atcomsystems.ca/forum Forums Computers & Programming Computers, Software, Accessories Figure this one out

In all my years working on phones and using computers I have run into a situation that makes me scratch my head repeatedly. I have a Gateway laptop 2 years old with XP SP2. Works fine...never a problem.

Until I go to one site. I have a doctors office that I go to service. Everytime I fire up the laptop it goes blue screen and fails to load. Not hooked to the network...just pulled out of the backpack and fired up. Everytime. Can't boot to safe mode and restore to earlier date settings. Nothing works. I can leave the site, boot to safe restore and it works fine. Go back in and it craps again. This notebook works fine everywhere else. I can recreate this 100% every time.

What gives? Everytime it fails to boot it says reload a copy of hal.dll. Leave the site and the missing or corrupt file is suddenly found and uncorrupt. :bang:

Before anybody says anything I have no idea.

-Hal

hal = hardware abstraction layer - its the windows file that tells the type of hardware.

could it be an x-ray machine or some other piece of medical equipment zapping the hard drive?

Definitely environmental... The Xray machine is about 20 feet away and was not is use the last 3 times I tried recreating this. I thought maybe infrared from med equipment but my laptop doesn't have an IR sensor.

It sounds like EMI levels must be pretty strong in that building. It's even greater if the emitting equipment is housed within a steel structure. That IS weird..occurring everywhere on site?

The telecom data room is center of the building. I usually get the door open and fire up the laptop. It always crashes there. I'm thinking of firing it up in the parking lot and walking in to see what happens. Something spooky. Every time I visit (this site is 3 months old) something is down...servers, routers, elevator control PC, work stations,.. you name it. Building is standard tilt wall concrete construction. Curiousity is killing me and my laptop.

See how close you can get without the laptop malfunctioning, and run a temporary drop to that point..?
At least the laptop is fine once you're offsite.

Are there any large towers near site for radio or tv transmitters? Try to get meter to measure EMI and RF signals

In a past life, I ran an operation for a major Bank. I had foremen in 4 differant buildings each with Switchmen, Installers, Repairmen etc. Depending on the work load and what projects were going on at the Bank I had between 22 and 100+ plus people working on any given day.

My primary jobs were to mange the Network, keep the customer happy and handle major projects. The only times I got involved in day-to-day work was when something got out of hand.

One day ( while I was in the middle of a 300 person move) one of my foremen called me up with a doozy. It was the last thing I wanted to get involved with at that time but...

The Bank had a lot of real big line printers that connected back to the IBM mainframe. The original connections were coax, which we changed to TP with baluns.

One particular printer had suddenly started to spit out reams of paper, either with gibberish or 1 character on a line, or.... It would continue to do that until it ran out of paper. Put a new printer in, it did exactly the same thing. Move the bad printer somewhere else, it worked fine.

We changed the balun, the house pair, the port on the 3274 cluster controller, the station cable - all to no effect. We reran the run in COAX (14 floors!) - No good.

In the end we moved the printer back 6' away from the window and - It worked fine for ever after.

It was either that or call for an exorcism.

My only guess was that someone was transmitting something (MW, EMF, ?) from a nearby building. This was in lower Manhattan right next door to the WTC, so all the buildings were pretty close together. In any event proximity to -whatever - was the problem. We never did find out.

Is there a generator running in the building? If so is it shielded? Is there an X-Ray machine (or CAT scan, or similar)in the NEXT DOOR office?

I think the only way to really tell if it's EMF (or similar) is to get hold of a Spectrum Analyzer. As I recall they're expensive to rent (much less buy) and not easy to operate either.

And if you did find out what it was - what could you do about it? Shut down the MRI next door?

I think Mike's idea about getting close to the job makes sense - at least you'll have an idea. Or try a different laptop. Or load the software you need on a desktop at the doc's location.

Good luck.

Sam

Shut off the main breaker and see if your laptop will boot up. Just kidding of course.

Do they have a MRI on premise?

No matter what is going on, it is very strange. If it is causing that kind of problem with your laptop, what is it doing to your body?