roger@yuba.wrs.com (Roger Rohrbach) (08/16/89)
A year ago the display on my Mac Plus collapsed into a horizontal
beam. This occurred after a month or so of wobbling, twitching,
jerking, and other annoying visual effects. It cost me $200.00
to have the offending card replaced. I don't know the Mac insides;
I believe it was the video power board (?). After another year, the
display is twitching again; I assume this means I will be paying
another repair bill imminently. Can anyone tell me how to avoid this
in the future? Pertinent details:
* I am accustomed to leaving the Mac turned on, with the video
brightness down, for days or weeks at a time. The user's manual
states that it's fine to do this.
* I have not installed a fan. The Mac is not sold with a fan,
therefore I expected that I need not purchase one.
* I have used surge protector since I bought the computer.
Am I to understand that I can expect to spend $200.00 a year if I
continue to use the Mac as advertised? Should I get in the habit
of turning the computer off? The serviceman says to get the "Pyro"
screen saver program. Does that actually give the board a chance
to cool down, or is it no different than turning down the brightness?
Thanks in advance for any suggestions- mail them if this is old hat.
Roger Rohrbach sun!wrs!roger roger@wrs.com
- Eddie sez: ----------------------------------------------- (c) 1986, 1989 -.
| {o >o |
| \ ~) "I'm getting static in my attic from channel Z." |kent@sunfs3.camex.uucp (Kent Borg) (08/16/89)
In article <745@wrs.wrs.com> roger@yuba.wrs.com (Roger Rohrbach) writes: >A year ago the display on my Mac Plus collapsed into a horizontal >beam. This occurred after a month or so of wobbling, twitching, ... >another repair bill imminently. Can anyone tell me how to avoid this >in the future? Pertinent details: > > * I am accustomed to leaving the Mac turned on, with the video > brightness down, for days or weeks at a time. The user's manual > states that it's fine to do this. Don't do that. The user's manual is wrong. We all know by now that the Plus has a feable power supply. > * I have not installed a fan. The Mac is not sold with a fan, > therefore I expected that I need not purchase one. Be sure that you don't block the vents on the top, OR the vents on the sides. Avoid a sunny window on hot summer days, etc. A fan is noisey, but it should extend the power supply life you are getting. I bought my Plus about a half year after they came out. Still on the original analog board, still on the original battery, no fan, I turn it off if I am not going to be using it for a while--say, more than 40 minutes or so. I never leave it on over night or when I am not around. (There once was a rumor of a Mac that caught fire!) I expect that my power supply could go at any time, but I haven't had to shell out $200 yet. >of turning the computer off? The serviceman says to get the "Pyro" >screen saver program. Does that actually give the board a chance >to cool down, or is it no different than turning down the brightness? Screen savers amount to about the same thing as turning down the brightness. Doesn't help the analog board, helps the tube from gettng burnt. Kent Borg kent@lloyd.uucp or ...!husc6!lloyd!kent
ephraim@think.COM (Ephraim Vishniac) (08/17/89)
In article <482@sunfs3.camex.uucp> kent@sunfs3.UUCP (Kent Borg) writes: >I bought my Plus about a half year after they came out... >I never leave it on over night or when I am not >around. (There once was a rumor of a Mac that caught fire!) Rumor? A Mac Plus in the next office caught fire (i.e., was billowing smoke, I didn't actually look inside) about two weeks ago. I've also read first-hand reports of burning Macs in comp.sys.mac and net.micro.mac over the past five years. I don't believe everything I read here, but it looks like Macs *do* catch fire! Ephraim Vishniac ephraim@think.com ThinkingCorp@applelink.apple.com Thinking Machines Corporation / 245 First Street / Cambridge, MA 02142 One of the flaws in the anarchic bopper society was the ease with which such crazed rumors could spread.
chuq@Apple.COM (Chuq Von Rospach) (08/18/89)
>Don't do that. The user's manual is wrong. We all know by now that >the Plus has a feable power supply. Just to clear up a bit of mis-information. On my machines (and about 90% of the machines I know about) it is *not* the power supply that fails. It is the flyback or associated circuit. Both are on the analog board, which many dealers simply (and incorrectly) call the power supply. I've got one machine that I've had since the days when a 128K was state of the art. It's blown the flyback twice. The last time it blew was a little over two years ago. The other machine blew the flyback a couple of months ago, after almost two years of service. Both were used seven days a week for (on average) four or more hours a day of service. Neither is left on when it's not going to be used for a period of time (turn on when you get home, turn off when you go to bed. Constant power cycling isn't good). I'll ad that both machines have Dove memory board upgrades, which significantly increases power usage and internal heat. Both also have fans. >> * I have not installed a fan. The Mac is not sold with a fan, >> therefore I expected that I need not purchase one. You can expect that. Macs work just great without fans. However, heat causes components to fail faster. So even if it isn't necessary, adding a fan lowers the internal operating temperature which reduces the rate at which things go blooey. (in my eyes, a case of pay me later or pay me much later. I think a fan is a good investment). Chuq Von Rospach =|= Editor,OtherRealms =|= Member SFWA/ASFA chuq@apple.com =|= CI$: 73317,635 =|= AppleLink: CHUQ [This is myself speaking. No company can control my thoughts.]
kent@lloyd.camex.uucp (Kent Borg) (08/18/89)
In article <27226@news.Think.COM> ephraim@think.com (Ephraim Vishniac) writes: >In article <482@sunfs3.camex.uucp> kent@sunfs3.UUCP (Kent Borg) writes: >>around. (There once was a rumor of a Mac that caught fire!) > >Rumor? A Mac Plus in the next office caught fire (i.e., was billowing >smoke, I didn't actually look inside) about two weeks ago. I've also >read first-hand reports of burning Macs in comp.sys.mac and >net.micro.mac over the past five years. I don't believe everything I >read here, but it looks like Macs *do* catch fire! This last April the Boston Computer Society Macintosh Group published an April edition of the Active Window, their monthly newsletter. In it was an article about how some Macintoshes had been recalled, that they caught fire, and about how there were gasoline soaked rags inside. Apparently the BCS Mac office got *very* tired of the frantic phone calls from people who were scared to death. I personally don't worry about gasoline soaked rags, but I do turn my Mac Plus off when I'm not using it. (Though I leave my IIx at work on all the time--power supply won't always start when cold. I do turn off the monitor when I go home.) Kent Borg kent@lloyd.uucp or ...!husc6!lloyd!kent
LaserMan@cup.portal.com (Bob LaserMan Murrow) (08/20/89)
I sell a lot of stuff from TSI at 1-800-874-2288, the sell a replacement power baord for the Mac that you should get if yours is dying. It is rated at 150% fo the Apple one. It wont burn out on ya.. it also doesnt cost as much as the Apple replacement if memory serves me right. When you call the tell them Bob Murrow sent you! Thanks Bob