Cthulhu Calamari

Since the original posts, I build a new PC, bringing over just a handful of components from the old rig. The problem still comes up, and I think it might be tied to the Folding@Home client. Has anyone else noticed attention being pulled from newly opened windows while the client is running in the BG?

I just got a reply from Volta's customer support within an hour of requesting a refund for the Volta 2.0 cables I bought after LTT plugged them on a video at the end of February. I'm just awaiting confirmation regarding how they calculate the 30-day money-back period, so I don't get screwed by shipping things to and from Australia. The cables themselves didn't have any trouble charging my wife's Pixel 4, or my Samsung S8+. My beef is that the magnet on the tips isn't strong enough to pull the connector back out when unplugging a device. Their customer care rep said that was intentional, so you leave the magnetic tip in and just stick it to other cables, but since it cost me $56 CAD for 2x 1M cables (after shipping) there's no way I'm replacing every cable we use with these. I tested them with some much cheaper magnetic cables off Amazon, and they weren't compatible, but if someone finds another brand that uses the same connector, then I guess it starts to make more sense... Those cheaper cables do fully unplug when pulled straight out, while still breaking away cleanly when the cable is pulled accidentally or at an angle that could otherwise damage it, so the idea is sound. It's just the execution on these cables that doesn't meet my expectations.

I've given up on blocking phone scammer numbers, etc. I will get a couple calls a day about "enforcement actions on my SIN number" or "<something in Chinese>." I'm down to burn a couple minutes connecting to the live "agent," but what is the best way to maximize the shittiness I can cause that person's day?

Yup. As soon as I had the hardline in & tested, the USB dongle was out. As mentioned, the focus stealing issue still pops up occasionally, and I've still had 1 BSOD in the several days since, so it seems that I had at least 2 problems going on, but the USB WiFi receiver was definitely one of them. Without it the system has been much more stable with no other changes being made.

Further update: I got a BSOD and one instance of the focus loss issue again yesterday, so the problem appears to be persistent. The problems appear to be occurring with less frequency, and at least my internet connection is much better. *shrug* Additional further update: Yesterday I pulled the trigger on the components to start my new build, which will use my current PSU and 1070 (until the 30s are available here in Canada). I don't know that I'll be willing to spend the time to completely trouble-shoot this problem, especially since I don't think my modular PSU has a second 24-pin cable so keeping both rigs functional would be too much work... Thanks for the suggestions, though.

UPDATE: I noticed that it was really common for my Wifi receiver to fail to see networks without direct action on my part after a BSOD reset, and that my connection was seeming particularly garbage lately overall. I finally took the time to run ethernet cable all the way to my office, and - knock on wood - it appears that my Wifi dongle I've been using for a few years was dying and triggering both the program focus theft and the random BSOD issues. This one, which is no longer available on Amazon: It's only been a day, but so far so good. Plus, now my kickass internet connection is unimpeded by walls in a 100+ year old building. If it had to be hardware failure, I'm glad it's a USB peripheral and not, like, my M2 boot drive. If my guess checks out, this rig will be able to coast all the way to third-party 3080s being available in Canada, instead of barely limping along to whatever current upgrade I can get my filthy mitts on ASAP.

I can confirm that the issue isn't limited to one program. It is sometimes the case that launching a game from Steam will have it launch under the Steam window, etc. I appreciate the step breakdown for trouble-shooting, but for the time being, without a "usual suspects" hit list to test, I won't have the time to run through everything. I also get to contend with an unknown software error (with a few different error codes) triggering the occasional BSOD, but it doesn't trip too often, and my work laptop can cover while it restarts. (I'm a first-year call at a law firm, and it feels like I've been having "one of those days" for 4 months straight now...) At present, the most likely outcome is that I wait for new hardware to drop next month, build a completely new rig, and just reformat this one to serve as the media centre or something...

I've killed iCUE and a handful of other BG programs in the Task Manager, and the problem persists. According to my System Tray, I've currently got the following running: My external drives, via USB; Steam (which hasn't triggered this problem in the decade+ that I've had it); OneNote's quick launch; Intel Rapid Storage Technology; RealTek Audio Manager (MSI's branded version); Sennheiser Audio 1.13 (headset; no problems in the past 4 years of use); Epic Games launcher (I know, Epic Bad, but Hades was only available there for the first year and I love Super Giant more than I hate Epic's bullshit; eat me); NVIDIA Settings; Windows Security; OneDrive; Folding @ Home (paused cuz shit gets hot); OnScreen Control (LG monitor); Volume Mixer; Spotify; Discord; 1Password; Dropbox; and Language settings. The RealTek program is just there because my MoBo is MSI; I have no reason to keep that if it's know to trigger issues.

So far the problem persists, even with iCUE turned off. The hunt continues...

Aha. I recently got a Corsair keyboard, with the iCUE software. That's the most likely culprit right there. MFer isn't the lightest CPU load, either...

In the end I just got a Corsair K70 with the sweet, sweet Cherry Blues, which I've wanted for a while anyway, and I couldn't be happier. As a bonus, because Intelcom is such a shitty courier service, I got a discount on the new keyboard from the retailer, and Logitech - who were unable to service my old Romer G keyboard - offered me 30% off my next purchase from their online store, which is good until next January, so... I guess it kind of sorted itself out in the end... And I didn't even have to buy a soldering iron that I'd only use once! Huzzah!

For the past few weeks I've noticed that opening new windows frequently (but not always) fails to 'select' the opened window, even when nothing else is actively running on the desktop. Example: I will open Firefox with no other active windows on the desktop, and when the program comes up, typing - which generally automatically goes into the address bar - does nothing until the Firefox window is manually selected, either by clicking on it or Alt+Tabing to it - from nothing... This occurs generally, not just for browsers. It will happen with File Explorer, windowed games, etc. It's really frustrating, especially when the newly opened window comes up on top of anything else that is running, but isn't actually selected. (The keyboard inputs don't appear to affect previously open windows either; it's like Windows is using a double-clutch system, and I'm just in neutral...) It also doesn't appear to matter if something is opened from the Start menu or a shortcut... I have no idea what's up.

For the record, I've been using a Logitech G610 with Cherry Browns for the past 4 years at home, and it's the best keyboard I've ever used. I'm not just going off marketing hype. I legit love how it functions. My problem with trying other keys is that I'm a lawyer, and my work keyboard is very heavily used, and the downtime in switching if I don't like it is best avoided if possible. I took recommendations on trying Romer Gs, and while I don't hate them, they are not something I'm ever buying again. As noted, if I can do the replacement in under 30 minutes, I'd be fine continuing to use the current Romers, but anything past that & I'm switching and not looking back. Although, if people can vouch for Kailhs or something, that really does open up the available options for me when it comes to 'in stock' keyboards in Van. One other consideration: I'm not buying a soldering iron just for this; are there recommendations for a rental in Van?

I have a Logitech K840 I've been using at work for almost 2 years now, and I noticed the "s" key would often cause multiple inputs recently. I thought it was my USB hub dying, but it turns out the switch in the "s" has come loose in the faceplate. (It appears that one of the little tabs that holds it in place broke.) Now that I know to look for it I can see the "s" occasionally sit at a slight angle. It was around $100 (CAD) new, and I have an OK electronics tool set (not a nice iFixit one; they didn't have shipping deals to Canada at the time), so if it's not too much hassle I might fix it, but Romer G fixes appear to be a pain in the ass from what I've seen quickly searching online. (Apparently there's soldering involved?) Should I give that a try, or just get a new keyboard? (Real talk: I'm never buying another keyboard with anything other than Cherry's from now on.)

I'm pretty happy with myself that I was able to hit 1M points during the not-competition!