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World Community Grid Forums
Category: Support
Forum: Website Support
Thread: Why do I have NO task being performed? |
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Thread Status: Active Total posts in this thread: 18
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Former Member
Cruncher Joined: May 22, 2018 Post Count: 0 Status: Offline |
Lawrencehardin,
The "aliens and gremlins" you mention actually have a rational explanation, sometimes. Computers and peripherals have capacitors inside. Capacitors are kind of like batteries because they can hold charge. Capacitors affect the logic inside the computer as well as peripherals. It is only when all the capacitors inside the computer and all the capacitors inside all the peripherals have been fully discharged that you have the hardware in the system returned to its original, known logic state. The only way to be sure all the capaciors have discharged is to unplug all the components in the system, computer, printer, speakers, modem, everything, and then wait 15 minutes. While even 1 capacitor in the system remains charged there is a possibility that it might be causing the irrational state. Turning the computer off will cure 99% of the irrational states you mention but ocassionally one has to go to the extreme of unplugging everything from the mains power and waiting 15 minutes. |
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Sekerob
Ace Cruncher Joined: Jul 24, 2005 Post Count: 20043 Status: Offline |
hmmmm and then there is that 0.00001%% chance your BIOS cell battery is poorly and letting it cool down unplugged from 110/220v provides you with a truly prestine state of computer mind, be it BOINC or UD
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WCG
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Former Member
Cruncher Joined: May 22, 2018 Post Count: 0 Status: Offline |
Oh, I wish that was the explanation!
It's not, of course. It's all about buggy software. The technical term is "cruft". This comes in two forms: firstly, programs that reach an unstable state after prolonged operation. This is rarely caused by actual hardware errors. Hardware errors usually cause fatal errors (unless you're overclocking - then all bets are off). Instead, it is caused by memory mismanagement, thread miscommunication, and bad programming in all its forms. Most good programs won't show any obvious signs of this kind of cruft, unless they just die after a while. Operating systems, however, are more complicated, and run longer. Things can go subtly wrong. The second type of cruft is caused by updates, patches, and hundreds of installations. After months of use, the average computer will accumulate thousands of unwanted files, registry entries, drivers and processes. These have a major negative effect on system stability and speed. Memory corruption and logic errors are incredibly rare. Usually it's the programmer's fault. |
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Former Member
Cruncher Joined: May 22, 2018 Post Count: 0 Status: Offline |
Didactylos,
Actually, I offered that as only 1 explanation. It seems to be a valid explanation because sometimes it works when a cold restart does not. Cruft, of course, is another explanation, one which most of us who program are entirely familiar with. |
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Former Member
Cruncher Joined: May 22, 2018 Post Count: 0 Status: Offline |
Sekerob,
Good point. With a good battery in place the hardware is not actually in the virgin state but it's close enough, usually. |
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Sekerob
Ace Cruncher Joined: Jul 24, 2005 Post Count: 20043 Status: Offline |
surprised certain individuals did not whip out this: Wikipedia's definition of Cruft....
----------------------------------------As to 15 minutes, the Dutch 'count' from 21 to 30 (10 seconds), which achieves 99,99% equilibrium. I have to actually unplug and replug the juice before my rig responds to the bluetooth keyboard during BIOS boot cycle....one more safetygauge against incidental hackers.
WCG
Please help to make the Forums an enjoyable experience for All! |
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Former Member
Cruncher Joined: May 22, 2018 Post Count: 0 Status: Offline |
The Scotts, parsimonious as they are, count from 21 to 25 whereas Italians, being passionately involved, sing the entire Solo Mio before plugging back in. Here in Canada, the Newfies count, "1,2,3, ummmm, anudder one, and anudder one, and oh what the heck I'm just gonna turn it back on and get me anudder Moosehead".
Technically, the time to fully discharge a capacitor through any resistance greater than 0 is infinite. In practice we usually consider a capacitor to be discharged when the voltage across it is 36.8% of the initial voltage. The time to reach that state is called the RC constant which is the product of the capacitance (C) and the resistance (R) through which the charge drains. 15 minutes is a very large discharge time in a computer context but I gave that figure thinking if most wait only half that time then it will most likely get the job done. I had a system a year ago that needed a minimum 5 minute wait after pulling all the plugs. |
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Former Member
Cruncher Joined: May 22, 2018 Post Count: 0 Status: Offline |
Hello Vidterry, Last year I ran the Microsoft Update on my main computer after it had been running for 7-10 days. Everything downloaded but then failed during the installation. I did that 3 times in a row, feeling completely frustrated. Then I smartened up and rebooted. Tried again. . . . everything worked flawlessly. The lesson is that strange states can build up in your computer unnoticed. The reboot puts it into a known good state. The hidden software glitches in the background (caused by ?device drivers, aliens, gremlins?) never do get tracked down and resolved. But any time I am faced with an irrational event on my computer, a reboot is one of the things I try.  Lawrence Lawrence-- I just stumbled into this thread while prowling around and I'd like to offer a recent (and since repeated) experience I have had with MS downloads--which I have set up for automatic. Remember that massive Tuesday Patchday download from MS? The all-time high of 12 patches in one day? My computer (the Hairy Ape) went bonkers for about three days, even with Executive Software's Diskeeper Home running constantly to keep everything defrag'd. The software eventually sorted itself out and settled down, but it took me at least six cold boots to achieve it. Even my tray was screwed up. I've since found that MS has auto-downloaded updates of various times--not every time, you understand--that confuse the Hairy Ape until a cold boot teaches him some manners. I'm just about to the point of cold-booting every other day just to make sure that MS hasn't thrown me a curve and there's something they've given me that requires a formal installation. Heck, there were ven issues between MS and Adobe Reader for a while and I could not open any PDF files because MS's update somehow changed my .dll file and I had to completely delete and reinstall Adobe. Once I did that, the Ape's reading problem went away and I got to read and deal with PDF files again. Summary advice, here, from the Verbous Guy? Cold reboot every two days just on general prinicple. Jim Liddell |
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