Has anyone ever fried RAM with a static charge?
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I was thinking yesterday as I plugged yet another Gb of RAM into my PC to feed the voracious VS2005 - whatever happened to the static wrist strap? The first time I put some RAM into a PC (probably a 4mb upgrade or something like that) I had it on a desk, strap on my wrist, rubber mat on the floor, and the whole thing was done with the serious intentions of open heart surgery. Now about the only concession I make to manufacturers instructions is to turn the power off before shoving it in. It got me thinking - I've never, ever had a fried memory chip, and I've installed plenty. I mean these days, USB sticks are the new floppy, and they're pretty durable, never had one of them die either. Is Memory tougher these days, or were those wrist straps just some manufacturer upselling useless items at fat profit margins? ($5 for a piece of paper tape!) I mean, I'd never buy a 'cellphone radiation guard' or wear a tinfoil hat, but I used to dilligently put on my static wrist strap. was I duped? Has anyone ever killed RAM through static discharge? Was it all a conspiracy? And I want first hand stories of fiery RAM death - no FOAF!
Bruce Chapman iFinity.com.au - Websites and Software Development Plithy remark available in Beta 2
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I was thinking yesterday as I plugged yet another Gb of RAM into my PC to feed the voracious VS2005 - whatever happened to the static wrist strap? The first time I put some RAM into a PC (probably a 4mb upgrade or something like that) I had it on a desk, strap on my wrist, rubber mat on the floor, and the whole thing was done with the serious intentions of open heart surgery. Now about the only concession I make to manufacturers instructions is to turn the power off before shoving it in. It got me thinking - I've never, ever had a fried memory chip, and I've installed plenty. I mean these days, USB sticks are the new floppy, and they're pretty durable, never had one of them die either. Is Memory tougher these days, or were those wrist straps just some manufacturer upselling useless items at fat profit margins? ($5 for a piece of paper tape!) I mean, I'd never buy a 'cellphone radiation guard' or wear a tinfoil hat, but I used to dilligently put on my static wrist strap. was I duped? Has anyone ever killed RAM through static discharge? Was it all a conspiracy? And I want first hand stories of fiery RAM death - no FOAF!
Bruce Chapman iFinity.com.au - Websites and Software Development Plithy remark available in Beta 2
brucerchapman wrote:
Has anyone ever killed RAM through static discharge? Was it all a conspiracy? And I want first hand stories of fiery RAM death - no FOAF!
I have, several times, killed a motherboard, network cards, and even a RAID controller.
_________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
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brucerchapman wrote:
Has anyone ever killed RAM through static discharge? Was it all a conspiracy? And I want first hand stories of fiery RAM death - no FOAF!
I have, several times, killed a motherboard, network cards, and even a RAID controller.
_________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
Well I certainly have Motherboard blood on my hands - but that was through plugging the wrong plug into the wrong hole. Did you specifically kill the RAM through static? Did a spark leap out from your fingertip and that was it? Y'see I was a non-believer. Maybe I've just been lucky.
Bruce Chapman iFinity.com.au - Websites and Software Development Plithy remark available in Beta 2
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Well I certainly have Motherboard blood on my hands - but that was through plugging the wrong plug into the wrong hole. Did you specifically kill the RAM through static? Did a spark leap out from your fingertip and that was it? Y'see I was a non-believer. Maybe I've just been lucky.
Bruce Chapman iFinity.com.au - Websites and Software Development Plithy remark available in Beta 2
brucerchapman wrote:
Did you specifically kill the RAM through static? Did a spark leap out from your fingertip and that was it?
yes, the tech group took it, magnified it and showed the static scar running the surface of the chip. Nasty. They used me as an example of why you should have proper grounding. :) three most dangerous things in the universe: A programmer with a screwdriver An engineer with a software patch A user with an "idea"
_________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
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brucerchapman wrote:
Did you specifically kill the RAM through static? Did a spark leap out from your fingertip and that was it?
yes, the tech group took it, magnified it and showed the static scar running the surface of the chip. Nasty. They used me as an example of why you should have proper grounding. :) three most dangerous things in the universe: A programmer with a screwdriver An engineer with a software patch A user with an "idea"
_________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
Well, there you go. Can't say I'm going to go out and buy another wrist strap though. They just look silly, although useful. Just like fast-food employees wearing hair nets.
Bruce Chapman iFinity.com.au - Websites and Software Development Plithy remark available in Beta 2
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Well, there you go. Can't say I'm going to go out and buy another wrist strap though. They just look silly, although useful. Just like fast-food employees wearing hair nets.
Bruce Chapman iFinity.com.au - Websites and Software Development Plithy remark available in Beta 2
I just called the techs until they got tired of me calling, and then they let me do my own machine changes. Full machine builds, I let them put together, but upgrades and changes I still do. :)
_________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
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I was thinking yesterday as I plugged yet another Gb of RAM into my PC to feed the voracious VS2005 - whatever happened to the static wrist strap? The first time I put some RAM into a PC (probably a 4mb upgrade or something like that) I had it on a desk, strap on my wrist, rubber mat on the floor, and the whole thing was done with the serious intentions of open heart surgery. Now about the only concession I make to manufacturers instructions is to turn the power off before shoving it in. It got me thinking - I've never, ever had a fried memory chip, and I've installed plenty. I mean these days, USB sticks are the new floppy, and they're pretty durable, never had one of them die either. Is Memory tougher these days, or were those wrist straps just some manufacturer upselling useless items at fat profit margins? ($5 for a piece of paper tape!) I mean, I'd never buy a 'cellphone radiation guard' or wear a tinfoil hat, but I used to dilligently put on my static wrist strap. was I duped? Has anyone ever killed RAM through static discharge? Was it all a conspiracy? And I want first hand stories of fiery RAM death - no FOAF!
Bruce Chapman iFinity.com.au - Websites and Software Development Plithy remark available in Beta 2
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brucerchapman wrote:
Did you specifically kill the RAM through static? Did a spark leap out from your fingertip and that was it?
yes, the tech group took it, magnified it and showed the static scar running the surface of the chip. Nasty. They used me as an example of why you should have proper grounding. :) three most dangerous things in the universe: A programmer with a screwdriver An engineer with a software patch A user with an "idea"
_________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
Jeffry J. Brickley wrote:
three most dangerous things in the universe: A programmer with a screwdriver An engineer with a software patch A user with an "idea"
oh, so true...
:badger:
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I was thinking yesterday as I plugged yet another Gb of RAM into my PC to feed the voracious VS2005 - whatever happened to the static wrist strap? The first time I put some RAM into a PC (probably a 4mb upgrade or something like that) I had it on a desk, strap on my wrist, rubber mat on the floor, and the whole thing was done with the serious intentions of open heart surgery. Now about the only concession I make to manufacturers instructions is to turn the power off before shoving it in. It got me thinking - I've never, ever had a fried memory chip, and I've installed plenty. I mean these days, USB sticks are the new floppy, and they're pretty durable, never had one of them die either. Is Memory tougher these days, or were those wrist straps just some manufacturer upselling useless items at fat profit margins? ($5 for a piece of paper tape!) I mean, I'd never buy a 'cellphone radiation guard' or wear a tinfoil hat, but I used to dilligently put on my static wrist strap. was I duped? Has anyone ever killed RAM through static discharge? Was it all a conspiracy? And I want first hand stories of fiery RAM death - no FOAF!
Bruce Chapman iFinity.com.au - Websites and Software Development Plithy remark available in Beta 2
I assembled many PCs in the last years, always without the static strap. I never had problems. Last Saturday I installed another 2 GB of RAM (total: 4 GB :cool:) in my PC and they work fine. The only precaution I always have is to touch metal parts of some device that is currently connected to the power plug, so I can discharge static electricity through the ground conductor (a dishwasher, for instance).
________________________________________________ Personal Blog [ITA] - Tech Blog [ENG] - My Photos ScrewTurn Wiki 2.0.3
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I was thinking yesterday as I plugged yet another Gb of RAM into my PC to feed the voracious VS2005 - whatever happened to the static wrist strap? The first time I put some RAM into a PC (probably a 4mb upgrade or something like that) I had it on a desk, strap on my wrist, rubber mat on the floor, and the whole thing was done with the serious intentions of open heart surgery. Now about the only concession I make to manufacturers instructions is to turn the power off before shoving it in. It got me thinking - I've never, ever had a fried memory chip, and I've installed plenty. I mean these days, USB sticks are the new floppy, and they're pretty durable, never had one of them die either. Is Memory tougher these days, or were those wrist straps just some manufacturer upselling useless items at fat profit margins? ($5 for a piece of paper tape!) I mean, I'd never buy a 'cellphone radiation guard' or wear a tinfoil hat, but I used to dilligently put on my static wrist strap. was I duped? Has anyone ever killed RAM through static discharge? Was it all a conspiracy? And I want first hand stories of fiery RAM death - no FOAF!
Bruce Chapman iFinity.com.au - Websites and Software Development Plithy remark available in Beta 2
brucerchapman wrote:
I mean these days, USB sticks are the new floppy, and they're pretty durable, never had one of them die either.
My girlfriend killed a 1Gb USB disk in a strange way; the computer would still recognise the device was connected, but when you clicked on the drive you get the "please insert disk" message?!? Luckily it was under warranty from Amazon and they replaced it free of charge.
brucerchapman wrote:
Has anyone ever killed RAM through static discharge?
Nope. What I do is prepare the PC; unplug everything except the power, which is turned off, take the side off and then sit down. I then make sure I'm in contact with the case when I remove the memory and put it in the computer. So far I've not crippled any memory that way ;-)
Never argue with an imbecile; they bring you down to their level, and beat you with experience.
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I was thinking yesterday as I plugged yet another Gb of RAM into my PC to feed the voracious VS2005 - whatever happened to the static wrist strap? The first time I put some RAM into a PC (probably a 4mb upgrade or something like that) I had it on a desk, strap on my wrist, rubber mat on the floor, and the whole thing was done with the serious intentions of open heart surgery. Now about the only concession I make to manufacturers instructions is to turn the power off before shoving it in. It got me thinking - I've never, ever had a fried memory chip, and I've installed plenty. I mean these days, USB sticks are the new floppy, and they're pretty durable, never had one of them die either. Is Memory tougher these days, or were those wrist straps just some manufacturer upselling useless items at fat profit margins? ($5 for a piece of paper tape!) I mean, I'd never buy a 'cellphone radiation guard' or wear a tinfoil hat, but I used to dilligently put on my static wrist strap. was I duped? Has anyone ever killed RAM through static discharge? Was it all a conspiracy? And I want first hand stories of fiery RAM death - no FOAF!
Bruce Chapman iFinity.com.au - Websites and Software Development Plithy remark available in Beta 2
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Well, there you go. Can't say I'm going to go out and buy another wrist strap though. They just look silly, although useful. Just like fast-food employees wearing hair nets.
Bruce Chapman iFinity.com.au - Websites and Software Development Plithy remark available in Beta 2
As long as you touch something grounded first you should be alright. Theoretically the case should be grounded so if you've got it plugged into mains (but off) and you touch it while you're installing it should be ok. I just built a new PC and I did notice a warning on the front of the MoBo manual saying to either wear a strap or touch something grounded / metallic before handling components.
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I was thinking yesterday as I plugged yet another Gb of RAM into my PC to feed the voracious VS2005 - whatever happened to the static wrist strap? The first time I put some RAM into a PC (probably a 4mb upgrade or something like that) I had it on a desk, strap on my wrist, rubber mat on the floor, and the whole thing was done with the serious intentions of open heart surgery. Now about the only concession I make to manufacturers instructions is to turn the power off before shoving it in. It got me thinking - I've never, ever had a fried memory chip, and I've installed plenty. I mean these days, USB sticks are the new floppy, and they're pretty durable, never had one of them die either. Is Memory tougher these days, or were those wrist straps just some manufacturer upselling useless items at fat profit margins? ($5 for a piece of paper tape!) I mean, I'd never buy a 'cellphone radiation guard' or wear a tinfoil hat, but I used to dilligently put on my static wrist strap. was I duped? Has anyone ever killed RAM through static discharge? Was it all a conspiracy? And I want first hand stories of fiery RAM death - no FOAF!
Bruce Chapman iFinity.com.au - Websites and Software Development Plithy remark available in Beta 2
ESD (Electro Static Discharge) is a perennial problem - a discharge you can barely feel can damage semiconductors and RAM is as sesnitive to this as anything else. A wristrap will provide the protection needed. As long as the wrist strap is earthed to the case of the PC then wthere will be no discharge between yourself and the PC, just make sure you hold the antistatic packaging before taking the RAM out of it. USB devices have 'hardened' interfaces which would not operate under the speed and conditions RAM does. Elaine :rose:
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I assembled many PCs in the last years, always without the static strap. I never had problems. Last Saturday I installed another 2 GB of RAM (total: 4 GB :cool:) in my PC and they work fine. The only precaution I always have is to touch metal parts of some device that is currently connected to the power plug, so I can discharge static electricity through the ground conductor (a dishwasher, for instance).
________________________________________________ Personal Blog [ITA] - Tech Blog [ENG] - My Photos ScrewTurn Wiki 2.0.3
Dario Solera wrote:
The only precaution I always have is to touch metal parts of some device that is currently connected to the power plug, so I can discharge static electricity through the ground conductor (a dishwasher, for instance).
Good, just touch the PC case before inserting the part and you should be fine.
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I was thinking yesterday as I plugged yet another Gb of RAM into my PC to feed the voracious VS2005 - whatever happened to the static wrist strap? The first time I put some RAM into a PC (probably a 4mb upgrade or something like that) I had it on a desk, strap on my wrist, rubber mat on the floor, and the whole thing was done with the serious intentions of open heart surgery. Now about the only concession I make to manufacturers instructions is to turn the power off before shoving it in. It got me thinking - I've never, ever had a fried memory chip, and I've installed plenty. I mean these days, USB sticks are the new floppy, and they're pretty durable, never had one of them die either. Is Memory tougher these days, or were those wrist straps just some manufacturer upselling useless items at fat profit margins? ($5 for a piece of paper tape!) I mean, I'd never buy a 'cellphone radiation guard' or wear a tinfoil hat, but I used to dilligently put on my static wrist strap. was I duped? Has anyone ever killed RAM through static discharge? Was it all a conspiracy? And I want first hand stories of fiery RAM death - no FOAF!
Bruce Chapman iFinity.com.au - Websites and Software Development Plithy remark available in Beta 2
Never in all my years as a computer tech or after. Even before that in my years of electronic hobbying I used to mess around with various integrated circuits that came in static eliminating tube carrier things but never fried one then either and I wasn't careful at all.
"110%" - it's the new 70%
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I was thinking yesterday as I plugged yet another Gb of RAM into my PC to feed the voracious VS2005 - whatever happened to the static wrist strap? The first time I put some RAM into a PC (probably a 4mb upgrade or something like that) I had it on a desk, strap on my wrist, rubber mat on the floor, and the whole thing was done with the serious intentions of open heart surgery. Now about the only concession I make to manufacturers instructions is to turn the power off before shoving it in. It got me thinking - I've never, ever had a fried memory chip, and I've installed plenty. I mean these days, USB sticks are the new floppy, and they're pretty durable, never had one of them die either. Is Memory tougher these days, or were those wrist straps just some manufacturer upselling useless items at fat profit margins? ($5 for a piece of paper tape!) I mean, I'd never buy a 'cellphone radiation guard' or wear a tinfoil hat, but I used to dilligently put on my static wrist strap. was I duped? Has anyone ever killed RAM through static discharge? Was it all a conspiracy? And I want first hand stories of fiery RAM death - no FOAF!
Bruce Chapman iFinity.com.au - Websites and Software Development Plithy remark available in Beta 2
Trained by CISCO, i was advised to wear those goofy looking wrist straps all the time, (or at least once a screwdriver landed in my hand) But, as personal precaution, i just ground myself (i literary touch the ground or a large metallic surface) and i never touch a chip, just the surrounding circuit. Then again, i don't get laid that often :S
Ericos Georgiades