Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Micro-Scope claims
to be O/S independent. What does that mean?
Q. All the PCs I
work on have Windows, so why should I care about O/S independence?
Q. How long has Micro-Scope
been around?
Q. Will I have to
pay for new versions?
Q. How many different
tests are included on the diskette?
Q. What pieces of
hardware does Micro-Scope test?
Q. Can you guarantee
that Micro-Scope will tell me what’s wrong with my new computer?
Q. If Micro-Scope
is so thorough, why is it included in a ‘Toolkit’ with other
products?
Q. Can I buy just
the Micro-Scope without the Toolkit or Post-Probe.
Q. I see a new feature
called Secure Wipe. What is that?
Q. Does it come
with a manual?
Q. What is a Post-Probe?
Q. What does the
Post-Probe do that the diagnostic software doesn’t?
Q. How can it diagnose
anything, if the PC won’t boot up?
Q. Does Post-Probe
fix the problem?
Q. How long has the
Post-Probe been around?
Q. I’ve seen other
‘post’ cards. What’s different about yours?
Q. Is it really necessary?
I usually just swap parts.
MICRO-SCOPE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Q.
Micro-Scope claims to be O/S independent. What does that mean?
A. The Micro-Scope diskette
contains its own bootable operating system, designed specifically
for diagnostics. Therefore it can be used on any PC, whether
the resident OS on that PC is DOS, Windows, Linux, NetWare,
O/S 2 or what have you.
Q.
All the PCs I work on have Windows, so why should I care about
O/S independence?
A. Windows, like DOS
and other popular operating systems, was designed to run the
hardware in the background, so the applications (and the user)
are free to focus on the task at hand and don’t need to duplicate
the most basic control functions from one application to the
next. This is normally a good thing, but when the application
is a hardware diagnostic, the operating system makes it impossible
for the diagnostic to directly access the various peripherals
and motherboard components, leading to inaccuracy and missing
information.. With Micro-Scope, the proprietary O/S gives
direct hardware access to the diagnostic routines for the
most accurate and complete results.
Q.
How long has Micro-Scope been around?
A. The first version
hit the market in 1991, but has changed continually to keep
up with advances in PC technology. The latest is Version 2005,
released at the end of June 2005.
Q.
Will I have to pay for new versions?
A. Yes, but for owners
of the previous version, each upgrade is only a fraction of
the cost of a new Micro-Scope.
Q.
How many different tests are included on the diskette?
A. There are approximately
250 routines, although it varies from one version to the next.
Only some of these are diagnostic tests or benchmarks, though.
Others are for information gathering and component identification,
and some are utilities for all sorts of system management
tasks.
Q.
What pieces of hardware does Micro-Scope test?
A. Far too many to list
them all here. Suffice to say that just about every motherboard
component or system peripheral will be identified and tested
by some part of the Micro-Scope program.
Q. Can
you guarantee that Micro-Scope will tell me what’s wrong with
my new computer?
A. No, of course not.
First of all, Micro-Scope only tests hardware, and many problems
are due to software or user error. Second, not a year goes
by that the industry doesn’t come out with new peripherals,
faster CPUs and other improvements, which is why we create
a new version of Micro-Scope every year. We do our best, but
we would need a crystal ball to claim we were ahead of all
the latest technology you could buy.
Q.
If Micro-Scope is so thorough, why is it included in a ‘Toolkit’
with other products?
A. Micro-Scope requires
the system to be functioning well enough to boot up to its
operating system. If the PC can’t boot up, a card called the
Post-Probe will diagnose the boot-up process to see where
it is failing. That’s the other product in the ‘Toolkit’.
Q.
Can I buy just the Micro-Scope without the Toolkit or Post-Probe.
A. Yes.
Q.
I see a new feature called Secure Wipe. What is that?
A. This is a utility
added in Version 11 that allows all or part of a hard drive
to be sterilized, making the data inaccessible. Many people
don’t realize that when a computer file is deleted, the data
is still on the platter and can be recovered with the right
equipment. The Secure Wipe feature allows law enforcement
agencies, the military, financial institutions etc. to dispose
of hard drives without fear that sensitive data can be recovered
from them.
Q.
Does it come with a manual?
A. Yes, there is a very
thorough manual. In truth though, the menu-driven interface
is so simple and intuitive that the manual is not even needed
for most features.
POST-PROBE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS
Q.
What is a Post-Probe?
A. It is a card that
plugs into the motherboard to diagnose a ‘dead’ PC that won’t
boot up.
Q.
What does the Post-Probe do that the diagnostic software doesn’t?
A. The system must be
able to boot before it can run the software diagnostics. If
it can’t boot, that’s when you use the Post-Probe.
Q.
How can it diagnose anything, if the PC won’t boot up?
A. During boot-up, the
BIOS executes a series of instructions called the POST, or
Power-On Self Test, that check out all of the basic functions
of the machine. At each step, the BIOS puts a code onto the
bus, and that’s what the Post-Probe uses.
Q.
Does Post-Probe fix the problem?
A. No, you still have
to do that part. What it does is show you the last code that
the power-on self test was able to put on the bus, and a table
in the manual tells you what function was being tested at
that time.
Q.
How long has the Post-Probe been around?
A. It was first released
about 10 years ago, and in 1998 the Universal Post-Probe appeared,
with many new features including edge connectors for both
PCI and ISA.
Q.
I’ve seen other ‘post’ cards. What’s different about yours?
A. It’s true we’ve had
imitators, but so far nobody else has been able to put PCI
and ISA on the same card. Some other unique features are a
step-through switch that lets you see if the BIOS is corrupted
and doing tests in the wrong order, and multiple displays
to make the card easy to use in all motherboard configurations.
Q.
Is it really necessary? I usually just swap parts.
A. You can sometimes
get by with swapping parts, but if it’s an expensive part
like the CPU, or something that’s soldered to the motherboard,
that’s not a very practical approach. In any case, it’s unprofessional.
If repairing PCs is more than a hobby, you should have the
proper tools, and that includes a Post-Probe..
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