Dumb stuff you did to keep your stuff working

[aka Cthulhu]

Like, percussive maintenance as TV Tropes call it, kinda. Like banging on a TV or computer monitor in hopes that it'll work. Did for me, honestly. Early 2000s, computer still had the clunky monitor, and it reached the point where the colors were somewhat blurry and muted. And then just kinda monochrome and brown and fuzzy. A slow, but firm slap on the side fixed it a bit.

Also, recall my PS1. After a while, some games didn't play, but somehow fixed that my making the rear side of the Playstation sit on an elevated platform so that it'd be higher than the front side. I suppose I was under the belief that the momentum from that position would make the disc spin fast enough to run the game. Near the end it reached the point where the PS1 was essentially standing vertically. Certainly gave me some lessons in patience since jerking or yanking the controller in panic would have yanked the PS1 to the floor.

[MiLB Fan]

I’m pretty sure that those of us who grew up in the cartridge era of video games blew into the slot when the contacts got dirty to get them working again.

[Spider2024]

Around 10 years ago, I was given an old laptop from someone. It still worked, but it was definitely going downhill to the point where the power button didn't work. Not traditionally, pressing it normally didn't turn the computer on. But I could still turn the thing on by taking my hand and smacking the keyboard really hard with an open palm. I did it towards the upper part, above most of the keys, which is where the power button was anyway, and somehow that's how it turned on and somehow I never broke it by hitting it too hard.

[bibboid]

I once had an old 60’s VW Beetle that had a bad wiper. The right wiper would wipe right and then just sort of wiggle there. I tied a length of string between the two wiper arms so the left wiper would pull the right one back with it. It was like that for about three years.

I have a Dustbuster that has so much dust in the motor that when you first turn it in it makes a high pitched squealing noise. Give it a sharp smack on the casing and it goes back to normal. The wife wants me to buy a new one but this one still works.

Sometimes my DS doesn’t want to load Animal Crossing. I used to have to pop out the card and blow in the slot to get it to work again. Recently I have had to pop out the card, lick my finger, rub it over the contacts, and pop it back in before it will read properly. It’s just a matter of time before it gives out completely.

[Dr. T is an alien]

Jun 11, 2022 11:33:28 GMT -5 Spider2024 said:

Around 10 years ago, I was given an old laptop from someone. It still worked, but it was definitely going downhill to the point where the power button didn't work. Not traditionally, pressing it normally didn't turn the computer on. But I could still turn the thing on by taking my hand and smacking the keyboard really hard with an open palm. I did it towards the upper part, above most of the keys, which is where the power button was anyway, and somehow that's how it turned on and somehow I never broke it by hitting it too hard.

Every time my desktop pc was shut off improperly (either by the power going out or my wife popping the fuse by running the vacuum while the space heater was still on - a thing she did at least once a month), the damn thing could not reboot properly. I had to revert it to a previous safe save…..then do it again to the previous safe save in that save (in other words, the safe save state two times ago). Only then would the damned thing reboot properly.

[G✇JI☈A]

Sometimes when I close the backdoor of my hatchback car it will will cause one of the rear lights to not work, causing a dash board warning light to come on.

To get it working I have to put the lights into an ‘on’ postion and then give the rear light the Fonzy touch until it comes on.

A mechanic tried fixing it while it was under warranty, but it’s always done that.

[chrom]

Jun 11, 2022 11:29:05 GMT -5 MiLB Fan said:

I’m pretty sure that those of us who grew up in the cartridge era of video games blew into the slot when the contacts got dirty to get them working again.

During the disc era when PS1 games wouldn't work, I had to spray a rag and wipe the disc to try and remove scratches from it

[G✇JI☈A]

Also remember growing up, the family had an old colour Toshiba Television (think faux wood paneling, rabbit ear antenna, no remote) that eventually went into my brother and I’s bedroom after my Dad upgraded the family tv.

The old Toshy worked really… so well it lasted nearly two decades when the more digital age made it obsolete.

But one thing that broke was button to turn it on/off.. sometimes you have to push and hold the button a number of times to get it on, and that would mess with the colour on screen.. so once we got it on, we turn it on/off by the power switch on the outlet (Australian power outlets have switch’s).. but then the tv would randomly turn off.. so we ended up wedging a broken paddle pop stick into the on/off button .. and that worked.

[Legion]

I had to do the trick with the hairdryer to get my PS3 working long enough to back up my data to a USB stick.

I also once had a laptop I had to unscrew the bottom of and fiddle with the power wires every morning to get it to turn on.

My PSP lid broke, so I couldnt close the flap where the games went in. Blu tack worked well to close it but allow me to pull it open to swap games as well