Useless Conversation

[Mandella]

No clue, though if it were something like that wouldn't the PSU have burned everything out?

Here's the fallout.


I cut that lead off of the power supply because even unplugged it was still getting hot enough to smoke. Starting at the two connectors prior to this one all the orange wires have melted and exposed wires. Only that jack was plugged-into anything so there has to have been a short somewhere, just no idea where. That it happened suddenly like this is the strange part.

I wasn't able to get the mobo to post at all last night, so that might be fried as well. Looks like a trip to Microcenter for a new PSU, Mobo and Chipset is in order. The rest of the machine is salvagable, checked the SSD and it still powers-up so I'll be able to get the data off of it at least.

You may want to open up the power supply and see what the hell it looks like in there, just out of curiosity. And do you really think you have any data intact on that SDD? I'm seeing melted contacts there.

But just checking most obvious points of failure first, it's got to be something in the PSU, the SDD (again, be careful plugging that thing into any live current!), or I guess the connecting wire itself.

[Merusk]

I dropped the SSD into an external drive enclosure this morning at work and was able to access the data, so yeah it's still good. At least to the point I need it to be, as I'm not risking running the thing longer than it will take to get the data cloned. It's only 60gb anyway, being 5 years old now. The contacts aren't melted, that's plastic and carbon from the power plug that melted. I was able to scrape more of it off to get contact.

I'm wary of breaking-open the supply because there's capacitors in there aren't there? If not I'll go for it. The only melted wires are on this lead and they're pretty badly gone. You can see in this photo the covers on the upper-left fused together they got so hot and melty. The one on the upper right is bare copper but you can't really see it from this photo.

[Trippy]

I'm wary of breaking-open the supply because there's capacitors in there aren't there? If not I'll go for it.

Yes there are capacitors inside.

[schild]

Just buy a new power supply. And maybe a new mobo. And get a real surge protector.

[Merusk]

That's the plan. The surge is a real one, not seen.

[01101010]

If you are really paranoid, splurge for a battery backup unit.

[Selby]

Yes there are capacitors inside.

People overrate how dangerous the capacitors are inside of a computer power supply.  Leave it off for 10 minutes and you're fine (UL ratings require it).

That said, you've got something going on somewhere that was pulling a lot of current.  I'd be curious if the output voltage on one of the buses didn't fall considerably low and the power supply up'd the current to make up the difference while it was still running (easy to check with a multimeter if you care about finding out why).  Or the inverter failed a leg leading to instability on the output.  Ultimately though no one does any type of failure analysis on these things as the common answer is "replace it" and "throw the old one in the trash" as a solution.

This does make me nervous about my 10 year old computer though...

[Trippy]

Yes there are capacitors inside.

People overrate how dangerous the capacitors are inside of a computer power supply.  Leave it off for 10 minutes and you're fine (UL ratings require it).

That's assuming the resistors inside that drain the capacitors aren't damaged

[Selby]

That's assuming the resistors inside that drain the capacitors aren't damaged

UL requirement are for multiple resistors so you can't get hurt by a single point failure (yeah, I know).  I'm jaded, I work with large banks that are lethal on a regular basis and the ones inside these power supplies aren't...

[MahrinSkel]

I worked on old vacuum-tube based radars in the Air Force that had capacitors the size of two-liter bottles charged to 25,000 volts (dinosaur was literally designed in the freaking 40's). One of the older Sergeants was missing about half of his pinkie because he'd gotten careless (refused a Medical because they would only have given him like 25% disability at best, and would rather wait for retirement), brushed against one of them when the radar had just been shut down but the bleedoff had failed. You'd better believe that I was careful as hell about discharging those capacitors with the grounding rod before I stuck anything else in there. Never got so much as a sounds-on-the-carpet "pop", but I wasn't going to risk it.

You guys being scared of what's inside a PSU are funny. What you got, 115 volts, 230V in Europe? Capacitors smaller than the end of my thumb, measured in *milli*farads? That's so cute.

--Dave

[Teleku]

Well, as somebody who has traveled across a large part of the world, and has lived in Eastern Europe for the last 3 years (and Russia specifically for the last year)......  I can say Israel easily has the worst drivers of any country I've ever seen.  It is literally a nation of people who all drive like an 80 year old Jewish woman, or a fat drunk angry plumber from Brooklyn.  Just..... Holy fuck.

[Merusk]

That's assuming the resistors inside that drain the capacitors aren't damaged

UL requirement are for multiple resistors so you can't get hurt by a single point failure (yeah, I know).  I'm jaded, I work with large banks that are lethal on a regular basis and the ones inside these power supplies aren't...

Wacking my thumb with a hammer until the nail falls off isn't lethal. I'm not inclined to do that either, nor imply others who feel the same way are somehow wimps.

[Endie]

Well, as somebody who has traveled across a large part of the world, and has lived in Eastern Europe for the last 3 years (and Russia specifically for the last year)......  I can say Israel easily has the worst drivers of any country I've ever seen.  It is literally a nation of people who all drive like an 80 year old Jewish woman, or a fat drunk angry plumber from Brooklyn.  Just..... Holy fuck.

While I am told that India, Pakistan and Burma are terrifyingly awful in their extravagantly Asian ways, nothing on the European continent ever prepared me for Istanbul drivers.

[Merusk]

All you need to confirm that is search YouTube for dashcam vids of said countries. The motorcyclist stretching out and putting his feet-up in India was pretty terrifying.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=klteYv1Uv9A

[Teleku]

Well, as somebody who has traveled across a large part of the world, and has lived in Eastern Europe for the last 3 years (and Russia specifically for the last year)......  I can say Israel easily has the worst drivers of any country I've ever seen.  It is literally a nation of people who all drive like an 80 year old Jewish woman, or a fat drunk angry plumber from Brooklyn.  Just..... Holy fuck.

While I am told that India, Pakistan and Burma are terrifyingly awful in their extravagantly Asian ways, nothing on the European continent ever prepared me for Istanbul drivers.

I was just in Istanbul 3 weeks ago.  We didn't drive there, so can't really comment from a road side perspective, but from what I saw it cannot be worst than Israel (maybe equal). 

And I'm sure there are places I have not been to that are worst.  But coming into a European/westernized country?  Oh hell no.  Its a bunch of people driving nice cars as though they have never ever seen a car before.  Or a road.  Possibly other human beings.

[Endie]

He's having a go at the Jews.

[Endie]

This is how it starts, you know.

[Teleku]

Are you drinking again?


(Silly question)

[Viin]

Yay, taxes are done and in the mail. What a pita.

[Johny Cee]

Yay, taxes are done and in the mail. What a pita.

I only have about a hundred more returns to do before April 18th.   

[Viin]

This is the first year I've done our taxes start to finish since we've been married (at least 10 years). Now I remember why I gladly pay $400 for someone else to prepare them! (Only $300 more than Turbo Tax charges *and* I don't have to spend hours making sure I didn't forget anything!)

[Merusk]

At this point I just wish I could DO my taxes.

[Paelos]

At this point I just wish I could DO my taxes.

I'm doing my own Saturday at my old firm. They let me use their software in exchange for me picking up lunch. I don't even have to pay for it, just pick it up.

[lamaros]

Anyone know any decent places to eat near the convention center/Disneyland in anaheim?

Or even a reasonable taxi ride away?

[WayAbvPar]

I went to a fantastic Thai/Vietnamese place in I think Orange a few million years ago. I am sure there are plenty of them. Also In and Out should be the first stop always.

[Strazos]

Well, as somebody who has traveled across a large part of the world, and has lived in Eastern Europe for the last 3 years (and Russia specifically for the last year)......  I can say Israel easily has the worst drivers of any country I've ever seen.  It is literally a nation of people who all drive like an 80 year old Jewish woman, or a fat drunk angry plumber from Brooklyn.  Just..... Holy fuck.

From what my friend told me a few years ago, people posted to Jerusalem are routinely injured by Israeli drivers - drivers, passengers, and pedestrians alike. Some quite severely.

Benin...Mexico...Egypt. I seem to have a thing for picking postings with horrendous drivers. But at least this time I'll be driving armored vehicles. 

[Teleku]

Ah, that's right, off to sunny Cairo next.  

Not that I should tease.  I'll be mid level bidding for the first time this summer, and the projected list kind of sucks if you don't want Europe (and having been posted here 2 tours now, I do not).  So I may just volunteer for a year in Northern Iraq since nobody seems to want Erbil anymore.

[Soln]

Do you get anything positive after volunteering to work for a year in Northern Iraq?  I hope so.

[Teleku]

Well, lots of money (and nothing to spend it on), a bunch of R&R's, and potentially (though they are scaling back the amount of people who get this) preferential placement for the spot I bid on right after that.

Oh, and lots of stories.   

[Endie]

Where do you end up staying in Vegas?

Venetian, every time. Best food.

That's funny, because I harken to be in Vegas on the second half of a two week vacation. I'm staying at the Nobu in Caesar's again, though I'll probably start trying different places next time I'm here. The craps tapes were terrible this morning.

Either that was written on a phone; American English has departed wildly from its mother tongue in recent days; or one of the two of us has just suffered a stroke.  If the latter, it could be either of us.

[Strazos]

Oi vey, that was probably on a phone...or iPad with an overzealous autocorrect.

*happen **craps tables

[Morat20]

This is the first year I've done our taxes start to finish since we've been married (at least 10 years). Now I remember why I gladly pay $400 for someone else to prepare them! (Only $300 more than Turbo Tax charges *and* I don't have to spend hours making sure I didn't forget anything!)

I'm glad my taxes are fairly simple. Worst I have to deal with is 1099-MISC income from the wife. Who nicely uses government standard mileage, per diem, and food rates. Simplifies that enormously.

Although I did learn you can only deduct 50% of meal expenses when on travel. (Mileage, air-fare, hotel -- all that's 100%. The meal portion? 50%. Not sure why).

[Merusk]

New $45 Mobo confirmed the old one was dead. Of course since my chipset is a 5-year-old i7-2600k the only available mobo was crap. Only 2 memory slots and one PCI-e.

That just won't do, so of course I dropped another $400 on a new i7-4790k processor and mobo as well. 

[Endie]

This is the first year I've done our taxes start to finish since we've been married (at least 10 years). Now I remember why I gladly pay $400 for someone else to prepare them! (Only $300 more than Turbo Tax charges *and* I don't have to spend hours making sure I didn't forget anything!)

I'm glad my taxes are fairly simple. Worst I have to deal with is 1099-MISC income from the wife. Who nicely uses government standard mileage, per diem, and food rates. Simplifies that enormously.

Although I did learn you can only deduct 50% of meal expenses when on travel. (Mileage, air-fare, hotel -- all that's 100%. The meal portion? 50%. Not sure why).

They probably jumped to the ridiculous conclusion that you might have eaten even if you had stayed at home, and intend to compensate the extra cost rather than the whole cost.

[Morat20]

They probably jumped to the ridiculous conclusion that you might have eaten even if you had stayed at home, and intend to compensate the extra cost rather than the whole cost.

I hate it when the government makes assumptions about my personal life! :)