3 ms·
I've found a trick but have trouble explaining it to people - especially if they haven't build a computer before. The plastic bit inside of the plug usually go
by bravetraveler 3y ago
I've found a trick but have trouble explaining it to people - especially if they haven't build a computer before.
The plastic bit inside of the plug usually goes on the side facing whatever board it's interfacing with.
For example, looking straight on from the back of an ATX case, it's usually on the left side - where the motherboard mounts
Front panel connectors are anarchy... but at least they're usually visible
- bobbylarrybobby 3y agoThis gets you down from 3 tries to 2
- bravetraveler 3y agolol ty, this got me
- dghughes 3y agoOne trick used to be the UBB trident logo (embossed into the cable) always faced upward when plugged into a USB port on a computer. Sideways ports may be a crap shoot I'm not sure if their orientation is standardized. And I'm not sure about modern USB version if that's still the case of logo faces up.
- parsimo2010 3y agoAnother trick is that the USB standard says the USB logo should be facing up, so you should always try it first with the logo facing up. Not every device follows that standard and not every device has a clear top/bottom, but this really cuts down on the proportion of failed attempts.
- globuous 3y agoNo way! I didn't know that was part of the standard! Very useful "trick" indeed, unless of course, the USB port is placed vertically...
- cloudwalk9 3y agoThe pattern on the aluminum of the plug is also helpful in cases of predictable slot orientation (like a laptop, except a Dell Latitude from back in the day that had upright connectors on the back unless I'm misremembering). The side without the seam down the middle and instead a tiny rectangular cutout center but slightly lower than the other two cutouts, should face up. In the dark, the seam can be felt by lightly scraping with a fingernail.
- saratogacx 3y agoThe holes face up, like the eyes of a sole or flatfish.