Helpful Hint #2

With so many new hardware upgrades, I find that I am changing or remounting chips with increasing frequency. Just recently I mounted two Gold Card chips (version changes), an upgraded MINERVA ROM and the Keyboard Interface, which required lifting the 8049 chip. Some people have no problems slipping chips in and out of their QLs, but I find I have a 50-50 chance of bending or breaking a leg, or worse, causing a hairline crack that later results in intermittent problems. A solution that not only improves my odds of being successful, but also results in the chips being more solidly seated, is the use of an IC frame (or chip carrier) as illustrated above.