures caused by the fan's inability to cool things properly when it's being fed with warm air. These usually "fix themselves" as soon as things cool down again. Unfortunately, people suffering these problems tend to faff around "reconfiguring" things in an attempt to figure out what's going on, and thereby introduce more persistent faults.

If you haven't done anything to your system, and the problems have gone away as the weather cools down, then don't worry about it. Just find a cooler place to set your PC up next summer!

An interesting aside - this can also happen in Winter, if your PC is on a desk over a radiator... You can often correlate a spate of failures in an office to the day the central heating came on!

:-) My laptop does that, Peet... her moral is 'overheat, overheat!' Anyways, get your donuts here: http://www.h2g2.com/F26840?thread=68681 (300 being the approximate upper limit for the stall from now on perhaps maybe. :-))