(c)1990 Golden Triangle, Inc. (c)1990 Wilson Van Alst All rights reserved. Fm: KRIS BRZESCINSKI To: Tony, I have been having too many cold starts lately, and I need help on why, and why the program MAYDAY didn't work when I had one? - 0 - Fm: Tony Anderson To: KRIS BRZESCINSKI In general, it is no possible to determine, after the fact, what caused a cold start. The evidence is wiped out in the process. So there's no telling "why" it happened, but whatever you did just before it happened could be a clue as to what caused it. I couldn't even begin to guess what the problem was without a ton of information as to what you were doing, what programs were resident, how your machine is configured, what machine you were using, etc. MAYDAY is not guaranteed. Some cold starts are worse than others; some just reset the computer's pointers, indicating an empty machine, while other go through RAM, ripping and tearing as they go. Sometimes there just isn't anything left to be recovered. The standard advice for all computer users, is backup, backup, and backup. Always backup all files, all programs, all work in progress, so that if you do experience a cold start it is inconvenient, but not disasterous. - 0 - Fm: Wilson Van Alst To: KRIS BRZESCINSKI Can you tell us any more about what you and your computer are doing when the cold starts occur? What accessories are you using? What software do you use regularly? It would also help if you'd specify what model computer you have, whether you're running on AC or batteries (NiCads?), and any other particulars that distinguish your machine from the "showroom" norm. Though cold starts can be symptomatic of many things, there are only two conditions in my experience that have caused repeated "unexplainable" crashes: 1) a corrupted machine language program, or 2) an option ROM that's making poor electrical contact in its socket. Tony's message has already mentioned that some cold starts are so destructive they leave nothing for a recovery program to restore. That probably explains why MAYDAY didn't work. But, again, it would be helpful to know more: did MAYDAY produce a file called "FOUND.DO," or was it just a case of nothin' happened? (I'm assuming you already had MAYDAY installed in your computer, per instructions, =before= the cold start -- right?) - 0 - Fm: KRIS BRZESCINSKI To: Wilson Van Alst I have the Model 100 computer, and UR-II is in the socket, but I don't use it very often. Yes, I do use nicads, but I believe it was on AC when the problem occured. I did have something like 5 programs invisible, two of them without extenders. Other than that, I wouldn't know what else to put down. It seems when I download it happens, but that probably isn't the case. There isn't any commercial software in the memory, and MAYDAY was in the computer, but it didn't work this time. or the las time it happened - 0 - Fm: Wilson Van Alst To: KRIS BRZESCINSKI Wish I could draw some immediate conclusions from that configuration list, but it looks pretty nominal to me. I have never heard of invisible or extensionless files causing cold starts -- except, somewhere in the dark depths of memory, I seem to remember a warning against making BASIC invisible. I get the impression that you've been keeping non-standard file names in the computer for some time -- while the cold starts are a fairly recent problem. If that's true, I think we should be looking at other suspects -like new software you're running, or hardware problems. In the first category, MAYDAY has to be pretty new. The fact that it doesn't help you recover from a crash is, naturally, suspicious (though, as mentioned earlier, there are some crashes that wipe out the whole kaboodle). Still, I can't think of anything in MAYDAY that would zap your machine. In essence the program just sits around inertly until you try to use it. You say you're not using any commercial software. What are the freeware programs you normally keep around? There's a slight chance that your NiCads are causing problems. Rechargeable batteries can become unpredictable as they near the end of their lifespan. If yours are reaching retirement age, get a fresh set. Finally, there's your Option ROM. I would put it very high on the list of suspects, even though you don't use it much. It's not that the ROM itself "goes bad." It just wiggles part-way out of its socket. Or the connecting pins get a little oxidized and don't make good contact. And either of these conditions can give you a =very= thorough cold start -- even at times when the ROM is not actively in use. The cure for this condition can be as simple as pulling the ROM out of its socket and re-seating it. I like to do a little extra -- by cleaning the chip contacts, and their counterparts in the socket, with the corner of a pencil eraser. I don't have many more thoughts to offer, Kris. We both know that "off the shelf" M100's are extremely reliable computers. In the worst case, you'll have to go back to the factory configuration -- then add new elements one at a time, verifying their reliability as you go. Let me know if you think I can help. Starting message #: 189476 Starting date: 01-Nov-89 18:14:23 Participants: KRIS BRZESCINSKI 73257,717 70506,1261 Tony Anderson 76703,4062 Wilson Van Alst 76576,2735