> trying in vain to reach behind a heavy computer and unscrew the two jammed retaining bolts holding in a serial, parallel, scsi, vga, or DVI plug with slippery bent plastic jacketed heads
Oh yes, that brings back very bad memories.
Only gradually did it dawn on me that nothing really bad actually happens if I didn't screw the connectors tight on DVI/VGA etc. :)
(Yes, these are technically not plug-and-play, but the occasional disconnect sure beat all the banging my head on the desk and swearing profusely every time I changed something with my personal setup.)
This is what I do with these (terrible) screw-in connectors.
- Loosely plug in the connector
- Screw in the right side, relatively tight
- Use the right screw as a pivot point, by pushing the plug to the left, this will properly seat in the connector
- Screw in the left side until it touches, do not tighten
To unscrew, use the left side as a pivot point by pushing the plug to the right, this should loosen the right screw, unscrew it, then, unscrew the left side, which shouldn't be tight if you did it correctly.
Note: you can switch left for right and right for left.
The general idea is to wiggle left and right by using the screws as pivots. Do this to unscrew if it is too tight. If only one side is screwed in (don't do that) and it is too tight, screw in the other side and use the pivot trick.
I don't like not screwing these in as they have a tendency to come loose, especially since they also have poor feedback and chances are that they aren't properly inserted to begin with.
And side note: another thing I hate with this plugs is that when you pull out the cable, the plug tends to grab ever other cable that's on their way. In fact, some of these plugs look suspiciously like boat anchors and seem to be just as effective at grabbing stuff.
Oh yes, that brings back very bad memories.
Only gradually did it dawn on me that nothing really bad actually happens if I didn't screw the connectors tight on DVI/VGA etc. :)
(Yes, these are technically not plug-and-play, but the occasional disconnect sure beat all the banging my head on the desk and swearing profusely every time I changed something with my personal setup.)