Happy-go-lucky Harry decides to open his computer case to see what he could see. After a few moments of pondering, he notices five ribbon-like cables on the motherboard. He pulls at one and disconnects it from the motherboard. Delighted at his success at removing something, he pulls out all but one cable. He is interrupted by a phone call and when he returns, he realizes that he has forgotten which direction the cables face to be correctly reinserted into the board. What is the simplest thing you can do to solve Harryʹs problem?
A) Take away Harryʹs computer and tell him that he has been naughty.
B) Tell Harry to insert the cable in one direction and turn the computer on. If the function of the device works, then move to the next cable and repeat the test.
C) Tell Harry that all cables on the motherboard are placed with pin 1 on the right.
D) Tell Harry to look at the orientation of the colored stripe on the last remaining attached cable and plug the other cables in the same direction.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

By examining the orientation of the colored stripe on the last remaining cable, Harry can figure out which direction the cables need to be inserted in order to match the correct orientation. This is the simplest and most effective solution. Option B involves unnecessarily turning the computer on and off repeatedly, and Option C may not be true for all motherboard cables. Option A is not a helpful or productive solution.

Happy-Go-Lucky Harry Decides to Open His Computer Case to See