Do computers break more for techies?

[ShawnD1]

I'm the most tech savvy person that I know but I'm the one who constantly has a computer problem. My parents don't know much about computers and they never have a problem. My room mate knows just enough to get around and he doesn't have any problems. Most of my friends are average users and never seem to have problems.

I'm the only person to ever have a broken motherboard (interfaces stop working). I'm the only person who has constant problems with crashing, freezing, slowness, stuff that is "not responding" and stuff that simply doesn't work.
My computer(s) (current and past) have had problems that other computers just never have. Examples include Windows just removing my Epson scanner mysteriously, CD drives that just go bad for seemingly no reason - they have problems reading CDs, having to reinstall Windows XP because it starts giving weird memory problems even though the RAM checks out fine, BIOS updates make the computer have boot problems (get update by running the update program on the CD that came with the motherbaord).

Has anybody else had this? It seems like it's always the tech guys around here that say things about the problems they have with stuff that normal people just don't have problems with. How many non tech people that you know have never had to reinstall Windows? How many of them have never had boot problems? How many of them have had problems with drivers for various pieces of hardware?

[Telexen]

I have a similar problem.

Every computer that comes down into my room...somehow goes bad. I don't even have to touch it..it can come down in perfect working condition...and when I just try to boot it up it fails.

[vass0922]

I sometimes have the opposite problem.. people call me for help.. I walk over and its working again by the time I get there dunno...

However, yes I have my share of problems ....
It doesn't help that 'techies' are constantly fiddling with stuff that causes them to break lol

I have a friend that seems to be Virophile.. she gets them all the time she has norton, but its not perfect, the user can always outsmart it lol

[Brainchild]

Mine work fine till the golden screwdriver comes into play.

I threw them all away

I walk over and its working again by the time I get there

Well that never happens to me.

[Gouki]

I know exactly where you're coming from...I've seen this many times. I think it's because a tech savvy person is never satisfied with how their computer is running...and we're always tinkering around with things. My brother finally learned his lesson when it comes to this...although I haven't. Once he gets a machine stable and working good...he leaves it alone!

And I'm like...where's the fun in that?!?! lol.

[Tomteriffic]

I saw a little motto someplace, maybe even around here, that said:

If it works, BREAK it, THEN fix it!

I think that's the heart of it.

[Pshawn5]

Originally posted by vass0922
I sometimes have the opposite problem.. people call me for help.. I walk over and its working again by the time I get there dunno...

that happens to me all the time when i go help fix my friend's comp.. it's starting to get me freaked out a bit

[Trouble]

If it works, BREAK it, THEN fix it!

I'm with Tom on this one.I think its definately the case.Whats the use of having a puter that you never need to tinker with?

cheers

[Bob The Great]

I think the problem is in out nature. Geeks naturally want to tweak there pc to make it go faster or do stuff it was not meant to do. Plus we are the ones that really put it to our computers. We know what they are capable of, and so we push every component often past the breaking point.

I think Gouki's brother has it right. You have to get your computer to that point where it works awesome! I used emediatly download a patch for my mobo or some new drivers that would increase my 3dmarks by a few points. But seriously is 2 extra FPS worth the compatiblity issues? Plus every driver you install is installing over another which in the end is going to bring windows down becuase of ITS nature.

[Redwolf]

I consiter myself tech-savy. Computers don't necessarily break because I fiddle with them. They'll break for NO REASON whatsoever. I wonce toch a machine and had it crash seconds later, when I was away. I've had parts break on me that I didn't know existed (now I do! ). I get defective RAM, defective CD drives, defective burners, defective Power Supplies, you get the idea. Floppies break on me after 2 days of use.

I think it's bad karma from what I did to that old Compaq. But c'mon! When I get close to a machine that's not mine, it suddenly has problems! Not all the time, about 50% of the time.