Problem with friends PC

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My mate is totally illiterate when it comes to computers but he has tried his best to describe the problem which I will put down exactly and see if anyone has any ideas.

His computer stopped working so he took it to a local repair shop who said it needed a new motherboard (make unknown) he also had new RAM installed and a new graphics card (RAM size and GPU unknown). My friend tells me when he uses his USB mouse using an adapter that is plugged in the usual type of mouse port it does not work it also seems to stop the function keys from working. I have tested the adapter which he brought into work and it is fine.

From past experience of building PCs I have had a one time issue were this occurred as I hadn't screwed the motherboard in correctly so when I plugged in the mouse it wasn't actually making proper contact with the mobo so I am thinking that this is the problem.

My friend says when he is plugging the mouse in the USB everything works fine.

Does anyone have any other ideas apart from mobo not in correctly, power issue or shorted mobo?

 

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Did you try the mouse or just the adapter? I believe some USB mice aren't ps/2 compatible.

 

he just brought the adapter into work which I tried on my work PC that has the same setup with a USB in the ps/2

 

LOL - Sounds like Trigger's broom...

So he has a USB-PS/2 adapter? Those things have always been flaky for me - sometimes they work fine, other times they don't - often in the exact same make/model of PC. Why doesn't he just spend five quid and buy a USB mouse? PS/2 has gone the way of the dinosaur anyway

 

it is a USB mouse he just doen't want to put it in a USB slot for some unkown strange reason.

 

Then he's quite clearly clinically insane - I would sit him down with a nice cup of tea and explain to him that you can no longer be his friend.

 

If it's just been fitted by a shop he should take it back in with his mouse and adapter for them to check it out.

Any tinkering will invalidate his warranty - not a good idea on new board/ram/cpu etc

 

lol, I asked him why and he says he doesn't have any USB ports at the back and he doesn't want to use the from ones as it makes it look messy I think his PC is one of those cheap Aldi efforts.

 

OK so why did the repair shop say he needed a new mobo, cpu and graphics card is his only issue was a mouse not working correctly? in fact why repalce all this any way? surley he would only need mobo and cpu OR a graphics card? suggest he was ripped at the shop!

If he's had a new mobo it will have usb ports on teh back, what new mobos dont? It would be very unusual.

OK so the mouse works in usb, the adapter also works on your pc, have you tried the adaptor AND mouse on your pc? I have seen funny things such as mice not working with particular brands of adaptors (loose fite or slightly miss aligned pins) If both work togther on your pc then it must be his PC, in which case most likely culprit is teh MOBO. Either a faulty ps2 port or bacd connection.

 

I also think he has been ripped, he just told me that he put the computer in the shop as it had stopped working. Like I said he is computer illiterate.

He says he needs all the USB ports, he has four apparently

He just brought the adapter into work which worked on my pc, I am going to lend him a spare adapter that I have to see if that one works, but I do think the mobo maybe faulty and from what I have heard of this guy in the shop he doesn't take any ESD precautions so wether he has shorted the mobo or not remains to be seen.

I have suggested that if my spare adapter doesn't work then I will have a look at the mobo and if I can find the issue I can tell him what to say to the guy in the shop.

 

he says if my spare adapter doesn't work he is going to buy one of those external USB hubs.

I suggested the card but he doesn't want anyone opening the case. Although I don't know how I will check the mobo if he won't let me open the case

 

Perhaps he's shorted his PS/2 port. Those adapters are notorious for being heavy and coming partway out, making bad connections... pull the sucker out in juuuust the right position, and zot! no more workie port. Despite public ignorance on the matter, PS/2 devices are NOT safely hot swappable while the system is powered on.

 

I think BM has the answer on that, as he says if users do try and hot swap ps/2 connectors then the chances are very high that something will go pop, and as you say if the user is not very good with computers he might have been happily testing the usb connector and finding that works and then plugging it into the ps/2 port.

..... thats a thought, I dont suppose that all the time he has been testing the ps/2 adapter he has been plugging it in whilst the computer is switched on has he. If so there is a chance that it may work if he switches the machine off and then plugs in the mouse with ps/2 connector and then switches it on.

 

fixed.

I tested his mouse on my pc and it didn't work he bought a new one and it did.

BUT

After having a look from the inside of his case some of the standouts are not in fully so his mobo isn't actually level so some of the ports are not showing properly through the I/O shield.

I have told him to take it back to the guy and get it sorted.