Wednesday, December 16, 2009

12" PowerBook G4 Trials and Tribulations Part 2

12" PowerBook G4 Trials and Tribulations Memory Hard Drive and Migration Assistant part 2


The Continuation of
12" PowerBook G4 Trials and Tribulations Memory Hard Drive and Migration Assistant


Well fast forward a Month and a half or so.

Perusing CraigsList again. (need to quit that) I stumbled over a listing for a dead 12" PB. So quickly sending off the email and impatiently awaiting a response from the seller. I got one the seller is someone I have worked with before and he should know to call me first when he has Apple items but he thought he could make a bit more on this PB than I would pay so I really don't blame him for putting it out there. I still don't pay much for them when I get to his shop and he knows that. Got the little dead one home and proceeded to scavenge
parts.

Getting the top off of the salvage unit was easy seeing that I was obviously second tech on this one. Screws were missing the top chassis was bent.. *** if you don't know what you are doing DON'T try it with out proper supervision *** just kidding .. its how I learned .. go for it but just be careful and don't destroy anything that can be salvaged. you know Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle Please if someone else can use it all the better.

** the salvage unit has a good Hard Drive and Combo Drive but is suffering from either a bad DC input or Bad DC-DC in board. Nothing happens when plugged in but will run off of battery power and its only an 866Mhz ***

Pop the new cable in and perfect the hard drive is recognized again. Now may as well just get the combo drive out and put it in the good PB. Easier said than done.... What I did not know and should have researched before is the fact that you have to basically pull the entire system apart to get to the combo drive. The heatsink, frame assembly, and the logicboard must come out first.

With the combo drive in the good system and all buttoned back together tested first of course off to the races. Installation started (4 hours later but its a start) and we are rockin and rollin.

Till Black Screen Press and hold the Power to restart. DOH .. what else could go wrong. Well Hard drive is good, CD is good... Memory??? So swaped the 512MB pc2100 stick with a 256MB pc2700 to test. By now its 2 a.m. again time for bed. Leave it up and running maybe it will be ready in the morning???





And here is the rest of it.

12" PowerBook G4 Trials and Tribulations Memory Hard Drive and Migration Assistant

12" PowerBook G4 Trials and Tribulations Memory Hard Drive and Migration Assistant


In my journey through repairs / refurbishing laptops (desktops are cheap and not much wanted anymore) I have been holding this little wonder of a G4 PowerBook 12" inch model for a while now.

Apple created a very nice line of laptops with this series. The 12 inch laptop is clad in all aluminum so it actually feels like you are carrying a good quality bit of technology. Granted this is old in computer terms



Normally when I receive a dead or broken Apple laptop / notebook I really don't have to do much to refurbish them. The iBooks G3's and G4's usually suffer from the normal
BGA issue and either the graphics chip set needs a quick Re-Flow or the IC chip on the G4 need re-soldering. Or the hard drive is toasted enough to need a new one installed and the operating system migrated.

The older Titanium notebooks usually the CMOS battery dies and lockes up the entire system. Will not even power up at all nothing .. and no amount of opt-cmd-o-f or shift-ctrl-option will help with this issue.

The 15" Powerbook's (Aluminum) either fail from the Hard Drives or .. the BGA issue with the video chips as well. And the second memory slot failure.

But this PowerBook has gotten to me.. not only was the hard drive corrupt, but the combo drive was not working as well. Not a problem in my mind when I picked her up because I tested everything out with my iPod (which has 10.4.11 loaded on it FireWire connect and boot) and all of the rest of the systems functions were fine.

This was about a month ago when I brought her home. This was the first 12" PB that I actually had to disassemble (had probably 4 or 5 of them pass through with different smaller issues) I knew the hard drive had problems due to the apple on boot with a spinning wheel. So first things first .. to get what was salvageable off of the drive. Amazingly enough the drive was readable and with the proper care should be able to salvage everything.

Well that was a mistaken assumption. After normal gyrations of booting to my backup drive and repairing the volume and permissions.

Still no joy!!

So now I need to boot to Disk Warrior to see if can repair it that way. Grabbed my fire-wire cable put my MacBook Pro in target mode loaded up the disk and off we went press option while booting on the little G4 it saw the CD drive and started booting. After a couple of cups of coffee and an errand to the store the PB was booted in to Disk Warrior and all of the tests were run.

Still no joy!!

On reboot to the hard drive still spinning wheel. Fine, Replace the hard drive and start from scratch with a fresh drive and a fresh install. Like I had mentioned before this is the first one I have had to crack open. Looking back it was not that difficult to get to the drive just time consuming and tedious. All of the exterior screws need to be removed including the one under the memory cover. Sorry no Tutorial here no pic's did not have the time nor the inclination at the time this was a flip refurb and sell item.

There are 2 hidden screws under the Function 1 & 2 keys and the Function 11 & 12 keys they need to be removed carefully but should pop right back on after the repairs are finished.

After you have the keyboard off there is a myriad of screws underneath that will need to be removed as well ...******* have a clean space if you are doing this with a map of where all the screws came from if you put a long screw where a short one should be you may never get your CD rom to work again. Just a fair warning**** Check out www.ifixit.com if you are doing this.

Finally got to the drive and though it was a simple swap. Wrong again genius (yeah that's me read ID 10 T)

Put the new drive in ... always test before putting every thing back together. booted to my fire-wire drive.. and it won't recognize the new hard drive. Great, brilliant, just amazing (can you feel the sarcasm??)

Pulled the drive put it back in the test assembly .. works just fine .. put it back in the PB nuthin, nada, zip. Either in my futzing with the board or the cable something went south. So much for my flip refurb and sale.

So she went on the back burner till I could get the parts. Not only that it was 2 a.m. and past time to go to bed....



Click Here to Fast Forward 45 Days to see the rest of the story


Thursday, December 3, 2009

Acer Aspire One Powers on but the screen remains black how to fix

Acer Aspire One Powers on but the screen remains black how to fix

AOA-150 AOA-110 ZG5 won't boot powers on lights come on but nothing on the screen

Every thing on my Blog is from personal experience This worked for me .. Your Milage May Vary ... ;)








To repair this issue you need another computer and a USB Flash drive... like the one in the dreaded Flash Drive article here and internet
access.

First things first this only will work for the Aspire One AOA-110 and the AOA-150 if you don't have these models don't try this fix.

Second if you have Warranty from the store you purchased it from check with them first and / or with Acer Tech-Support

If you are bound and determined to do this your self... ***** I take no responsibilities just providing information here ******

Click on the Hyperlink and download the BIOS Flash for the Aspire one

or go here and navigate to your specific model

Extract the zip file in there there will be a DOS directory go in to that directory

These are the files you are concerned with


*** From Acer's Web site

In the Dos_Flash folder, rename the BIOS file from 3310.fd to ZG5IA32.FD, in all capital letters.

Copy ZG5IA32.FD and Flashit.exe to the USB flash drive

Ensure that the AC adapter is plugged in.

Insert the USB flash drive into a USB port.

Press and Hold down the Fn and the Esc keys together and press the power button.

When the unit's power light comes on wait a few seconds and release the Fn and Esc keys.

After the keys have been released the power light will start to blink.

During the BIOS update process the display will be blank.

Let the unit run and after approximately 1 to 7 minutes, the unit should reboot and the BIOS will be updated.

If the unit fails to reboot, or the BIOS was not updated sucessfully, try the steps again. If the unit continues to fail to reboot,

the unit may need service.

Note: These instructions are only for the Acer Aspire One AOA-110 and the AOA-150 netbook series and should not be

performed on any other model Acer Aspire One.


If it Worked Properly ... Rock on you are now looking at the Post and booting in to Windows...

Good Luck in all of your endeavors..

And remember
Digital is Bliss
Cheap is Priceless
Perception is A reality (mine at least)

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Asus Eee Pc 1005HAB Tear-down Dissasembly How To get to Hard Drive PART 2

Asus Eee Pc 1005HAB Tear-down Dissasembly How To get to Hard Drive PART 2

The Continuation of
Asus Eee Pc 1005HAB Tear-down Dissasembly How To get to Hard Drive


If you want to see my review of the 1005HAB its here

If you are going to disassemble your EEEPc either the 1005HA or the 1005HAB please send a comment on this post Eee Pc 1005HAB Power issues. There may be an emerging power issue with these .. or it could just be a fluke. Thanks


How to get to the Hard Drive to replace it Asus Eee PC 1005HAB / Hard drive replacement how to Eee Pc 1005HA






after you get the memory cover off ... there is one screw that needs to be removed. circled





after you flip it back over (gently) you will find 4 keepers at the top of the keyboard these need to be pushed in while pulling up on the keyboard.. to release it. sorry the pictures don't show very well got to work on Macro Picture taking .. more light better zoom. After all of the clips are released the keyboard will be free to fold back on the touch pad.. It might not seem that way but as long as you have all of the screws out including the one in the memory bay it will come loose ... there is a piece of double sided tape that is adhered to the keyboard as well (shown in later pictures). But don't just rip the keyboard up ... you have to remember the delicate ribbon cable underneath still attached to the system-board.

There are 2 clips up at the top of the chassis circled as well you will need to remember when you are finally ready to take the top bezel off



fold the keyboard back on to the touch pad and you can get to the ribbon cable for the keyboard and the touch pad.



once you have the keyboard off ... there are 5 screws for got to circle the one in the top left by the LCD hinge...

Note the yellow sticker .. if removed or broken... Warranty VOID

And I have an arrow pointing to the double sided tape that caused a bit of trouble taking the keyboard off .. though there was a hidden screw somewhere.

after all of the screws are out you will need to use a Spudger ( plastic thing that you use for all Mac products iPod's iBooks... its like the classic tool google it lol ) or a cut up credit card .. (like I have said before its the only thing they are good for... computer repair)

there are plastic keepers all the way around the chassis you need to wedge the CC or Spudger all the way around the outside of the laptop including up by the LCD screen until all of the keepers come loose they snap .. sounds like you are breaking it .. just be very careful.




once you have the top bezel free if you have not already disconnected the track pad ribbon do it now..

you can see the hard drive WAHOOO its a standard laptop sized SATA drive... and should take a larger hard drive.. like I said before I wanted to put a 500GB in to see how it would do but as I continued ... DOH !!! more impending doom fell from the sky and I had to quickly put it back together ... but you get the idea



disconnect the zif cable from the power board to the system board and the 2 screws on the side and one you can just see circled pull out the drive remove the hard drive carrier (4 more screws one on each corner of the drive) .. and slap a new drive in and your rockin and rollin ... put back together in reverse order ...

Good Luck in all of your endeavors..

And remember
Digital is Bliss
Cheap is Priceless
Perception is A reality (mine at least)

Asus Eee Pc 1005HAB Tear-down Dissasembly How To get to Hard Drive

Asus Eee Pc 1005HAB Tear-down Dissasembly How To get to Hard Drive / How to replace the hard drive Eee Pc 1005HA

How to get to the Hard Drive to replace it Asus Eee PC 1005HAB / Hard drive replacement how to Eee Pc 1005HA

If you are going to disassemble your EEEPc either the 1005HA or the 1005HAB please send a comment on this post Eee Pc 1005HAB Power issues. There may be an emerging power issue with these .. or it could just be a fluke. Thanks

As always I'm on a shoe string budget on getting the latest and greatest computer toys. But when I do .. I just have to find out how they work and what can be done to upgrade them or modify them to my liking.

Ok I started to take the Eee Pc 1005HAB apart and got side swiped by another project before I could get the hard drive all the way out... and Unfortunately with every thing else
I only have a very limited time with any new geek toy that I get to play with. It now has a new home so I did not get the chance to put the 500GB hard drive in it like I had hoped.



But even with that said you should be able to get the idea of how to get it out. Any comments or suggestions or folks that have completed the whole teardown and replacement make a comment ... I do moderate comments (sex sites, and the such) but will ususaly get the comment up in the same day and provide back-links as well.... I'm just want folks to find what they need.

What is needed: Clean Space to work you should have an anti-static mat and wrist strap as well.

make sure you discharge any static build up before working on any electronic components
and if you get up to get coffee or any other reason discharge again before touching anything

****** Warning this could void your warranty (if you still have one) and can render your laptop useless if you do something wrong if you are not comfortable taking this or any electronic product apart have a qualified Service Technician do if for you I take no responsibilities if you decide to to this your self. There is always a risk of electrocution as well capacitors can retain a charge and the power supply as well as the battery should be removed when any repair is made. (have to do this warning just a CYA thing) OH BTW DON'T DO THIS (ok that should cover me)********



and the Eee Pc 1005HAB






Every thing in the top Black tool kit was not used in this tear-down but is good to have when you are working on computers.

The Screw Driver kit in red is a great cheap kit for 12$ at your local Tool King, Checker Auto Parts, or Wal-Mart.




Flip the laptop over ... (after doing a safe shut down Please) and remove the battery ... and power cord if still attached.



I have circled all of the screws you can get to with out taking the memory cover off the is 1 under there ....

On to PART 2... Follow me by clicking here





Asus Eee Pc 1005HAB NetBook Mini Review

Asus Eee Pc 1005HAB NetBook Mini Review

If you are looking for 1024x768 on an HP Mini 1000 or 1100 (1154NR, 1151NR)

If you want to see the Memory Upgrade how to click here


if you want to see the Hard drive upgrade tear down click here

Asus has long been the computer company know for performance


And they did not stop with the Mini 1.6GHz 10.1" screen on this little marvel of engineering


Are you tired of the "NetBook's" That will not run your applications due to the screen resolution of 1024X600???


With the Asus they fixed that you can run 1024X768 on this 10.1" Wide Screen this rocks... With a utility that will allow you to set the resolution to 1024X768 and then compress it so it fits on the screen (looks a bit squished but useable) with out panning.


With the Asus Super Hybrid utility the Processor is already clocked to a max of 1.7GHz and there are
other utilities that may allow you get the clock speed of 1.9GHz or better (ie. SetFsb). or under clock for better battery performance




Asus 1005HAB Specifications (out of the box)


Windows XP Home
1.6Ghz Intel Atom Processor
1GB ram
160GB hard drive
Wireless 802.11N will work with b and g networks as well.
Trial version of MS office
MS Works
Normal ports USB, media card reader, headphone and mic jacks.. VGA out (HP Mini 1000 lacks this)
Web cam (don't use them much yet ... I may when I start doing video reviews)

So there is not much different across the entire class of NetBook's out there.

Also if you are looking to load OS X (hackintosh) on this little Eee PC you would probably be better off looking for a different NetBook according to BoingBoing folks that do this a lot there are quite a few incompatibilities.




Here is a shot of the top case ... the 1005HAB is actualy a Royal Blue color. Most cameras and pictures show it more of a black but this is a shiny blue and really looks great.



The keyboard is a comfortable size very similare to the HP Mini 1000 (here is the posts for that)

The biggest issue I had with the keyboard on the 1005HAB was it felt cheap. Typing on it did not feel as it would stand up to the test of time. IMO Asus could have put more energy in to the keyboard.. the HP Mini 1000 keyboard feels much better and more sturdy with the key clicks. This one just felt like a toy..

The touch pad has raised bumps on it (like braille) I really was not very happy with the touch pad so much the surface seemed to catch my fingers. I live in a very dry climate so moisture was not involved here .. for some reason my fingers would not glide properly across the touch pad.

The touch pad does have some cool features built in for zooming and squishing .. similar to Mac's touch pad capabilities. But to be honest didn't use it ...

The Mouse button (a mouse Bar IMO) there are not 2 buttons just the bar it still performs right and left click and I did not have any problems using it ... but I wonder if it will wear out prematurely due to not having a physical separation of right and left???

Lack of BlueTooth really chaps my *&^ though ... I realize I may be a very small percentage of the population that use BlueTooth for what I do ... but if I am going to use any laptop that has multi-media capeablities (Hulu, iTunes, movies,....) I want to use WireLess Head phones ... and as much as I don't like the fit and feel of my Motorola S9 head phones, I use them quite often.

Conclusion

Overall Asus has produced a usable neat little NetBook for the casual user.

The Good

Performance was better than other Netbook's I have been able to use. With the included Super Hybrid utility. Hulu Standard Resolution full screen was smooth and watchable. 480p could be watched not in full screen with very little lag.

Battery life was a little better than the HP Mini 1000 about 15 min longer with wifi surfing watching video clips and general play

The capeability of displaying 1024X768 on the native 1024X600 with out panning ... is cool and worked for my applications and attaching to Terminal Server services and Citrix applications that require a minimum of 1024X768.

The Bad

Keyboard leaves a lot to be desired very cheap feel and does not seem like it will stand up to rigorous use.

The actual entire chassis flexes and creaks a bit does not feel as solid as the HP Mini 2133 or the HP Mini 1000

Lack of Bluetooth ... not a good sign in my book

If it bothers you .... this goes for most of the NetBook's I have used ... finger prints... they will be every where touch pad, exterior case, and the display panel. The Glossy finish on these will pick up every thing ... keep cleaning cloths close by if you are the least bit bothered by smudges.



Asus Eee Pc 1005HAB Disassembly Tear-down Memory How To

Asus Eee Pc 1005HAB NetBook Disassembly / teardown Memory How To Upgrade

As always I'm on a shoe string budget on getting the latest and greatest computer toys. But when I do .. I just have to find out how they work and what can be done to upgrade them or modify them to my liking.

On to getting to the memory on this little
guy..

***If you are going to disassemble your EEEPc either the 1005HA or the 1005HAB please send a comment on this post Eee Pc 1005HAB Power issues. There may be an emerging power issue with these .. or it could just be a fluke. Thanks ***


Sorry have to do this ... Standard Warnings included here

What is needed: Clean Space to work you should have an anti-static mat and wrist strap as well.

make sure you discharge any static build up before working on any electronic components
and if you get up to get coffee or any other reason discharge again before touching anything

****** Warning this could void your warranty (if you still have one) and can render your laptop useless if you do something wrong if you are not comfortable taking this or any electronic product apart have a qualified Service Technician do if for you I take no responsibilities if you decide to to this your self. There is always a risk of electrocution as well capacitors can retain a charge and the power supply as well as the battery should be removed when any repair is made. (have to do this warning just a CYA thing) OH BTW DON'T DO THIS (ok that should cover me)********



First you need the NetBook here is what this one looks like and the spec's.. in the Mini Review of the 1005HAB




Flip the laptop over ... (after doing a safe shut down Please) and remove the battery ... and power cord if still attached.




The memory bay is accessed via 1 screw (circled) and the plastic cover

remove the screw and pry up there are plastic clips that will com free from the surrounding chassis.



I have circled the plastic keepers (clips) that will release when you pry up on the memory cover.

With the memory cover off you have direct access to the memory dimm push out on each one of the silver keepers and the module will pop up ... pull it out replace it with a 2GB module put the cover back on battery back in and continue computing bliss with your upgraded 1005HAB Mini Laptop from Asus.

I pulled the 1GB ram stick out and opted for an inexpensive 2GB module of Corsair DDR2 667mhz. Local MicroCenter had the 4GB kit on sale a while ago for 50$...

Good Luck in all of your endeavors..

And remember
Digital is Bliss
Cheap is Priceless
Perception is A reality (mine at least)


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