Computer Troubleshooting

You may have experienced having your computer intermittently hangs-up, or may re-boot itself for no apparent reason. This can be annoying, and can mean you have lost valuable work that you we in the process of creating.

If this has happened once, then your chances of explaining the cause are remote in the extreme. If you find it happening regularly, then it is clearly in your interest to find and fix the problem.

There are a few things you can check for yourself that may save you a trip to the repair shop.

With most modern computers, the system comes with built in circuitry to monitor the state of the computer. One of the checks built into your system is to test the operating temperature. The computer may shut down if this moves outside the desirable operating range.

For your system to run at the correct operating temperature it is important that air circulates freely in and around the case. If you have the computer case installed inside an enclosure, then this may be the first thing to consider changing. Similarly, I have seen computers covered with books, manuals and paper documents. These again can hinder air circulation, and these items should be removed. Take a look at the slotted vents in the sides of the case. These slots can become blocked by an accumulation of dust. Because the computer is usually always drawing some power, it has a constant electrostatic charge. A computer is second only to a vacuum cleaner in its ability to suck in dust and fluff.

Taking the cover of the case will also show the dust build-up inside the computer. Be careful removing dust accumulations from internal components. This is probably best done with a soft artist’s brush or an aerosol can of compressed air.

Next, take a look at the internal cooling fans. Modern computer usually have a cooling fan perched on top of the processor. This fan should be clear of dust, and running freely, without obvious scraping noises, when the computer is operating. It is OK to start the computer with the case cover removed, just be careful not to poke things into the various components. There will also be a cooling fan inside or attached to the power supply. This again should be free of dust and running freely. Some computers may also have an additional case fan. This will be screwed on over one of the slotted case vents, and typically be running from a cable connected to the mother board. Not all machines have a separate case fan, but if it is there, it is there for a reason. Apply the same checks to this fan.

If you have identified faults with your cooling fans, this may require a trip to your local repair shop. The repair technician may also suggest that the CPU heat sink be removed and re-placed with fresh heat transfer compound, which is a straightforward job for an experienced repairer.

The computer monitor (also called the screen, the monitor, the display, or the CRT) shows what you type on the keyboard and what the computer’s response is. Like a TV screen, the monitor usually has an on/off switch. Note, however, that on many monitors, the off position is marked with a 0 (zero), and the on position is marked with a 1 (one).In addition to the on/off switch, your monitor might also include a knob to control brightness (sometimes identified with a “sunburst” symbol) and another knob control contrast (sometimes identified by a circle divided into a dark half and a light half). Use these to adjust the brightness and contrast on your screen to make text more legible and background colors easier on your eyes.

Types of Monitor

Monochrome Composite - The earliest computers used

Televisions as displays. A typical TV however can only show about 40 characters on a line before text. Becomes unreadable. To solve this problem and allow 80 characters per line (the normal width of a page) -the monochrome composite monitor was developed (monochrome meaning one color). The resolution of this monitor was still extremely poor and as a result (his type of monitor is no longer popular.

Color Composite - The color composite monitor is similar to the monochrome composite except that it displays color. Its resolution is oven more limited than the. Monochrome ‘ composite monitor. For that reason it (along with the monochrome composite monitor) has been rarely purchased nowadays.

Monochrome Display (TTL) - When IBM introduced its PC in 1081. IBM also offered a new type of monitor. Tills monitor came with a green screen and offered high resolution. In advertisements you may see this type of monitor referred to as a TTL monochrome monitor because it uses transistor-transistor logic (TTL) circuitry. ‘

Because (/, its high resolution, the TTL monitor quickly became the standard for word processing, spreadsheet, and other primarily text oriented uses. Presently the majority of computers use TTL monitors because they are inexpensive and of1er very good resolution.

RGB (Red-Green-Blue) - Another monitor IBM released with

The PC was the Red-Green-Blue (RGB) monitor RGB refers to the 3 electron guns inside the monitor. One fires one electron

Beam for red colors for green and third for blue. These three colors together make up a palette of 16 possible colors.

Though resolution on an RGB monitor is poor resulting in fuzzy and

Eye-fatiguing text. This monitor has how become technologically out of dale and is rarely seen any more.

Enhanced Graphics Adapter (EGA) Monitor - There were many complaints about the poor resolution of the RGB monitor. To address there complaints, IBM introduced in 1934 the Enhanced Graphics Adapter monitor.

EGA got. Off to a slow start because of IBM’s typically high price and the initial lack of software support, ‘however manufacturers soon make clones of the EGA monitor. This of-course has result in lower prices and increased software support. EGA is now very popular due its color ability e/en through the resolution of text Js only just of acceptable quality. The Egoâ€™s resolution is still not as sharp as that of TTL monitor.

Professional Graphics Adapter (PGA) Monitor - The resolution of EGA was still not high enough for many professional application so in 1985. IBM offered the Professional Graphics Adapter (PGA) monitor.

Multiscan Monitors -Moving from one generation of; monitor and its corresponding display card has previously meant discarding the old monitor and purchasing a new one. For example; if you had purchased an RGB monitor and CGA card and then had upgraded to an EGA card, you should have, had the added expense of purchasing an EGA monitor as well This problem has somewhat resolved when Nippon Electric, Co. (NEC) brought out the first rnultiscan monitor that could be used with a wide variety of cards. It is versatile type of monitor because it automatically synchronizes to the scanning rate of most display cards. These monitors are also known as “multi-displays” or as “multi-syncs.”

IBM VGA Monitor - In April 1973, IBM announced its new PS/2 series– of computers, which came with a new analog monitor and display adapter, call 3d the Video Graphics Array (VGA). Clone makers have already started making !BM VGA clone monitors. Also most Multiscan monitors will work with the VGA card.

Super High Resolution (Full Page) Monitor - Beyond the resolution of PGA and VGA is a non-standardized realm of resolution where each manufacturer more or less makes it own monitor and display card combination. We could refer them as “super high resolution” or as “full page” monitors because (hey allow word. processing and desk top-publishing software to show an entire page of 80 columns, by 66 lines or more.

Computer Monitor Troubleshooting