My plasma cutter stopped cutting. The loose-nozzle indicator light was
on. The nozzle was tight, but I loosened & re-tightened it and it
started cutting again. Then stopped again "loose nozzle" again.

So I opened the torch & checked the nozzle switch - it was OK. Crap!
Now it was something in the hose, or worse - in the electronics. So I
got out the manual to look for a schematic. And stumbled across the
page with the indicators explained. 'Turns out that "loose nozzle"
means a loose nozzle only when steady. When it's flashing, as mine was,
it means worn electrode!

So I put in a new electrode & nozzle and I'm all set. 'Least I didn't
start taking more stuff apart.

Kick me,
Bob

"Bob Engelhardt" wrote in message
...
My plasma cutter stopped cutting. The loose-nozzle indicator light was
on. The nozzle was tight, but I loosened & re-tightened it and it started
cutting again. Then stopped again "loose nozzle" again.

So I opened the torch & checked the nozzle switch - it was OK. Crap! Now
it was something in the hose, or worse - in the electronics. So I got out
the manual to look for a schematic. And stumbled across the page with the
indicators explained. 'Turns out that "loose nozzle" means a loose nozzle
only when steady. When it's flashing, as mine was, it means worn
electrode!

So I put in a new electrode & nozzle and I'm all set. 'Least I didn't
start taking more stuff apart.

Kick me,
Bob

Damn, you keep all that paperwork that comes with stuff? They say there's a
lot of good useful information in there.

Steve ;-)

Bob Engelhardt wrote:
My plasma cutter stopped cutting. The loose-nozzle indicator light was
on. The nozzle was tight, but I loosened & re-tightened it and it
started cutting again. Then stopped again "loose nozzle" again.

So I opened the torch & checked the nozzle switch - it was OK. Crap!
Now it was something in the hose, or worse - in the electronics. So I
got out the manual to look for a schematic. And stumbled across the
page with the indicators explained. 'Turns out that "loose nozzle"
means a loose nozzle only when steady. When it's flashing, as mine was,
it means worn electrode!

"One if by Nozzle, Two if by electrode"?

So I put in a new electrode & nozzle and I'm all set. 'Least I didn't
start taking more stuff apart.

Kick me,

Naaah.

I learnt that half the time, error indicators are devices used
to steer the user *away* from the issue at hand.

My waffle iron *turns on* a light labeled "Preheat" to indicate
that the waffle has finished cooking.

Rumor has it, there are computers and cars which you *turn off*
by first pressing a "Start" button. (I am not making this up.)


--Winston


--

Congratulations Robert Piccinini and Steven A. Burd, WalMart Publicists of the Year!

On Sat, 26 Dec 2009 12:38:29 -0500, the infamous Bob Engelhardt
scrawled the following:

My plasma cutter stopped cutting. The loose-nozzle indicator light was
on. The nozzle was tight, but I loosened & re-tightened it and it
started cutting again. Then stopped again "loose nozzle" again.

So I opened the torch & checked the nozzle switch - it was OK. Crap!
Now it was something in the hose, or worse - in the electronics. So I
got out the manual to look for a schematic. And stumbled across the
page with the indicators explained. 'Turns out that "loose nozzle"
means a loose nozzle only when steady. When it's flashing, as mine was,
it means worn electrode!

So I put in a new electrode & nozzle and I'm all set. 'Least I didn't
start taking more stuff apart.

Remember this motto, Bob:

After all else fails, read the instructions.


--
REMEMBER: The sooner you fall behind,
the more time you'll have to catch up!

Bob Engelhardt wrote:

So I opened the torch & checked the nozzle switch - it was OK. Crap!
Now it was something in the hose, or worse - in the electronics. So I
got out the manual to look for a schematic. And stumbled across the
page with the indicators explained. 'Turns out that "loose nozzle"
means a loose nozzle only when steady. When it's flashing, as mine was,
it means worn electrode!


I *hate* overloaded indicators. Overloaded meaning multiple meanings to a single
indicator. Great way to lead you astray by only looking at the primary meaning that is
written above said indicator.

Wes
--
"Additionally as a security officer, I carry a gun to protect
government officials but my life isn't worth protecting at home
in their eyes." Dick Anthony Heller

On Sat, 26 Dec 2009 12:38:29 -0500, Bob Engelhardt
wrote:

My plasma cutter stopped cutting. The loose-nozzle indicator light was
on. The nozzle was tight, but I loosened & re-tightened it and it
started cutting again. Then stopped again "loose nozzle" again.

So I opened the torch & checked the nozzle switch - it was OK. Crap!
Now it was something in the hose, or worse - in the electronics. So I
got out the manual to look for a schematic. And stumbled across the
page with the indicators explained. 'Turns out that "loose nozzle"
means a loose nozzle only when steady. When it's flashing, as mine was,
it means worn electrode!

So I put in a new electrode & nozzle and I'm all set. 'Least I didn't
start taking more stuff apart.

Kick me,
Bob

What button do you press to answer a cellphone?
Why, "SEND", of course!

On 2009-12-26, Winston wrote:

[ ... ]

I learnt that half the time, error indicators are devices used
to steer the user *away* from the issue at hand.

:-)

Rumor has it, there are computers and cars which you *turn off*
by first pressing a "Start" button. (I am not making this up.)

Not just rumor -- though it is not a physical button. It is a
click-on area on the GUI on the screen. Windows started this, and other
systems (including some linux ones) have picked up the same practice.
You click on "START" while it is running, and it gives several choices,
including "shut down" and "reboot". The Mac OS-X doesn't use a "START"
button, but it does offer those choices from the "sleep" button (a new
moon on the Sun keyboard, I don't have a genuine Mac keyboard), along
with "log current user out" so another user can log in.

Quite a few unix systems, as well as the Mac Mini, use the
physical power button to initiate a graceful shutdown -- or if it is
hung and ignoreing that, holding the button for something like five to
fifteen seconds *force* a shutdown. The same is present on my Sun Blade
2000, and several other recent ones. But the first system on which I
saw this was the Tektronix 6130 -- a National Semiconductor 32016 CPU
with BSD unix. I wish the others had added this shortly after then, but
they did not.

On the Sun, the "sleep" key (again, new moon symbol) shuts the
system down while preserving the entire state, so when you power it back
up (with the front panel power button) it brings it up with you still
logged in, and all of your programs still active, including windows on
other systems. But it does bring it up with the screen locked, so you
have to use your password to get in, just in case it happens to get
power back when someone else is nearby and you aren't. :-)

The Sun does have a separate "exit" click-on to log you out, and
shut down the GUI.

Enjoy,
DoN.

--
Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---

DoN. Nichols wrote:
On 2009-12-26, Winston wrote:

[ ... ]

I learnt that half the time, error indicators are devices used
to steer the user *away* from the issue at hand.

:-)

Rumor has it, there are computers and cars which you *turn off*
by first pressing a "Start" button. (I am not making this up.)

Not just rumor -- though it is not a physical button. It is a
click-on area on the GUI on the screen. Windows started this, and other
systems (including some linux ones) have picked up the same practice.
You click on "START" while it is running, and it gives several choices,
including "shut down" and "reboot". The Mac OS-X doesn't use a "START"
button, but it does offer those choices from the "sleep" button (a new
moon on the Sun keyboard, I don't have a genuine Mac keyboard), along
with "log current user out" so another user can log in.

Copy that. I should have added a smiley to indicate puckishness rather
than wonder.

Quite a few unix systems, as well as the Mac Mini, use the
physical power button to initiate a graceful shutdown -- or if it is
hung and ignoreing that, holding the button for something like five to
fifteen seconds *force* a shutdown.

The time honored 'crash the computer so I can make some progress'.
I know it well. 'Way too well.

The same is present on my Sun Blade
2000, and several other recent ones. But the first system on which I
saw this was the Tektronix 6130 -- a National Semiconductor 32016 CPU
with BSD unix. I wish the others had added this shortly after then, but
they did not.

On the Sun, the "sleep" key (again, new moon symbol) shuts the
system down while preserving the entire state, so when you power it back
up (with the front panel power button) it brings it up with you still
logged in, and all of your programs still active, including windows on
other systems. But it does bring it up with the screen locked, so you
have to use your password to get in, just in case it happens to get
power back when someone else is nearby and you aren't. :-)

What a civilized way of putting it, DoN.


The Sun does have a separate "exit" click-on to log you out, and
shut down the GUI.


Thanks!

--Winston

--

Congratulations Robert Piccinini and Steven A. Burd, WalMart Publicists of the Year!

Winston wrote:
Bob Engelhardt wrote:
My plasma cutter stopped cutting. The loose-nozzle indicator light
was on. The nozzle was tight, but I loosened & re-tightened it and
it started cutting again. Then stopped again "loose nozzle" again.

So I opened the torch & checked the nozzle switch - it was OK. Crap!
Now it was something in the hose, or worse - in the electronics. So
I got out the manual to look for a schematic. And stumbled across
the page with the indicators explained. 'Turns out that "loose
nozzle" means a loose nozzle only when steady. When it's flashing,
as mine was, it means worn electrode!

"One if by Nozzle, Two if by electrode"?

So I put in a new electrode & nozzle and I'm all set. 'Least I
didn't start taking more stuff apart.

Kick me,

Naaah.

I learnt that half the time, error indicators are devices used
to steer the user *away* from the issue at hand.

My waffle iron *turns on* a light labeled "Preheat" to indicate
that the waffle has finished cooking.

Rumor has it, there are computers and cars which you *turn off*
by first pressing a "Start" button. (I am not making this up.)

Many HP calculators also only have an ON button which is also used to
turn it OFF. Still haven't found an "=" key.



--Winston

David Billington wrote:
Winston wrote:

(...)

Rumor has it, there are computers and cars which you *turn off*
by first pressing a "Start" button. (I am not making this up.)

Many HP calculators also only have an ON button which is also used to
turn it OFF. Still haven't found an "=" key.

I think it's halfway between the 'prop wash' and my coil of 'flight line'.

--Winston


--

Congratulations Robert Piccinini and Steven A. Burd, WalMart Publicists of the Year!