Assessing That Hum From the Tube
Question: Please forgive me for submitting such a low-tech question, but do you know why my TV set occasionally has a hum in the audio, even when the mute is on? I think it’s somehow related to the amount of brightness in the picture.
Answer: What the heck. It’s the holidays, and the friendly geeks at Q&A; labs are feeling charitable. Plus it’s a problem that plagues millions.
We’re going to assume, based on what you’ve told us, that the hum isn’t coming out of the speaker, though we’ll talk about what you should look for if that’s what’s going on. And we’re also going to assume that the hum is a kind of high-pitched whining noise, though it could be more like a buzzing.
The sound you’re hearing is probably caused by a part of the television vibrating in response to the electrical current ripping through all the components and the fluctuating magnetic fields created as a result. If the noise is really making you nuts, a technician can poke around inside, identify what’s vibrating, and put on a drop of glue that will settle things.
Do not under any circumstances attempt to rummage around in the set yourself as you could wake up dead. Many televisions have capacitors inside that can issue a nasty jolt when touched, even if the set isn’t plugged in.
Because you say the problem could be related to brightness, it’s possible this is a basic overload problem. The system can’t handle the increased power that flows through it when brightness increases. Don’t worry. Nothing is going to blow up. But this too will require a technician to fix, unless you can live with turning down the brightness on the set.
If the hum is coming from the speaker, you might have a case of “audio sync buzz,” which will--surprise--require a service call.
But it’s possible that you’re just getting interference from some other object in your place. Check cable connections and location of things such as vacuum cleaners.
And in keeping with our self-help philosophy, here’s some stuff you can try before calling in the experts.
Set up soft, sound absorbing material around the TV. Don’t cover the television cabinet, because hot air needs to vent, but putting carpet or curtains or similar material around and behind the set can sometimes make these little annoyances go away.
And if the problem is in the audio system of the TV, you might be able to get around it by piping all the sound out through a stereo system or boombox.
Q: Boy, have I got a problem. My desktop was neatly arranged and working fine when it suddenly changed. All of the icons moved to the left side of the screen and were in no discernible order. I tried to move one by dragging it across the screen, but when I released the mouse, the icon moved back.
Moving the arrow across the screen causes all of the icons to jump around and change to different locations. By moving the arrow very slowly I can usually get to the icon I want, but usually it takes a couple of tries to do it. Can you tell what is causing this?
A: First, right click on the desktop and, under the Arrange Icons menu, make a couple of adjustments to see whether that makes any difference. In particular, uncheck auto arrange and see whether you can set icons where you want them.
But the business of icons jumping around randomly suggests you’re infected with a virus; update your anti-viral software and scan your system.
Q: I got an e-mail that said I could limit e-mail reproduction of viruses from my e-mail address book by adding an address that was !000 for name and WormAlert for an address. Does this work?
A: Sort of.
A few viruses send out e-mail from the address book alphabetically, and the trick you describe would shut them down, because it would start at the first entry, !000, which wouldn’t have a valid address.
But most viruses choose an address randomly. Best way to prevent virus infestation is not to open attachments and keep your anti-viral software updated.
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Dave Wilson is The Times’ personal technology columnist. Submit questions to Tech Q&A; at techtimes@latimes.com. Please be specific about your computer and operating system and include a daytime phone number.
