My experience in a computer store

[Tozza]

CAUTION: PC GORE AND PC PORN AHEAD

 

Here's a collection of pictures from when I worked in a computer store workshop a few years ago (I left at the end of 2009, so really some of the hardware may not be so impressive). Some of it is considered to be "PC gore", some is funny and some is just of some nice hardware and builds. Eventually dealing with some incredibly stupid and stubborn people made me quit on the spot. This is only a handful of examples of the type of stuff that technicians see daily in computer stores. Enjoy, or cringe... whichever :P

 

 

A customer build in a Thermaltake Armour+ (which is a HEAVY case on its own) with 2x ATI HD5870X2's! Scored 30562 in 3D Mark Vantage on Professional mode.

 

 

Customer build in an Antec 1200 with an Intel Core i7 920, 6gb of Kingston HyperX and 2x Nvidia GTX480's.
 

 

 

 

One of our in-store prebuilds. We had a few different types according to budgets, this was just an Intel 1156 chip, 4gb RAM with an ATI HD5770.

 

 

 

 

This is what the inside of a smokers computer looks like... The dust becomes sticky from the cigarette smoke, and it STINKS. Honestly, it is the most horrible smell ever.

 

 

 

 

Customer build with an i7 and a 5870, and an SSD (SSD's back in 2009 were expensive!)
 

 

 

 

Some guy wanted a heap of 5.25" accessories... We don't know why... It was a mission to do the cabling.

 

[crystal6tak]

 Some guy wanted a heap of 5.25" accessories... We don't know why... It was a mission to do the cabling.

I loled.

[TechTheWorld]

Should be in build log section....

[Tozza]

I left my car keys on the desk while I went out for lunch, and my co-workers decided to fill the boot of my car with printer ink cartridges...

 

 

 

The first photo is blurry, but you can just see how much dust there is. The customer complained that the computer would get really hot and shut off... I wonder why?

 

 

 

A customer brought his media PC in, and asked us to put  many hard drives in as possible... So we gave him an 8tb RAID0 stripe.

 

 

 

 

Dust, dust, and more dust. Need I say more?

 

And afterward, when I had cleaned it out and given him a new heatsink:

 

 

 

Watercooled Core i7 with 2x HD5870's

 

[Eddyall]

 

Hey there's 3 5.25' bay left, put something!

[KOtech]

On 6/9/2013 at 3:33 PM, Tozza said:

 

 

 

 

Dust, dust, and more dust. Need I say more?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It looks like a scene out of a horror movie! 

[unidentical]

No one wants to remember the days before fan filters... NO ONE.

[TheMail]

that dust makes me want to cut myself....

[SirReallySam]

that dust makes me want to cut myself....

true but the rest of it is AWESOME :D

[Tozza]

Came across a HD5970 in a customers computer. At the time this wasn't available in Australia, and he told us he had bought it from the USA.

 

 

 

 

Building 2x of our top of the line prebuild systems.

 

 

 

 

Some people just really shouldn't attempt to build computers...

 

 

 

 

Customer build with 2x HD4870X2's and 5x Western Digital Raptors in RAID.

 

[BgG286]

Customer build with 2x HD4870X2's and 5x Western Digital Raptors in RAID.

 

 

 

 

 

Wasn't there a better case? That one looks so bad.

[911^NEmeSis]

WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?!

I was like woah, Some spiders made their homes in there! Then again, I wouldn't mind living in a gaming PC...

[Tozza]

Just don't even attempt to mount the motherboard... or the heatsink... at all...

 

 

 

 

If the IDE cable doesn't go in, it must be the wrong way... don't force it...

 

 

 

 

A bit too much thermal paste bro.

 

 

 

 

Spot the bent pins! WARRANTY VOID!

 

 

 

Fried cockroaches... *vomit*

 

 

 

 

"When I plug firewire devices in, they stop working? Also no audio comes out of the front audio jack?"

[TheArium]

 

 

What is going on here?  :blink:

[Levent]

i see you are driving a Skyline  :wub:

[Tozza]

The office in all it's glory

 

 

 

 

More smokers... so gross.

 

 

 

 

STOP SMOKING NEAR YOUR COMPUTER DAMMIT PEOPLE!

 

 

 

 

See that black plastic clip? Yeah that's supposed to be taken off.

 

 

And that's what I have. Don't doubt me though, I saw this stuff everyday there.

[Tozza]

 

What is going on here?  :blink:

 

They left the plastic on that covers the AMD heatsinks... and they must've (for some stupid reason) thought the foam padding that the CPU sits on was thermal material?

[Tozza]

i see you are driving a Skyline  :wub:

Correct. I don't have it anymore, but it was an Australian-made R31 Skyline.

[Ziommm]

This is what the inside of a smokers computer looks like... The dust becomes sticky from the cigarette smoke, and it STINKS. Honestly, it is the most horrible smell ever..

 

I thinks Apple voids warranties if there are serious evidences it's a smoker's computer. Like because it's toxic for employees or something.

[Minjon]

When i volunteered i never saw any good pc's, it was always pc's full of dust and core 2 duos :( .

[Lamb]

This makes me cringe...

[adhisakti]

You build lots of high spec computers, in my country there is not a lot of people want to spend that much for a computer. Pentium G, AMD X2, A4 still be the best selling in here.

[EChondo]

Even though I appreciate the posts(and gore), but you might want to check out Reddit's /r/techsupportgore!

 

Aw, smoker's PCs, I've seen a lot of those!