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Tech support consists of many things; it's a range of services companies provide to their customers for products such as software, mobile phones, printers, and other electronic, mechanical, or electromechanical products. But I think that its biggest component is frustration; the soul-crushing feeling every IT person feels when they witness or, God forbid, have to clean up after our stupidity. I'm talking about desecrated HDMI ports, spaghetti cabling, laptops covered in concrete... or as the subreddit r/TechSupportGore calls it—content. This online community collects pics that will make us "cringe to the brink of passing out" and if it gets a point across it's this: technical support services usually provide users with help in solving some common problems rather than providing training on how to use the product. We haven't really learned after Bored Panda's earlier articles on the subreddit here and here. The fails look just as bad!

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#3

Yea, The Printer Will Not Print If You Leave The Plastic Packaging On The Paper!

Yea, The Printer Will Not Print If You Leave The Plastic Packaging On The Paper!

spazzo246 Report

When Bored Panda contacted Coffeechipmunk for an earlier interview, the moderator of the subreddit said that the most popular posts in the community are usually the ones that show a device a moment away from exploding.

“It’s both dangerous and cool,” they explained. “They probably get so big because people post the pics and you think, 'Wow, that's just a bomb at that point.'"

"A lot of the content on the subreddit does rather well, except for people coming for actual tech support, they get redirected to the right subreddit. For actual tech support gore, though, it seems like broken screens and slightly messy wires are the current posts that don't hit too hard," Coffeechipmunk explained.

#4

First It Made Burning Smells, Then It Beeped, Then It Died. Colourful Ants!

First It Made Burning Smells, Then It Beeped, Then It Died. Colourful Ants!

Rusty-Hinge Report

#5

Is This The Worst Spaghetti Cabling Ever?

Is This The Worst Spaghetti Cabling Ever?

starsky1357 Report

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#6

Ps5 In For Hdmi Replacement. Kid Said “I Pushed The Cable In A Little Too Hard”

Ps5 In For Hdmi Replacement. Kid Said “I Pushed The Cable In A Little Too Hard”

cdq1985 Report

The moderator believes the reason why r/techsupportgore got so popular a simple one: "Honestly... it's very fun," Coffeechipmunk said.

"In a time where most of the internet can be incredibly serious and most times saddening or angering, r/techsupportgore is fun because you go on it and you can laugh (and/or cringe) at the crazy posts. Where else can you see a post like, 'Wow, these cables really are messy' [or] 'A lizard fried my motherboard' back to back? I love our growing community. They're a bunch of people that just enjoy tech and to some extent, the worst of it."

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#9

I Found This While Scrolling Through My Camera Roll From 2018, Enjoy

I Found This While Scrolling Through My Camera Roll From 2018, Enjoy

Ascaban Report

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#10

That Is An Ant Inside The Screen!!!

That Is An Ant Inside The Screen!!!

gwarsh41 Report

#11

Grossest Controller Of The Year Goes To

Grossest Controller Of The Year Goes To

Speedy_Greyhound Report

#12

Just Had A Laptop Returned That Has A Used Bandaid As A Webcam Cover

Just Had A Laptop Returned That Has A Used Bandaid As A Webcam Cover

LEGOjon96 Report

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James016
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I've had this a few times at work. Laptops should have a built in camera cover. A lot do but a lot don't

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#13

Slpt: Laptop Charger Panini Press

Slpt: Laptop Charger Panini Press

voiping Report

#16

Laptop Left Turned On In A School Bag Mixed With A Moldy Sandwich In The Same Compartment

Laptop Left Turned On In A School Bag Mixed With A Moldy Sandwich In The Same Compartment

clokeyyy Report

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#18

One Of Our Clients Couldn't Figure Out Why His Wireless Keyboard And Mouse Weren't Working

One Of Our Clients Couldn't Figure Out Why His Wireless Keyboard And Mouse Weren't Working

sKiLoVa4liFeZzZ Report

#19

It Was A Technological Murder/Suicide Today. Crt TV Landed Directly Onto A Brand New Asus Chromebook

It Was A Technological Murder/Suicide Today. Crt TV Landed Directly Onto A Brand New Asus Chromebook

isawamouseboss Report

#20

Hard Drive Data Recovery

Hard Drive Data Recovery

the123king-reddit Report

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Nagawa (Cofa) Kishiki
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Yes, you need to take the disk out and play it in a vinyl player. Make sure to set the speed to 78 rpm.

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#21

"Why My Keyboard Doesn't Work"

"Why My Keyboard Doesn't Work"

gglebq Report

#22

User Complains About Weird Smell While Using His Laptop

User Complains About Weird Smell While Using His Laptop

1337Kotoko Report

#23

While Many Of Us Are In The Business Of Tech Support, Self Help Is Often Necessary

While Many Of Us Are In The Business Of Tech Support, Self Help Is Often Necessary

TheJoshWS99 Report

#24

Ps4 Botched Repair Attempt. The Shop That Did This To The Client's Unit, Charged Them $100! Should I Put Them On Blast?

Ps4 Botched Repair Attempt. The Shop That Did This To The Client's Unit, Charged Them $100! Should I Put Them On Blast?

SBL_Games_Inc Report

#25

Behold The Beauty Of Our Office Server

Behold The Beauty Of Our Office Server

H0rizon37 Report

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WilvanderHeijden
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

State of the art airco for a state of the art server room. Budget for PR is $10 million per year, budget for IT is $10 000 for 2 years.

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#26

Free Laptop! Too Bad The Screen And Keyboard Are Ruined With The Spray Paint

Free Laptop! Too Bad The Screen And Keyboard Are Ruined With The Spray Paint

ilovesalome88 Report

#27

Electrician Friend Just Sent Me This, Found During A Portable Appliance Test

Electrician Friend Just Sent Me This, Found During A Portable Appliance Test

kryptopeg Report

#28

Customer Came In With A 512gb Ssd In Their MacBook Pro That Only Had 77gb Of Their Own Data On It, Yet It Was Reading As Full Of "Other" Files. After Some Digging It Turns Out That Apple Mail & Gmail Were Writing A New Encyclopedia Britannica Behind The Scenes. That's A Whole Lot Of Text

Customer Came In With A 512gb Ssd In Their MacBook Pro That Only Had 77gb Of Their Own Data On It, Yet It Was Reading As Full Of "Other" Files. After Some Digging It Turns Out That Apple Mail & Gmail Were Writing A New Encyclopedia Britannica Behind The Scenes. That's A Whole Lot Of Text

Po1eTrain Report

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Ece Cenker
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

What does the op mean by "A New Encyclopedia Britannica?" What was all that text?

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#29

Really Great Laptop Performance With A Core I7

Really Great Laptop Performance With A Core I7

ItsJMhere Report

#30

Lent It To A Friend...

Lent It To A Friend...

rivo99 Report

#31

Her: My MacBook Pro Is Running Hot. Inside The Fan: Ant Colony

Her: My MacBook Pro Is Running Hot. Inside The Fan: Ant Colony

giantthreetoedsloth Report

#32

Someone Tried To Print From USB

Someone Tried To Print From USB

Shakatroll Report

#33

Got An Xbox 360 Controller In For Repair. Inside, I Found Multiple Dead Bugs And Everything Was Covered In A Fine, White Powder-Like Dust

Got An Xbox 360 Controller In For Repair. Inside, I Found Multiple Dead Bugs And Everything Was Covered In A Fine, White Powder-Like Dust

JoMa2001 Report

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#34

Friends Computer Has Been Crashing For Like 3 Years

Friends Computer Has Been Crashing For Like 3 Years

marco23p Report

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Lauren Caswell
Community Member
3 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Ay! I remember when my dad replaced the cooling fan things years back on our home pc (he did 90s computer tech stuff so we had stuff at home for his work etc plus he bought and refurbished old parts from his work), he had them in bout 30 mins them *BOOM* *swearwords*, dad comes out covered in coffee and black soot. Checked the fan seperately, it was a dud, stopped after approx 1 min. Rang the computer place, 'oh no its specialist we aren't reresponsible blah' plus a bunch of condescending jargon. So dad brought it in and politely schooled them on how their faulty fan had toasted his new hard drive. They replaced it all. I think coz he was 'older' (40s at the time but 90s tech was new), they just were so rude and dismissive. TLDR: faulty fan made expensive computer go boom. Tech experts learned not to judge a technician by his cover ^-^

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#36

Why Do We Need To Hire It? Just Plug It All In

Why Do We Need To Hire It? Just Plug It All In

Quigleythegreat Report

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Robert T
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

What a rubbish extension lead design. You can't use all the sockets if you plug anything ither than straight cables in - the adapters block the adjacent sockets. Having said that, this is probably the only thing that is preventing this lot going up in flames!

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#37

Stupidity Strikes Again. Now I've Got A 'Curved' Keyboard

Stupidity Strikes Again. Now I've Got A 'Curved' Keyboard

Jan_Spontan Report

#41

Saw The Other Post About Ethernet Rewiring And Reminded Me Of This. It Worked Fine For Almost A Week Until I Replaced It With A Proper Cable

Saw The Other Post About Ethernet Rewiring And Reminded Me Of This. It Worked Fine For Almost A Week Until I Replaced It With A Proper Cable

gunmetaldjs Report

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#42

Power Supply Didn’t Fit, I Guess This Works?

Power Supply Didn’t Fit, I Guess This Works?

Kcleary940 Report

#43

Previous Install Company Ran Cat5 Over The Main Junction Box, Decided To Shield The Cable With Aluminum Foil

Previous Install Company Ran Cat5 Over The Main Junction Box, Decided To Shield The Cable With Aluminum Foil

endorphin__dolphin Report

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Bill
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Somebody needs their license pulled. 18" seperation between power and data cables

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#44

How To Make Sure Ideas Hold Water

How To Make Sure Ideas Hold Water

Bixel925 Report

#45

My Little Cousins First Build. I Told Him You Have The Wrong Ram. He Said "How You Know?"

My Little Cousins First Build. I Told Him You Have The Wrong Ram. He Said "How You Know?"

wack0h Report

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#47

"User Dropped The Laptop. Please Give Us A Quote"

"User Dropped The Laptop. Please Give Us A Quote"

CrystalDabuu Report

#48

“Hey, Grab Those Couple Of Pcs In Storage Down On Lower Level, I Need One.” Here You Go Boss, I Fetched A PC For You

“Hey, Grab Those Couple Of Pcs In Storage Down On Lower Level, I Need One.” Here You Go Boss, I Fetched A PC For You

treletraj Report

#49

Hey Isp You Always Drop Out At Lunch Time, But Only On WiFi!

Hey Isp You Always Drop Out At Lunch Time, But Only On WiFi!

InsanateePrawn Report

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#51

Returned Airpod Pros To An Apple Disposal Centre In Shenzhen

Returned Airpod Pros To An Apple Disposal Centre In Shenzhen

YTAppleDemo Report

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Hammer
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That's horrible, just imagine where all the chemical waste goes. People do this outside their huts leaking chemicals into the soil, it's the stuff of nightmares.

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#52

Shoutout To The Cell Phone Repair Shop That “Worked” On This Xbox Series X Before It Came To Me

Shoutout To The Cell Phone Repair Shop That “Worked” On This Xbox Series X Before It Came To Me

cdq1985 Report

#55

Stopped By A Local Sports Bar To Pick Up Dinner, This Is How They Do Online Orders Through Several Providers

Stopped By A Local Sports Bar To Pick Up Dinner, This Is How They Do Online Orders Through Several Providers

shitpickle2020 Report

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#56

I Said To Delete The Data Not Destroy 4 Sas Disks

I Said To Delete The Data Not Destroy 4 Sas Disks

ZXLeos Report

#57

This Is What Happens When The Tech Before You Puts A PC Right Next To A Cnc In A Cabinet Shop.... Still Working

This Is What Happens When The Tech Before You Puts A PC Right Next To A Cnc In A Cabinet Shop.... Still Working

16eidenr Report

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#58

I Was Wondering Why It's Only 100mbps

I Was Wondering Why It's Only 100mbps

kawaii__neko_ Report

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Robert T
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Well you know, running a second cable is expensive. You'll just have to share!

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#59

I’m Not Sure They Put Enough Thermal Paste On Here

I’m Not Sure They Put Enough Thermal Paste On Here

heylooknewpillows Report

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WilvanderHeijden
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

"You don't need thermal paste when you've got a cooler installed." as I was told by an intern while he sat down on the principals new laptop.

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#60

My Work (Industrial) Had Me Burn Up Some Hard Drives At 1750 Degrees In A Carbon Filled Retort. This Is The Result

My Work (Industrial) Had Me Burn Up Some Hard Drives At 1750 Degrees In A Carbon Filled Retort. This Is The Result

PoonSwoggle Report

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Robert T
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

And all those lovely chemicals you have just released into the atmosphere - nice! A nice big magnet will do just as well, or if you don't have one, open them up and break the platters.

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#61

"Ticket: Student Destroyed Laptop"

"Ticket: Student Destroyed Laptop"

JustAnNPC_DnD Report

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Lsai Aeon
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

As a parent of a child on the spectrum, I've seen an Autistic meltdown do this

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#63

Removing Ram Heatsink, What Could Go Wrong

Removing Ram Heatsink, What Could Go Wrong

smellyfeetpete Report

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Jihan Kim
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

why pay extra to get a ram with heatsink, remove the heatsink to break the ram, when you can just buy a plain green bar...

#64

Apparently, This Particular Philippine Brand Of Power Strip With A Laminated Metal Casing Uses Stripped Wires In Between Outlets

Apparently, This Particular Philippine Brand Of Power Strip With A Laminated Metal Casing Uses Stripped Wires In Between Outlets

NontitledParent Report

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#66

Something Has Awoken

Something Has Awoken

jsoftrim Report

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#67

Checked In A MacBook Hair At Work Today

Checked In A MacBook Hair At Work Today

reezwon Report

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Wombatred26
Community Member
3 years ago (edited) DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Looks like either golden retriever or golden labrador fur to me...

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#68

Power Button Broke And Didn't Have A Replacement Lying Around… There Was, However, A Broken Coat Hanger

Power Button Broke And Didn't Have A Replacement Lying Around… There Was, However, A Broken Coat Hanger

futlapperl Report

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Cactus McCoy
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I don't get this one....are there any two wires which need to be pressed together or what?

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#69

"I Cleaned The Power Switch But It Still Won't Turn On"

"I Cleaned The Power Switch But It Still Won't Turn On"

divine_applepi Report

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#70

I Work As An It Analyst From Home. My Assistant (Two-Year-Old) Pre-Installed This Printers Crackers For Me. He's Great!

I Work As An It Analyst From Home. My Assistant (Two-Year-Old) Pre-Installed This Printers Crackers For Me. He's Great!

smarble1 Report

#72

Cable Labeling At My Friend's House Is Far From Helpful

Cable Labeling At My Friend's House Is Far From Helpful

AirlineFlyer Report

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#73

Shore Power Cable After ~8 Years Exposure To Salty Air And Moisture

Shore Power Cable After ~8 Years Exposure To Salty Air And Moisture

P4r4dx Report

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M O'Connell
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I've found that potting the terminals with hot-melt glue helps this sort of thing a bit, though judging by the condition of the wires themselves, it was time for a new one anyway.

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#74

Guess I Need A New Battery?

Guess I Need A New Battery?

Burrito_Blanco_ Report

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#75

Nightmare Server Dungeon At My Job

Nightmare Server Dungeon At My Job

pap3rw8 Report

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WilvanderHeijden
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

On the bright side, you don't have to share the room with the cleaning company who needs the space for their cleaning carts, vacuums and brooms.

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#76

Happy Monday, Plumbers Were Flushing The Lines Upstairs And A Couple Gallons Came Through The Ceiling. (The Leak Was Like 10ft From The Server Room)

Happy Monday, Plumbers Were Flushing The Lines Upstairs And A Couple Gallons Came Through The Ceiling. (The Leak Was Like 10ft From The Server Room)

Adg48 Report

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#77

This Physically Hurt My Brain

This Physically Hurt My Brain

YourSauceAndSaviour Report

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James016
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I have had to explain many times that when the connection on the computer says 100Mbps, that is the connection speed to the router and not how fast your actual internet connection is.

#78

Removing Ram Heatsink, Be Sure To Get All That Ram

Removing Ram Heatsink, Be Sure To Get All That Ram

DarrenCax Report

#79

" It Would Not Enter Into The Hdmi, So I Thought It Needed A Bit Of A Push..." A Pair Of Pliers And 2 Minter Later...

" It Would Not Enter Into The Hdmi, So I Thought It Needed A Bit Of A Push..." A Pair Of Pliers And 2 Minter Later...

dark16one Report

#80

When You Didn’t Bring Wire With You....

When You Didn’t Bring Wire With You....

Bandwagon_Burner Report

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#81

Don’t Smoke Around Your PC Kids!

Don’t Smoke Around Your PC Kids!

ComeFlyWithD Report

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#82

Ohhhh Yes The Server

Ohhhh Yes The Server

D4RkOn3 Report

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WilvanderHeijden
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

Just another situation were IT is underfunded but yet is expected to keep the company running.

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#84

Client Was Wondering Why His PC Didn’t Work After Installing A New Gpu

Client Was Wondering Why His PC Didn’t Work After Installing A New Gpu

broien_suPRIEM Report

#85

Had An Arguement With My Dimm. I Won

Had An Arguement With My Dimm. I Won

ich-liebe_bier Report

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#86

Sandwich Telecom At Its Finest (Pic Token In France)

Sandwich Telecom At Its Finest (Pic Token In France)

Pwar4lavement Report

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#87

The Guy Who Built This Told The Customer The Water Cooling Was Zero Maintenance.... He Didn't Do A Good Job In The First Place

The Guy Who Built This Told The Customer The Water Cooling Was Zero Maintenance.... He Didn't Do A Good Job In The First Place

my-head-is-spinning Report

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#88

Maintenance: "The New Desk Arrived And I Organized The Computers For You" Geez... Thanks

Maintenance: "The New Desk Arrived And I Organized The Computers For You" Geez... Thanks

Tz_AlphaWolf Report

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#90

Gpu Woes Pt.2 - The Fan Of My Gtx 650ti Melted After A Gta V Session. R.i.p

Gpu Woes Pt.2 - The Fan Of My Gtx 650ti Melted After A Gta V Session. R.i.p

artemis_0504 Report

#91

It Turns Out The Ssd In A Microsoft Surface Is Removable After All!

It Turns Out The Ssd In A Microsoft Surface Is Removable After All!

weazelbeater Report

#92

This 'Repair' Job... Yikes

This 'Repair' Job... Yikes

zookee1 Report

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#93

Customer States Their MacBook No Longer Turns On After Updating To Big Sur

Customer States Their MacBook No Longer Turns On After Updating To Big Sur

Sydnxt Report

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moose man
Community Member
2 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

i have the oldest compatible mac mini (late 2014) and i updated to monterey and bug sure just fine

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#94

Remember To Unlock Your Pcie Lock Before Removing The Gpu

Remember To Unlock Your Pcie Lock Before Removing The Gpu

Imenkyrpia98 Report

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Thomas
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

That looks more like the result of an heavy graphic card mounted without any structural support. Modern cards can easily weight near three pounds, you're supposed to use brackets (or mount them vertically). coldzero-g...6996b2.jpg coldzero-gpu-support-bracket-white-short-60b4fec6996b2.jpg

#95

Gtx 1080 Gave Out At The Worst Time Possible. Rest In Peace Buddy

Gtx 1080 Gave Out At The Worst Time Possible. Rest In Peace Buddy

Thermashock Report

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Allan Breum
Community Member
3 years ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

I wish you luck in finding anything from the 10 series, or newer, at anything resembling MSRP.

#97

Curved Lines Render Great!!

Curved Lines Render Great!!

wonder_wharf Report

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#98

"I Cleaned The Power Switch But It Still Won't Turn On"

"I Cleaned The Power Switch But It Still Won't Turn On"

divine_applepi Report

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#99

Previous Install Company Ran Cat5 Over The Main Junction Box, Decided To Shield The Cable With Aluminum Foil

Previous Install Company Ran Cat5 Over The Main Junction Box, Decided To Shield The Cable With Aluminum Foil

endorphin__dolphin Report