Spent 3 hours on a weird power issue that turned out to be a single bad USB cable.

I'm torn between thinking I should have swapped the cable first and feeling like the intermittent nature made it a legit puzzle, so what's your take on when to start with the simplest fix versus a full diagnostic?

3 comments

3 Comments

alice_hart10d ago

Ugh, that's the worst kind of problem. Honestly, I always swap the easy stuff first (cables, power cycle) because it takes two minutes. If that fixes it, you just saved hours. The trick is when it doesn't fix it, you have to mentally reset and not assume the simple stuff is still good. So you start simple, but document every single thing you try, so when you circle back you know what's actually been ruled out.

bennett.nora10d ago

Yeah, and that mental reset is so key... it's like you have to forget you already swapped the cable. I've wasted a whole afternoon because I "knew" the power supply was new, so I ignored it, only to find out it was DOA. Now my rule is, if the simple stuff doesn't work, everything goes back on the table. I even retest the original cable later with a meter if I have to, because maybe the replacement was bad too. You just can't trust your first guesses after a certain point.

abbyg606d ago

Oh man, @bennett.nora, that's the exact trap. You have to treat every part like it's guilty until proven innocent.