(Literally) Debugging a Laptop

May 16, 2005, 12:26 am

A few weeks ago, I got a (new to me) laptop off ebay. I love my laptop. It isn't as fast as the newest ones, but with the DVD burner and memory I also picked up on ebay, it has some nice toys. Sitting where I am right now, just a few days after the computer arrived, I saw a bug on my screen. I tried to shoe it away. That didn't work. It was then I realized it wasn't on my screen -- it was IN my screen.

Then there was a moment, right then, that I'll probably always remember. Inside my brain, there was a slow, contemplative person considering the problem, and there was a primeval part demanding action. It was sort of like the State Department and The Pentagon -- the Pentagon in my brain was eager to fire a missile at the intruding bug, while the State Department was considering the ramifications of creating a martyr. The Pentagon won, and I squished the bug inside my screen. The bug might have been dead, but he won. He was dead, unable to crawl away. Here's a -- uhhh -- screenshot of the bug:

 

Now, that might seem small. But in person, it's a visible bug. You can see his little feet, and people who have seen the computer actually try to shoe him off the screen. This is the visual display equivalent of having a hair on your tongue. Now, who better than Kord (my boss) to open up the computer and -- uhh -- debug it:

This is the part where I drink a latte while watching Kord work. It's kind of a role reversal. :) 

In the above photo, I think I said "holy crap".

See the sticker slash ground wire? Sweet.

 

See the bug in the center-left part of the screen? 

 

Sweet!!

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