# My comp goes 'ca-chunk'. Why? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [October 7, 2008, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-comp-goes-ca-chunk-why/466828 "2008-10-07T11:25:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/half_man_half_wit/32/21766_2.png) [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Half_Man_Half_Wit)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 11:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-comp-goes-ca-chunk-why/466828/1 "2008-10-07T11:25:07Z")
It does it with irregular periodicity, probably around once every two hours on average – simply and without any prompt or other activity plays a ‘ca-chunk’ noise over the speakers, a sound very much like pressing a key on an old keyboard (so much like that, in fact, that I believe it might be a recording of it). So far, I haven’t been able to find any regularities – particular programs that were running, events that happened, inputs, outputs, nothing. Now here’s the weird part – some weeks ago, my computer basically crashed and burned, and has now for the most part been replaced. Only a DVD burner, a hard drive (which is now externally connected, formatted, and not necessarily active at the time of ‘ca-chunk’), the keyboard and the speakers made the transition from my old system. Completely new OS install (WinXP SP2), all-new software, everything. It still goes ‘ca-chunk’ every now and then without rhyme or reason. As an entirely too vague hypothesis, since the sound seems so much like a keystroke, I’ve been speculating that it might have something to do with the actual keyboard, which is a Dell model doubling as USB hub. Does the driver every now and then want to remind me of his continued hard work? Do I not appreciate him enough? Has anybody experienced a phenomenon like that and knows what causes it? ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-comp-goes-ca-chunk-why/466828/2 "2008-10-07T12:05:25Z")
Are you sure it’s not ta-chink? The first thing I would do is to go to the sounds section in the control panel and see if that sound is assigned to any event. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 1:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-comp-goes-ca-chunk-why/466828/3 "2008-10-07T13:23:35Z")
My computer does this too. How do I access the control panel and where is the sound section? ---
**Author:** ![Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/half_man_half_wit/32/21766_2.png) [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Half_Man_Half_Wit)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-comp-goes-ca-chunk-why/466828/4 "2008-10-07T13:24:43Z")
> [@sailor](#): > > Are you sure it’s not ta-chink? > > The first thing I would do is to go to the sounds section in the control panel and see if that sound is assigned to any event. :smack: I was sure I’d already done that, but apparently I wasn’t thorough enough. It’s the sound that plays when I get new spam to my AOL account I don’t use. Glad that riddle’s solved. Thanks a bunch! ---
**Author:** ![Interconnected\_Series\_of\_Tubes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/13edae/32.png) [@Interconnected\_Series\_of\_Tubes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Interconnected_Series_of_Tubes)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-comp-goes-ca-chunk-why/466828/5 "2008-10-07T16:47:14Z")
Oh, nevermind. :B ---
**Author:** ![Risha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/5fc32e/32.png) [@Risha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Risha)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2008, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/my-comp-goes-ca-chunk-why/466828/6 "2008-10-07T22:22:52Z")
Damn! Lost my opportunity to make a “Law and Order” joke.