My microwave oven just went beserk on 11-1-99 and may have been having an embedded system problem. I was amazed. The clock stopped, the oven refused to work, the clock then

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started counting 1.1, 2.1, 3.1 etc up to 7.1. with intermittent beeps each time it advanced a number. It was erratic and sometime would work and sometimes would not work. It would read "stand" then start beeping. By today 11 4 it is back to normal and I did not do or attempt any repairs or reprogramming. All of the odd behavior was related to the clock chips function which shutdown everything like the unit was unplugged. It is at least 8 years old and is built in so the power is on all the time.

Has anyone else had a similar experience? Was this a normal breakdown or Y2k related? Is this a preview of things to come on embedded systems? If so, it might not be as bad as anticipated but how many expert anticipated problems with microwave ovens? It fixed itself after about 5 clock cycles and appliances usually do not fix themselves for mechanical breakdowns. I though I would share this odd behavior with the forum for what its worth.

-- Moe (Moe@3stooges.gom), November 04, 1999

Answers

Let me take a look.

http://www.clipartconnection.com/gifs/bodyparts/peeper.gif

Looks good to me!

-- seeker (lookin@u.always), November 05, 1999.


interesting

-- TV went out (who@knows.why), November 05, 1999.

Similar enough. I'm no techie, and my unremediated, noncompliant 386 whicch is the "amionframe" for my office printing system also froze up November 1 -- entirely failing to boot, but getting snaglgled on a calendaring feature within the BIOS. So far, I have had no luck in getting the thing working again.

-- SH (squirrel@hunter.com), November 05, 1999.

Well my new Panasonic microwave is doing the exact same thing. Counting up and beeping. This has to be some rtc bug. Well I now know this is a common problem.What to Do?

-- lc (lc@screwy.com), November 05, 1999.

Let's see... 10, 9, 8, 7, 7.1, 7.2, 7.1, 7, 8, 9, Houston, we have a problem...

A lot would depend on where those embedded systems with potential timing problems are, obviously.

In your case, it sounds like an "AOG/FBM" problem to me. (Act of God / Fixed By Magic) -- But if it starts speaking, "This is the voice of Colossus; This is the voice of Guardian; We are one..." I'd suggest you use the oven from now on.

-- I'm Here, I'm There (I'm Everywhere@so.beware), November 05, 1999.



Peeper, that would be...



-- Dennis (djolson@pressenter.com), November 05, 1999.


My power steering pump blowed up on my truck on the 1st, must have been the clock in the serpentine belt !!!!

-- 1101 (TriggerDate@Come.True), November 05, 1999.

Ya know, I lost power on the afternoon of the 1st - and the same thing happened to me! Nothing worked right. Couldn't even get power from the ATM machine....

I agree - had to be an embedded chip problem. 8<)

By the way, when we woke up on Sunday morning, alll my clocks were wrong - isn't that evidence of a massive control problem too?

-- Robert A. Cook, PE (Marietta, GA) (cook.r@csaatl.com), November 05, 1999.


It's called a power surge, kids. I have an older house on which I'm upgrading the wiring. My kitchen (which will be rewired last) occasionally suffers power surges, during which my microwave behaves EXACTLY as you describe.

It's not an embedded chip problem, it's just you being paranoid. You may come out of your bunker now.

-- Uber Pollie (pollie@ihren.haus.de), November 30, 2001.


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