Narrowboat

When sorting out PC problems, its best trying to reduce the possibilities. The error code windows gave me (when I turned on the option to give it) indicated a hardware fault. As it often crashed when in BIOS (so XP not loaded), I decided to try with components removed (as had been suggested on a comment to my previous post). So starting from a cold PC (not been on for hours) I removed the Hard Disk and Graphics card meaning my system now comprised of

• motherboard (with onboard graphics)
• CPU (with heatsink and fan)
• DVD drive
• One stick of 1GB memory (removed one)

I’d enabled  the onboard graphics before booting from the DVD drive (using a linux CD) and it crashed. After rebooting, it stayed up and went through a rigerous memory test okay, so it’s unlikely the memory.

So it could well be a component on the motherboard with a tiny fracture that is okay once the PC is on for a few minutes and warmed up.

The only thing is I’ve an ASROCK socket-939 board, and there aren’t many 939 boards around. So do I try to seek one, or go for motherboard-cpu combo of another socket type (trying to keep the cost down so it may be of another unpopular socket if I do, which isn’t too bad as when I do want to upgrade properly I’ll most likely need faster memory anyway)

Oh fun. I’ve been having PC problems – it keeps crashing once I turn it on, though after several attempts it stays on and is stable. I’ve been searching for solutions, and although quite a few tech support sites suggest hardware, I don’t seem to be able to find any way I can test as causing a problem, since once XP is up everythings stable (even if I try and stress the system).

So that’s one reason I’ve not posted any videos, though not the only one.

Have you ever fancied a remote control model narrowboat? Well this is a piece on someone who’s got a model version of their narrowboat … errrr  ….

I was watching a program and it had a piece on Adamant a steam boat on the UK canals. The program was from2003, but here’s the piece in particular.

Taken from Waterways World.

Setting off from Warwick this day’s cruise takes us the rest of the way along the Grand Union to its junction with the Oxford Canal. A very sunny March day and not too many boats about. It makes you wonder, the best time to be afloat seems to be on the cusps of the season when the canals are quiet but the weather is often good.

I guess this section of canal is more popular, we passed several oncoming boats in the first hour before we reached th first lock than we had been seeing in a day. Although we went up the first lock by ourselves we then started to share with a boat who followed behind us (not sure where they appeared from, had they been hinding on a mooring or had we missed them in the first lock and they caught up ), but sharing wide locks is always preferred and I’ll wait when I see one approaching in the distance. Fosse Locks can be thought of as quite leaky, but that’s probably part of the design to get water flowing down. This was more apparent on Bascote locks, with its very short pounds – the “flowing down not the leaky part). The short pounds themselves had high water levels so when someone emptied the lock above it flowed over the gates – helpful when you are going up on the lock below! Bascote Locks include a “staircase pair” that is two locks with no pound inbetween – the top gate of the lower lock is thebottom gate of the upper lock. Staircase pairs are fine its only once you increase the number of steps that you have to really think about what state the locks are in (full or empty).

We lock shared until just before Stocktop locks, when we decided to stop for lunch onboard. When we set off again, it seems that narrowboats have more in common with buses than just the diesel engines and along came one we could lock share with – hurrah. A couple on a Black Prince hireboat who seemed as happy as us at finding someone to share doing the lock flight with. We shared the remainder lock through to Calcutt Locks and though this is where we normally stop, we carried on (we had a couple of extra days because engine troubles had meant an unavoidable delay and the owners following had been given an alternative boat for the week). we parted company with our latest lock-sharing buddies at NaptonJuntion as we carroed on to a pub along the Oxford.