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Ram test enquiry - bad RAM?



 
 
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  #1  
Old December 2nd 08, 08:27 PM posted to alt.sys.pc-clone.compaq
poachedeggs
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 34
Default Ram test enquiry - bad RAM?

I recently bought some eBay RAM from someone with a good rep there,
100%. I've had the chip in for about 10 days and I thought everything
was fine. It seems to show up, i.e from when I first put it in and
the BIOS amended itself. And it shows up as having gone from 256 mb
to 512 when I look at Control Panel System.

Just now I used Ramtester by a Mark Gathering and it says about (a
fluctuating) 320 mb available there. I wouldn't know if that's normal
- I'm thinking as this runs from Windows, unlike Memtest 86+ which I
couldn't get to work, that that might just mean it can't test what
Windows is using.

So I took the newer Ram stick out and started up the machine. All was
fine, though with Ramtester between 80 mb and 140 mb was available, it
fluctuated, and haven't used this sort of program before to know if
that's normal, I imagine so.

Then I tried the eBay-bought chip (first in the other chip's slot and
then in the slot it's normally in, i.e.the first slot was blank), and
got the Compaq beep code for bad RAM (one short, two longer). Does
this necessarily mean it's bad RAM, or not ideal, or what? The only
difference of their spec is that the eBay chip is CL2 - I had misread
the other. I only thought that if you used two different bits CL-wise
that both would run at the lesser... speed?

Is this defintely dud RAM, and if so, why is it showing up as 512 mb
when I first put it in and viewing through Control Panel System and,
more importantly perhaps, why isn't it making the bad RAM beeps when
it's in there with the original?

According to Crucial.com this machine - Deskpro 886 EN Short Form
something or other - should have up to three 128 mb chips in, though I
was happy to go by what I was told here in this forum, that it could
have two 256mb chips or one 512mb chip.

Should I have put another CL3 in instead of CL2? Or would the CL2
work if I add another CL2 and don't use the original CL3?

Would I run into problems if I replaced all the RAM with three 128mb
chips, and in that case should they be CL2 or mightn't the machine not
manage CL2, if that has anything to do with it? What would you
recommend?

I hadn't noticed any performance improvement, e.g. online Flashplayer
is a bit glitchy (possibly unconnected apparently), and recording with
a USB microphone, that's why I became curious - maybe the eBay fella's
customers are all people who don't check the RAM. I will in the
meantime see how he reacts to relacing the RAM - though if the problem
is that I bought CL2 then I'd accept it's my fault.

All thoughts appreciated. Thanks. (Try not to say you think both
chips are bad!)
  #2  
Old December 2nd 08, 09:13 PM posted to alt.sys.pc-clone.compaq
William R. Walsh[_2_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 931
Default Ram test enquiry - bad RAM?

Hi!

I recently bought some eBay RAM from someone with a
good rep there, 100%.


How many total feedback reports have there been?

I assume this is for your Deskpro EN SFF?

Just now I used Ramtester by a Mark Gathering and it
says about (a fluctuating) 320 mb available there.
I wouldn't know if that's normal - I'm thinking
as this runs from Windows


Yes, that could very well be normal. Windows is going to use some
memory for itself and whatever drivers/services/user programs are
running, and that simply can't "go away".

You should not have problems with Memtest 86 in either the + or
original versions. Both run fine on my Deskpro EN systems (not just
SFF ones) when booted from CD or floppy diskette.

Then I tried the eBay-bought chip (first in the other
chip's slot and then in the slot it's normally in,
i.e.the first slot was blank), and got the Compaq
beep code for bad RAM (one short, two longer).
Does this necessarily mean it's bad RAM, or not
ideal, or what?


It means there is something about it that the power-on testing does
not like. Usually it's bad sign, although I've seen systems that would
issue beep-code complaints with some RAM and still work fine. You need
to get Memtest working to know for sure.

To know what is making the system unhappy about the RAM, you'd have to
know what the power on test looks for. Without disassembling the BIOS,
it is hard to be absolutely sure. Most power on tests are basic ones,
checking only to make sure that everything is in a reasonable state
before passing control to an operating system.

The maximum amount of RAM you can have in a Deskpro EN Pentium 3 is
512MB. All of mine could tolerate a single 512MB module if that's what
I had to put in there. Your mileage could vary--I don't know that such
modules were available in 2001.

Faster memory should run perfectly at lower speeds--although some
modules just don't like doing that.

According to Crucial.com this machine - Deskpro 886
EN Short Form something or other - should have up
to three 128 mb chips in, though I was happy to go
by what I was told here in this forum, that it
could have two 256mb chips or one 512mb chip.


The maximum is 512MB, no matter how you do it. All of a single 512MB
(probably unofficially supported given the machine's age), two 256MB
modules, or two 128s and a 256 should work. My systems have all three
configurations. Each works fine and has passed an overnight run of
Memtest 86.

I think your new memory should be replaced, or at least tested with
Memtest 86. Although, if Memtest cannot start up with the new RAM in
place, that indicates a serious problem. (Does Memtest work with only
the original RAM installed?)

William
  #3  
Old December 2nd 08, 09:31 PM posted to alt.sys.pc-clone.compaq
poachedeggs
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 34
Default Ram test enquiry - bad RAM?

Well, I just found that memtest 86+ wouldn't run from the floppy-
boot. I'm fairly sure I've done this correctly. At any rate, I've
invited the seller to replace the chip. I know some people wouldn't
bother, but if you think about how the fella is making 6 quid each
time it seems worth intervening if it's bad stuff, and my finances are
pretty dire anyway. But I will double-check memtest or try
downloading another version or something. I take it the tester
software I used isn't well known. Please do let me know if there's a
third option for testing.

If the seller ignores 2 emails - generously spaced and with a gentle
warning the second time - I'll amend his feedback and buy one 128 mb
chip at a time from someone else.

Thanks for what you've said so far though - always amazed at online
help!

As an aside, as you'd assisted befo after belatedly noticing that
the floppy drive didn't work on this machine I dug out a spare I had
in a drawer. It didn't fit, because of its front panel clashing with
the Deskpro's; then a few days later I had a brainwave - I removed the
front panel from the spare drive and the release knob, and now it fits
and all is fine. I don't know if they're designed to be amendable
like that - though there is just a space at the entrance now where the
original had a flap - but it was good to salvage things.

Lee

On Dec 2, 8:13*pm, "William R. Walsh" wrote:
Hi!

I recently bought some eBay RAM from someone with a
good rep there, 100%.


How many total feedback reports have there been?

I assume this is for your Deskpro EN SFF?

Just now I used Ramtester by a Mark Gathering and it
says about (a fluctuating) 320 mb available there.
*I wouldn't know if that's normal - I'm thinking
as this runs from Windows


Yes, that could very well be normal. Windows is going to use some
memory for itself and whatever drivers/services/user programs are
running, and that simply can't "go away".

You should not have problems with Memtest 86 in either the + or
original versions. Both run fine on my Deskpro EN systems (not just
SFF ones) when booted from CD or floppy diskette.

Then I tried the eBay-bought chip (first in the other
chip's slot and then in the slot it's normally in,
i.e.the first slot was blank), and got the Compaq
beep code for bad RAM (one short, two longer).
Does this necessarily mean it's bad RAM, or not
ideal, or what?


It means there is something about it that the power-on testing does
not like. Usually it's bad sign, although I've seen systems that would
issue beep-code complaints with some RAM and still work fine. You need
to get Memtest working to know for sure.

To know what is making the system unhappy about the RAM, you'd have to
know what the power on test looks for. Without disassembling the BIOS,
it is hard to be absolutely sure. Most power on tests are basic ones,
checking only to make sure that everything is in a reasonable state
before passing control to an operating system.

The maximum amount of RAM you can have in a Deskpro EN Pentium 3 is
512MB. All of mine could tolerate a single 512MB module if that's what
I had to put in there. Your mileage could vary--I don't know that such
modules were available in 2001.

Faster memory should run perfectly at lower speeds--although some
modules just don't like doing that.

According to Crucial.com this machine - Deskpro 886
EN Short Form something or other - should have up
to three 128 mb chips in, though I was happy to go
by what I was told here in this forum, that it
could have two 256mb chips or one 512mb chip.


The maximum is 512MB, no matter how you do it. All of a single 512MB
(probably unofficially supported given the machine's age), two 256MB
modules, or two 128s and a 256 should work. My systems have all three
configurations. Each works fine and has passed an overnight run of
Memtest 86.

I think your new memory should be replaced, or at least tested with
Memtest 86. Although, if Memtest cannot start up with the new RAM in
place, that indicates a serious problem. (Does Memtest work with only
the original RAM installed?)

William


  #4  
Old December 2nd 08, 10:22 PM posted to alt.sys.pc-clone.compaq
William R. Walsh[_2_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 931
Default Ram test enquiry - bad RAM?

Hi!

Well, I just found that memtest 86+ wouldn't run
from the floppy-boot.


Did you see a column of numbers moving along the screen after the
computer tried to start from the disk? If so, your disk is bad or your
new floppy drive does not work.

If so, and if you have a CD burner, make a Memtest CD.

To do this:
1. Download http://www.memtest86.com/memtest86-3.4a.iso.zip

2. Expand that ZIP file from a working computer and you should have
a .ISO file.

3. Using your existing CD burning software (if you don't have any, CD
Burner XP and ImgBurn are both free and will do what you need), burn
the ISO file to disc. If you've never done this, you are looking for
an option to "burn an image file" or "burn a disc from an ISO file".
Don't just make a data disc and burn the file--it won't work that way.

4. Put the CD in your Deskpro. Enter setup and make sure the boot
order is set up so the CD-ROM drive will be checked before the hard or
floppy drives. (This is the default--if nobody has changed it.) Save
settings, restart.

5. Let Memtest run for a minimum of several hours. Any red highlighted
text in the lower pane of the Memtest screen indicates trouble. The
trouble is most likely to be bad memory, although failures can
indicate memory that is not right for your computer. You can do two
runs to figure out where the problem is--do one with your good RAM and
one with the suspect RAM.

I think you should return the memory to the seller, simply stating
that your computer did not accept it. Then try to find another.
Sellers offering 256MB PC133 CL2 or 3 parts should not be hard to find
(and you should really just top off the memory and be done with it).

If I had some spares, I would happily sell you tested and guaranteed-
to-work-in-your-Deskpro RAM. Although shipping from the US could be
expensive...or maybe not...the stuff could be flat-packed in a well
padded envelope. I'll keep you in mind if I come across some; if
you're open to that idea.

I take it the tester software I used isn't well
known.


I've heard of it before (though that is still no guarantee). I suspect
that it works as well as it can, but a fully running operating system
is not the place to exhaustively test your computer's memory. You just
can't get at enough of it, nor can you guarantee that the operating
system won't be pulling the rug out from under your feet by swapping
the program into virtual memory.

My guess(tm) at this point is that the memory you bought is OK, but
not quite to your computer's liking. It might operate normally forever
(or as long as you have the computer) if you don't mind the power on
failure beeps.

I don't know if they're designed to be amendable
like that - though there is just a space at the
entrance now where the original had a flap - but
it was good to salvage things.


Sure they are. In theory, that voids the warranty, but in practice
slight hardware modifications to make something that would otherwise
be compatible work in your computer is not going to cause a problem.

William
  #5  
Old December 2nd 08, 11:00 PM posted to alt.sys.pc-clone.compaq
Ben Myers[_2_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 1,607
Default Ram test enquiry - bad RAM?

poachedeggs wrote:
I recently bought some eBay RAM from someone with a good rep there,
100%. I've had the chip in for about 10 days and I thought everything
was fine. It seems to show up, i.e from when I first put it in and
the BIOS amended itself. And it shows up as having gone from 256 mb
to 512 when I look at Control Panel System.

Just now I used Ramtester by a Mark Gathering and it says about (a
fluctuating) 320 mb available there. I wouldn't know if that's normal
- I'm thinking as this runs from Windows, unlike Memtest 86+ which I
couldn't get to work, that that might just mean it can't test what
Windows is using.

So I took the newer Ram stick out and started up the machine. All was
fine, though with Ramtester between 80 mb and 140 mb was available, it
fluctuated, and haven't used this sort of program before to know if
that's normal, I imagine so.

Then I tried the eBay-bought chip (first in the other chip's slot and
then in the slot it's normally in, i.e.the first slot was blank), and
got the Compaq beep code for bad RAM (one short, two longer). Does
this necessarily mean it's bad RAM, or not ideal, or what? The only
difference of their spec is that the eBay chip is CL2 - I had misread
the other. I only thought that if you used two different bits CL-wise
that both would run at the lesser... speed?

Is this defintely dud RAM, and if so, why is it showing up as 512 mb
when I first put it in and viewing through Control Panel System and,
more importantly perhaps, why isn't it making the bad RAM beeps when
it's in there with the original?

According to Crucial.com this machine - Deskpro 886 EN Short Form
something or other - should have up to three 128 mb chips in, though I
was happy to go by what I was told here in this forum, that it could
have two 256mb chips or one 512mb chip.

Should I have put another CL3 in instead of CL2? Or would the CL2
work if I add another CL2 and don't use the original CL3?

Would I run into problems if I replaced all the RAM with three 128mb
chips, and in that case should they be CL2 or mightn't the machine not
manage CL2, if that has anything to do with it? What would you
recommend?

I hadn't noticed any performance improvement, e.g. online Flashplayer
is a bit glitchy (possibly unconnected apparently), and recording with
a USB microphone, that's why I became curious - maybe the eBay fella's
customers are all people who don't check the RAM. I will in the
meantime see how he reacts to relacing the RAM - though if the problem
is that I bought CL2 then I'd accept it's my fault.

All thoughts appreciated. Thanks. (Try not to say you think both
chips are bad!)


Let me add to William's insightful comments. The memory in the DeskPro
SFF (and other DeskPro P3 systems of same vintage) needs to be
non-parity unbuffered unregistered SDRAM DIMMs. Recommended speed is
PC133, although the Intel 810 or 815 chipset may have some tolerance for
PC100, IIRC. The specs above describe generic desktop SDRAM memory.

If the memory you bought is any one of parity (odd number of chips on
each side of SDRAM stick), buffered or registered, you've got server
memory, incompatible with nearly all desktop systems. Buffered or
registered memory is identifiable by the presence of smallish chips in
addition to the large memory chips on an SDRAM stick.

And I'll verify that the motherboard chipset supports no more than
512MB... Ben Myers
  #6  
Old December 3rd 08, 01:38 AM posted to alt.sys.pc-clone.compaq
poachedeggs
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 34
Default Ram test enquiry - bad RAM?

Cheers. I did manage to get a Cd burnt of Memtest 86 but I stopped
the test at 1 hr 52 minutes (with no errors and 'one pass') before I
saw your reply, so I'll put it on again tomorrow for longer. Yes,
there's plenty of 128 mb and 256 mb chips on eBay and it can't all be
duff. Apart from the CL2-ness, both my chips are identical in spec
and using Ben's description, but I do remember someone else remarking
that Compaqs can be a bit hard to please with memory. The one already
in there says it's made by IBM on the sticker. The newer one was
Infineon. I'll give the original seller a while to redeem himself....

By the way, to clarify, I put the chips back as they were after
testing the Infineon alone, and there are no beeps to put up with like
this - it seems sort of weird that it's stopped doing that even though
the troubling chip is still present.

Thanks.

On Dec 2, 10:00*pm, Ben Myers wrote:
poachedeggs wrote:
I recently bought some eBay RAM from someone with a good rep there,
100%. *I've had the chip in for about 10 days and I thought everything
was fine. *It seems to show up, i.e from when I first put it in and
the BIOS amended itself. *And it shows up as having gone from 256 mb
to 512 when I look at Control Panel System.


Just now I used Ramtester by a Mark Gathering and it says about (a
fluctuating) 320 mb available there. *I wouldn't know if that's normal
- I'm thinking as this runs from Windows, unlike Memtest 86+ which I
couldn't get to work, that that might just mean it can't test what
Windows is using.


So I took the newer Ram stick out and started up the machine. *All was
fine, though with Ramtester between 80 mb and 140 mb was available, it
fluctuated, and *haven't used this sort of program before to know if
that's normal, I imagine so.


Then I tried the eBay-bought chip (first in the other chip's slot and
then in the slot it's normally in, i.e.the first slot was blank), and
got the Compaq beep code for bad RAM (one short, two longer). *Does
this necessarily mean it's bad RAM, or not ideal, or what? *The only
difference of their spec is that the eBay chip is CL2 - I had misread
the other. *I only thought that if you used two different bits CL-wise
that both would run at the lesser... speed?


Is this defintely dud RAM, and if so, why is it showing up as 512 mb
when I first put it in and viewing through Control Panel System and,
more importantly perhaps, why isn't it making the bad RAM beeps when
it's in there with the original?


According to Crucial.com this machine - Deskpro 886 EN Short Form
something or other - should have up to three 128 mb chips in, though I
was happy to go by what I was told here in this forum, that it could
have two 256mb chips or one 512mb chip.


Should I have put another CL3 in instead of CL2? *Or would the CL2
work if I add another CL2 and don't use the original CL3?


Would I run into problems if I replaced all the RAM with three 128mb
chips, and in that case should they be CL2 or mightn't the machine not
manage CL2, if that has anything to do with it? *What would you
recommend?


I hadn't noticed any performance improvement, e.g. online Flashplayer
is a bit glitchy (possibly unconnected apparently), and recording with
a USB microphone, that's why I became curious - maybe the eBay fella's
customers are all people who don't check the RAM. *I will in the
meantime see how he reacts to relacing the RAM - though if the problem
is that I bought CL2 then I'd accept it's my fault.


All thoughts appreciated. *Thanks. *(Try not to say you think both
chips are bad!)


Let me add to William's insightful comments. *The memory in the DeskPro
SFF (and other DeskPro P3 systems of same vintage) needs to be
non-parity unbuffered unregistered SDRAM DIMMs. *Recommended speed is
PC133, although the Intel 810 or 815 chipset may have some tolerance for
PC100, IIRC. *The specs above describe generic desktop SDRAM memory.

If the memory you bought is any one of parity (odd number of chips on
each side of SDRAM stick), buffered or registered, you've got server
memory, incompatible with nearly all desktop systems. *Buffered or
registered memory is identifiable by the presence of smallish chips in
addition to the large memory chips on an SDRAM stick.

And I'll verify that the motherboard chipset supports no more than
512MB... Ben Myers- Hide quoted text -

- Show quoted text -


  #7  
Old December 3rd 08, 03:21 AM posted to alt.sys.pc-clone.compaq
poachedeggs
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 34
Default Ram test enquiry - bad RAM?

And thanks for the offer by the way, but I should be able to sort it.
The seller's now offered a replacement too.

On Dec 3, 12:38*am, poachedeggs wrote:
Cheers. *I did manage to get a Cd burnt of Memtest 86 but I stopped
the test at 1 hr 52 minutes (with no errors and 'one pass') before I
saw your reply, so I'll put it on again tomorrow for longer. *Yes,
there's plenty of 128 mb and 256 mb chips on eBay and it can't all be
duff. *Apart from the CL2-ness, both my chips are identical in spec
and using Ben's description, but I do remember someone else remarking
that Compaqs can be a bit hard to please with memory. *The one already
in there says it's made by IBM on the sticker. *The newer one was
Infineon. *I'll give the original seller a while to redeem himself....

By the way, to clarify, I put the chips back as they were after
testing the Infineon alone, and there are no beeps to put up with like
this - it seems sort of weird that it's stopped doing that even though
the troubling chip is still present.

Thanks.

On Dec 2, 10:00*pm, Ben Myers wrote:



poachedeggs wrote:
I recently bought some eBay RAM from someone with a good rep there,
100%. *I've had the chip in for about 10 days and I thought everything
was fine. *It seems to show up, i.e from when I first put it in and
the BIOS amended itself. *And it shows up as having gone from 256 mb
to 512 when I look at Control Panel System.


Just now I used Ramtester by a Mark Gathering and it says about (a
fluctuating) 320 mb available there. *I wouldn't know if that's normal
- I'm thinking as this runs from Windows, unlike Memtest 86+ which I
couldn't get to work, that that might just mean it can't test what
Windows is using.


So I took the newer Ram stick out and started up the machine. *All was
fine, though with Ramtester between 80 mb and 140 mb was available, it
fluctuated, and *haven't used this sort of program before to know if
that's normal, I imagine so.


Then I tried the eBay-bought chip (first in the other chip's slot and
then in the slot it's normally in, i.e.the first slot was blank), and
got the Compaq beep code for bad RAM (one short, two longer). *Does
this necessarily mean it's bad RAM, or not ideal, or what? *The only
difference of their spec is that the eBay chip is CL2 - I had misread
the other. *I only thought that if you used two different bits CL-wise
that both would run at the lesser... speed?


Is this defintely dud RAM, and if so, why is it showing up as 512 mb
when I first put it in and viewing through Control Panel System and,
more importantly perhaps, why isn't it making the bad RAM beeps when
it's in there with the original?


According to Crucial.com this machine - Deskpro 886 EN Short Form
something or other - should have up to three 128 mb chips in, though I
was happy to go by what I was told here in this forum, that it could
have two 256mb chips or one 512mb chip.


Should I have put another CL3 in instead of CL2? *Or would the CL2
work if I add another CL2 and don't use the original CL3?


Would I run into problems if I replaced all the RAM with three 128mb
chips, and in that case should they be CL2 or mightn't the machine not
manage CL2, if that has anything to do with it? *What would you
recommend?


I hadn't noticed any performance improvement, e.g. online Flashplayer
is a bit glitchy (possibly unconnected apparently), and recording with
a USB microphone, that's why I became curious - maybe the eBay fella's
customers are all people who don't check the RAM. *I will in the
meantime see how he reacts to relacing the RAM - though if the problem
is that I bought CL2 then I'd accept it's my fault.


All thoughts appreciated. *Thanks. *(Try not to say you think both
chips are bad!)


Let me add to William's insightful comments. *The memory in the DeskPro
SFF (and other DeskPro P3 systems of same vintage) needs to be
non-parity unbuffered unregistered SDRAM DIMMs. *Recommended speed is
PC133, although the Intel 810 or 815 chipset may have some tolerance for
PC100, IIRC. *The specs above describe generic desktop SDRAM memory.


If the memory you bought is any one of parity (odd number of chips on
each side of SDRAM stick), buffered or registered, you've got server
memory, incompatible with nearly all desktop systems. *Buffered or
registered memory is identifiable by the presence of smallish chips in
addition to the large memory chips on an SDRAM stick.


And I'll verify that the motherboard chipset supports no more than
512MB... Ben Myers- Hide quoted text -


- Show quoted text -- Hide quoted text -


- Show quoted text -


  #8  
Old December 3rd 08, 03:29 AM posted to alt.sys.pc-clone.compaq
William R. Walsh
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 930
Default Ram test enquiry - bad RAM?

Hi!

Cheers. I did manage to get a Cd burnt of Memtest 86 but I stopped
the test at 1 hr 52 minutes (with no errors and 'one pass') before I
saw your reply, so I'll put it on again tomorrow for longer.


Fair enough. Memtest pushes the memory pretty hard, so one pass usually
finds all but the most elusive and uncommon faults. Several hours worth of
runtime "keeps the heat on" so to speak and will expose even slightly weak
locations in memory or faulty hardware.

By the way, to clarify, I put the chips back as they were after
testing the Infineon alone, and there are no beeps to put up with like
this - it seems sort of weird that it's stopped doing that even though
the troubling chip is still present.


Well, here's a thought. How clean is the system unit? If it is dusty inside,
take the time to clean it out. I recommend a source of moderately
pressurized, *clean* and *dry* air. A well maintained air compressor works
(and is what I use). If you can't find one of those to borrow/use, cans of
difluoroethane gas are sold as "air dusters" in many stores. Even a hardware
store may have some. They are not all that cheap.

I ask about the cleanliness of the system because of an experience I once
had with another computer. In that case, the computer was an IBM Personal
System/2 Model 90. I was building it up with memory and a faster processor
card when it started throwing up memory errors. Each one was reported to be
from the same SIMM socket. I swapped SIMMs like crazy, but it made no
difference. That one slot was "bad" as far as the computer was concerned. I
put the original processor back in--the errors went away. Whenever I put the
faster card back in, the errors came right back. The card tested good in
another system, as did the memory.

Finally I got mad and I took the whole mess out to the garage, where I
inspected it under bright light. And I found a chunk of dust wedged in a
slot. (I think it was the processor card slot...if memory (heh-heh) serves.)
Blowing out the system unit solved the problem. It ran reliably for years
after that, until a basement flood ate it.

Perhaps your Deskpro had a similar problem or maybe there was a bad point of
contact somewhere in the DIMM or its socket.

William


  #9  
Old December 3rd 08, 12:39 PM posted to alt.sys.pc-clone.compaq
poachedeggs
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 34
Default Ram test enquiry - bad RAM?

H'mm, I'll have a look when I'm taking the chip out to send back - the
seller does sound like he's going to play the game - but I think as it
caused error beeps in slot #1 and #2 - didn't try three - and as the
original chip works in #1 the chip seems more logically the gremlin.

I've got a can of compressed air, but I'm wary of it. Sometimes a
damp kind of spray will come from it. I see you're supposed to be
able to clean laptop keybaords with it too, but it seems a risk if the
spray has a wet moment.

A ps2 model 90 - would that be a classic green text on black screen
look - I'd be quite happy if they'd never evolved beyond that....

L

On Dec 3, 2:29*am, "William R. Walsh"
m wrote:
Hi!

Cheers. *I did manage to get a Cd burnt of Memtest 86 but I stopped
the test at 1 hr 52 minutes (with no errors and 'one pass') before I
saw your reply, so I'll put it on again tomorrow for longer.


Fair enough. Memtest pushes the memory pretty hard, so one pass usually
finds all but the most elusive and uncommon faults. Several hours worth of
runtime "keeps the heat on" so to speak and will expose even slightly weak
locations in memory or faulty hardware.

By the way, to clarify, I put the chips back as they were after
testing the Infineon alone, and there are no beeps to put up with like
this - it seems sort of weird that it's stopped doing that even though
the troubling chip is still present.


Well, here's a thought. How clean is the system unit? If it is dusty inside,
take the time to clean it out. I recommend a source of moderately
pressurized, *clean* and *dry* air. A well maintained air compressor works
(and is what I use). If you can't find one of those to borrow/use, cans of
difluoroethane gas are sold as "air dusters" in many stores. Even a hardware
store may have some. They are not all that cheap.

I ask about the cleanliness of the system because of an experience I once
had with another computer. In that case, the computer was an IBM Personal
System/2 Model 90. I was building it up with memory and a faster processor
card when it started throwing up memory errors. Each one was reported to be
from the same SIMM socket. I swapped SIMMs like crazy, but it made no
difference. That one slot was "bad" as far as the computer was concerned. I
put the original processor back in--the errors went away. Whenever I put the
faster card back in, the errors came right back. The card tested good in
another system, as did the memory.

Finally I got mad and I took the whole mess out to the garage, where I
inspected it under bright light. And I found a chunk of dust wedged in a
slot. (I think it was the processor card slot...if memory (heh-heh) serves.)
Blowing out the system unit solved the problem. It ran reliably for years
after that, until a basement flood ate it.

Perhaps your Deskpro had a similar problem or maybe there was a bad point of
contact somewhere in the DIMM or its socket.

William


  #10  
Old December 3rd 08, 06:29 PM posted to alt.sys.pc-clone.compaq
William R. Walsh[_2_]
external usenet poster
 
Posts: 931
Default Ram test enquiry - bad RAM?

Hi!

I've got a can of compressed air, but I'm wary of it.
Sometimes a damp kind of spray will come from it.


That's harmless, it's just the liquefied form of the difluoroethane
gas coming out. It usually happens when the can is tilted, held upside
down or is still fairly new. If it comes out as liquid, it evaporates
almost immediately and shouldn't cause problems unless you
deliberately dispense the liquid for a long time.

I stopped using those cans long ago, because I work on a lot of
computers. I bought an air compressor at a deep discount and haven't
regretted it for a minute. A few good "FOOFs!" later, and the dust
that was in a computer is unquestionably gone.

A ps2 model 90 - would that be a classic green text
on black screen look - I'd be quite happy if they'd
never evolved beyond that....


It's a nominally 486 era system made in the early 90s. Unofficially,
386 versions exist, made as a "special bid" system. I've seen exactly
one set up that way. Since the processor comes on a "complex card" you
can put any of a 386, 486 or Pentium 60/66/90 MHz CPU in it. Some
people have dared to crank the Pentium 90 version of the complex up to
accept a 233 MHz Pentium MMX CPU. That's on the outer fringes of
reliability, however.

I suppose it could have run "green screen" programs with a serial
terminal like the IBM 3151 attached, or by running a terminal
emulator. It would have been sold with any of PC-DOS, Windows 3.1x or
OS/2 when new. It can run up to Windows 98 with enough processor, disk
and memory resources installed.

Come to think of it, I've never seen a green monochrome VGA
monitor...paper white and amber (!!!!) VGA displays, yes.

William
 




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