Are these people telling me i can't smoke in front of my computer? I do my own maintenance anyway(had to replace some fans a couple times, voided my warranty in the process). Sucks for ordinary people though. Hackers are sensitive to stupid rules, and in this case non-hackers got upset because of them, that means that the rules are extra stupid.
There are many questions to be asked here. What is the impact of smoke to the machine? Is working on a contaminated machine actually dangerous? How many of the machines are taged as contaminated? Is that number high enough to be really dangerous if this rule didn't exist? Should there be a disclaimer explicitly stating that smoking voids the warranty?
With so many unknowns, i can't take this seriously, so i wrote my half-joking comment.
p.s. I am genuinely interested to know the effects of smoking on computers. I know it will kill me eventually, but what about my computer?
You hard drive isn't airtight, so it's likely to accelerate failure. On PCBs, it creates a sticky residue and increases dust buildup, increasing the likelihood of a short circuit (somewhat) and a fire (very marginally).
'Smoke-free' equipment is definitely a selling in the market for music studio electronics, since (some) musicians smoke a lot and old dirty gear tends to be noisy and crackly because all the pots, faders, connections and so on may have years' worth of residue built up. ProTip: most people (an cleaning solutions) use isopropyl alcohol, but like all solvents this damages finishes and can affect electrical conductivity. There's stuff called Deoxit which is not too expensive and preferred by a lot of people for high-end electronics maintenance.
Years ago, I bought a video card from a friend of mine who smoked at his computer... it was disgusting. Take all that dust you get in your computer, and throw tar into the mix. IIRC, I ended up wiping the card down with alcohol and the fan was next to useless, even after trying to take it apart and clean it out.
I don't know that smoke has too terrible an effect on exposed circuit boards, but it dramatically reduces the lifespan of any fans in your computer. If you smoke around your computer, it's probably a good idea to take it apart maybe every 6-12 months and check the fans, & generally clean it up.
The biggest potential impact is reduced airflow from clogged fans and ducting which could lead to overheating. The smoke particles themselves are probably abrasive to the internal components but from my own personal experience it would have to be an incredibly slow process. I've worked on computers that were so full of smoke/ash/dust that you couldn't even see the PCB anymore. Many of these machines were 5+ years old. It's a very slow process at worst. I'd say smoking is no more of a danger to a computer than owning a pet and having your fans clogged up with their hair & dander.
Are these people telling me i can't smoke in front of my computer?
No, they're telling you that they won't fix damage caused by smoking, and they won't force their computer technicians to clean up a disgusting and harmful mess of sticky tar and dust.
"they're telling you that they won't fix damage caused by smoking"
I don't think they're saying that. I think they're saying that they won't force a technician to work on a computer that has nicotine residue buildup, because OSHA has identified nicotine as a biohazard. I don't think they're claiming smoking caused the damage, only that the residue makes it unsafe to work on.
I'd be interested to know if OSHA has actually ruled on physical residue, as opposed to second hand smoke.
