So Get This

So last night, I'm playing Simcity 3000, la di da di da, and all of the sudden the screen goes blank. So I reboot the machine. Nothing happens. No display, no POST beep. The diagnostic lights on the back of the machine indicate a memory problem.

So I call Dell today, and ask how I can get the memory replaced. First the guy asks me to try the memory in each of the slots (gone are the days of "warranty void if opened"). We determine that all of the memory cards work in Slot 1 of Channel A, but elsewhere is spotty. Thus, the motherboard is faulty. But the guy orders a new one and a technician is coming out next week to install it.

Anyway, after I got off the phone, I tried different configurations. It turns out that if I use Slots 0 and 1 of Channel A (instead of Slot 0 of Channels A and B), it works fine. So here I am, working on my Dell, which is for the moment working (knock on wood).

There was probably a point to this story, but I don't know what it was.