That's right, folks, two blog entries in one day!
So, for the last week or so, my computer had been acting up. Okay, let me define that: my computer had been shutting down for no apparent reason. I know, I know -- you're thinking "Did you get a virus? Did some hacker gain access to your computer and start messing with you?" The answers are "no" and "no." Like most computer problems, the answer was much simpler. My motherboard, which has been showing signs of antiquity and ornery-ness, decided it no longer wanted to deliver power to the processor fan. So after about 15 minutes, my processor was shutting itself off to keep from overheating and basically melting to slag.
This was a delimma, as I had no other areas to plug in the fan on my motherboard. I pondered and pondered and tried to jury-rig something on another area of the motherboard -- to no avail! The idea of using the computer for 15 minutes at a time with two-hour waiting periods in-between was just too reminiscent of my roadtrip from Fabens, Texas in 1992.
I went and read William Shatner's "Star Trek: Preserver" for a while, to take my mind off my frustration...and when I got to the middle of chapter 19, it hit me! No, not chapter 19 -- inspiration towards a solution -- and it was so obvious!
Warning! Computer tech support mode: ON
I took the procesor fan off of its heat sink above the processor and left the heat sink on top of the processor. Then I went and grabbed a small, regular fan, placed it on top of a box and leaned the fan into the opened computer. This fan was probably ten times the size of the processor's little fan and, I would imagine, much more capable of cooling than its computer counterpart. It's propped up against the computer as I type this and, consequently, I have had no instant shutdowns for over 90 minutes now.
Computer tech support mode: OFF
Problem solved, even if it was a little, um, off the beaten path.
If I get the opportunity over the weekend, I'll take a picture of it with my digital camera.
Best Wishes,
Allen
