Something non-pinball related now.
Since a few years I have a seagate NAS 110 that I use as backup.
I don't backup often (shame on me...) so it was a long time since I connected to the network (it's usually powered off unless when I need to use it.
Anyway my laptop had upgraded to windows 10 recently. It was the first time that I tried to to the NAS frmo it, and it didn't work.
I could browse to http://169.xxx.xxx.xxx/ and login in to the status screen. View and change settings was working ok. But I couldn't access the shares on the drive. Not by http, not from the filesystem (just got an error that I didn't have permission).
The weirdest thing was that the included BlackArmor software could just detect the drive (so I know what IP address it's on), but when I used the 'view drive details' button, it didn't work.
So I was thinking about network security, firewalls, compatibility modes, ...
In the end it's easier than this. Instead of starting the windows 10 laptop with my @hotmail account, I need to access it with a local account. Then the 'view drive details' button in the BlackArmor software goes to the next screen and shows all drives and allows me to map them.
I've wasted a few hours on this, hope it helps someone else..
Wednesday, December 14, 2016
Monday, May 9, 2016
Things break
When you're dealing with pinball machines, you have to know they are complicated mechanical and electronic devices and things can suddenly just break down.
When you have only one or two games that are in good condition you probably are not really aware of this, but when you have a dozen or more machines, usually one of them has an issue. Sometimes it's as small as a switch that needs adjustment, nothing really broken, but they all require work. And things can suddenly break down.
Yesterday I was reminded again of this. I had played my BK2K on saturday and everything worked fine. Sunday afternoon I switch it on again and during gameplay I notice the magna-save magnet always grabbed the pinball. The magnet was just locked on all the time.
I immediately shut down the machine. Luckily I noticed quite fast during the game that the coil was locked on and the magnet can be on for a while, it was hot but not starting to burn. Regular coils (like used in slingshots) can start to smoke quite fast (give it a minute or so..)
Anyway, time to do some troubleshooting, take the manual with schematics to see what transistor drives that coil (Q14), did some measurements with my dmm to confirm (yes - it wasn't completely shorted but the readings were off compared to the other transistors. Switched on my soldering iron, put a new TIP102 transistor in, and half an hour later the game was in complete working condition again.
Luckily that was all it took, and I had all parts so I didn't have to order anything.
It was a quick fix. But a reminder that it's not because something worked yesterday, it'll still work when you turn on the machine today..
When you have only one or two games that are in good condition you probably are not really aware of this, but when you have a dozen or more machines, usually one of them has an issue. Sometimes it's as small as a switch that needs adjustment, nothing really broken, but they all require work. And things can suddenly break down.
Yesterday I was reminded again of this. I had played my BK2K on saturday and everything worked fine. Sunday afternoon I switch it on again and during gameplay I notice the magna-save magnet always grabbed the pinball. The magnet was just locked on all the time.
I immediately shut down the machine. Luckily I noticed quite fast during the game that the coil was locked on and the magnet can be on for a while, it was hot but not starting to burn. Regular coils (like used in slingshots) can start to smoke quite fast (give it a minute or so..)
Anyway, time to do some troubleshooting, take the manual with schematics to see what transistor drives that coil (Q14), did some measurements with my dmm to confirm (yes - it wasn't completely shorted but the readings were off compared to the other transistors. Switched on my soldering iron, put a new TIP102 transistor in, and half an hour later the game was in complete working condition again.
Luckily that was all it took, and I had all parts so I didn't have to order anything.
It was a quick fix. But a reminder that it's not because something worked yesterday, it'll still work when you turn on the machine today..
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