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This client in Boise swore his computer was 'haunted' by a virus
He brought in a desktop last month, said it kept opening browser tabs by itself. I found a cheap wireless keyboard under his desk, the keys were stuck down from spilled soda. Told him it was just a hardware problem, cost about $30 to fix. He looked at me and said 'are you sure it's not a hacker?' straight faced. What's the weirdest 'ghost in the machine' story you've actually solved?
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thomas2751mo ago
Actually, that's not a ghost in the machine, that's just a sticky keyboard. The weirdest one I solved was a printer that would only work if you unplugged the office fridge first. Turns out they were on the same overloaded circuit.
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luna89120d ago
Wait, does that mean the client actually thought someone was remotely clicking through his keyboard? Did you ever find out if he had any other "haunted" stuff happening? I had a client once who swore their computer was possessed because funny noises kept coming from their speakers, I tracked it to a CB radio a neighbor was using. Reminded me of that microwave wifi story @elizabethtaylor mentioned, sometimes the real culprit is just bad wiring or old electronics.
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stella_baker1mo ago
That printer and fridge thing would have made me roll my eyes a year ago. I was totally the tech who blamed the user for everything. Then I had a laptop that would only connect to wifi after you restarted the microwave. The router was in the kitchen and the old microwave was leaking enough interference to kill the signal. That one actually made me stop and think.
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