Sunday, February 28, 2010

Attack of the Dust Bunnies the Computer Killers

Dust is a major contributor to the death of many computers.  If the fans get cloged up with this stuff it will cause over heating of the CPU (Central Processing Unit) and the GPU (Graphics Processing Unit).

Causing them to die an early horrible death.






Kill the Bunnies before they Kill your Computer

Best Defence is a better Offence use it!



What you are looking at is the remain dust that was clogged up in a MacBook Pro. Unfortunately this mess has caused the system board to die that death that can be avoided. Normal maintenance would have prevented the premature death of this computer. Every month or so a quick shot of compressed air (available in any Office Depot or Office Max even Wally-Mart carries cans of compressed air)would prevent this caked up clog that will kill your computer.


Donations are always accepted








Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Launch E-Guide How To Sell on Craigslist

And the Winner is Robin from NJ. Her Web Site is:
http://shutterbuggeek.wordpress.com Check it out when you get a chance



This guide outlines step by step the process, planning, and creation of an attractive craigslist post that will turn potential buyers in to buyers.

Do you have questions like:

Q: Is there a better day to post a listing on Craigs List to get it sold?

Answer: Yes (it's in the guide)

Q: Can I get bigger pictures on my listing?

Answer: Yes (it's in the guide and how to do it)

Q: Is there a better time, when should I post my listings?

Answer: Yes (it's in the guide and why)


And many more answers to your questions of why and how. As well as a very simple template that will help you instantly get your listing up.

Today I am Launching my 22 page quick start E-Guide on How to Sell Stuff on CraigsList in 24 Hours or less.

The Give away is ended Thank you to all who entered I will be announcing the Winner Shortly


Do you have STUFF just piling up?? Have you hit a cash crunch and need to sell something fast for that unexpected bill?

This E-Guide may be for you it is filled with some quick tips on how to sell your STUFF FAST!!

This guide outlines the process, planning, and the creation of an attractive craigslist post that will turn potential buyers in to buyers.


To celebrate this E-Guide How To I am giving away to one of my readers an Acer NetBook


Acer Aspire One AO751h-1192 11.6-Inch Blue Netbook - 7 Hour Battery Life
1.33GHz Intel Atom Z520 Processor
1024MB DDR2 SDRAM Single Channel Memory
160GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM)
Windows XP Home (SP3), Up to 8 Hours of Battery Life (6-Cell 5200 mAh)11.6" HD WXGA CrystalBrite LED-backlit Display, Integrated Intel Graphics Media Accelerator 500







This E-Guide How to Sell on Cragslist is just a set of quick tips and information on how to possibly get your stuff sold fast on craigslist. This is the first revision of the E-Guide and will have changes over time. It is written by a Geek and has not been through rigorous proof reading so don't expect the most professional writing out there. My writing style is not for everyone just fair warning.

The NetBook GiveAway is also limited to USA and Canadian Residence only (sorry but I just can not ship this internationally.) and can not ship to APO's or FPO's sorry military folks but I can't afford to have customs issues or extraordinary shipping fees. This GiveAway may also be limited to State requirements as well. I will add more information as it becomes available. The end of the entries is currently set for March 15th 2010, but I reserve the right to end it at an earlier or later date. I will update this as the days pass...

Sorry Pay-Pal is the only place this E-Guide is being sold through at this time click on the Buy-Now button to be taken to where you can download the E-Guide and is the only way I can record for the GiveAway. The introductory price is 5$ US currency, Pay-Pal may still have the 5$ sign up bonus but I am not sure about that either.


E-Guide How to Sell on Cragslist






My intent is to Record the final giveaway and post it on YouTube.

Whom ever does win must send an email back to me and agree to have the email or YouTube broadcasted on this blog.

Last names and personal information will be protected.

And I will not sell or give out anyone's information.

Information gathered will be utilized for selecting the lucky reader.


And I definitely will not fill your inbox with a bunch of SPAM.


All of the content in the E-Guide How To is as-is take what information helps you and throw the rest away just like anything else in life. Also attached in the .zip file is a very simple .txt template that has been very successful for me. You will need Adobe Acrobat reader and an un-zipping program there are no passwords for the file.


DV2000 Tear-Down How To Guide PDF printable fomat







DV9000 Tear-Down How To Guide







DV6000 Tear-Down How To Guide







No Video Issue DV6000, DV2000, DV9000, and TX1000 Fix






Saturday, February 13, 2010

how to fix dv9000 No Video, dv9000 Penny Fix, BGA Re-Flow

How to Fix dv9000 No Video No Wireless issues Nvidia Video Chip Separating from the system board.

Copper shim, bga re-flow, no video fix hp DV9000.

This will also give you symptoms of no wireless connectivity or loosing the wireless card.. or the system will loose the dvd/cd rom before the chip will entirely go out ... lots of different problems can be attributed to this issue .. they all have something to do with the Nvidia Chipset. Also will exhibit 3 beeps and no video, or continuous power recycle with no video, or turn on and shut down 5 or 10 seconds later.

How to Fix No Video issues with a Penny??? Spend a penny save 350$ dollars??


Did you want a video .... read through the post and check the end for how I did it ...

This issue affects HP Pavilion dv2000, dv6000, dv9000, tx1000, Compaq Presario V3000, V6000, and Compaq F700 Series notebooks.




Directly from HP's web site
HP has identified a hardware issue with certain HP Pavilion dv2000/dv6000/dv9000 and Compaq Presario V3000/V6000 series notebook PCs, and has also released a new BIOS for these notebook PCs, version F.39 for dv2000/V3000, and version F.3D for dv6000/dv9000/V6000

The first thing you should do if you are experiencing these issues is
to go directly to HP's Website and see if you fall under their extended limited warranty just click on the link I have provided for you.

Now if you are not covered under warranty any longer ... HP will help you at a cost .. it could be over 350$ dollars plus shipping and handling. With that type of cost you may as well just go out an purchase a new computer.

If you really decide to buy new SEND ME YOU’RE OLD DEAD COMPUTER I WILL TAKE IT!!!!

****Warning CYA stuff again this will 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 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)********

But you can follow the previous posts dv6000 disassembly Part 1 and Part 2.



Also there is a guide here for the DV9000 series 17" laptop tear down




DV2000 series Tear-Down guide can be found here.


After Part 4 of the DV9000 post or the last post of the other DV tear-down guides, you will have access to the system board ... you will need to take off the Heat Sink and fan assembly if you have made it this far you should be able to do that with no problem.. as well I would remove the (AMD / or Intel) processor from the ZIF socket.. and you will have this.


These are Actual pictures of the DV6000 system board so your will look a little different ... but rest assured this has been tested to work on several dv9000 system boards.





The chip that is causing the problem is circled.... that’s the Nvidia Video Chip. *** NOT the NVidia Nforce chip set... It is the Nvidia Video Chip that is causing all of the problmes. ***

To be honest it is not Nvidia's issues don’t blame them it is actually the manufacturing process of the system board that is at fault the chip is fine and works great. During assembly the chip is attached to the system board via BGA soldering (Ball Grid Array) because of the heat generated by the video chip if heat is not wicked away properly and the proper amount of flux that was used the small solder joints under the chip will melt and eventually separate and no longer have contact between the chip and the system board.

As you were taking the Heat Sink off you may or may not have noticed the little squishy pad on the heat sink that was covering the video chip. IMO here is your first problem. As the system heats up over time this little pad expands and contracts it has some stickiness factor to it and will pull on the chip as it contracts when it cools.. this could be pulling the solder joints away under the video chip.

Regardless of if you are having the video issue or not this needs to be replaced.

*****Rant in my life time things have been fixed with bubble gum, bailing wire, and the almighty Duct Tape. Don't laugh at anything I will put in these blog postings... they work and have been tested repeatedly.... *********

With that said the best replacement for that pad I have found is a piece of copper with thermal paste applied to both sides to conduct heat away from the chip to the heat sink.. This will ensure that there is no flexing or expanding or contractions to break the solder joints.

So where can I find a piece of copper that will fit under there??? that is the right size?? Odds are pretty good you may have one in your pocket or in your change jar at home...

It's a Penny

Not just any Penny though it must be mostly cooper Penny.

Bit of History here the U.S. Mint in 1983 started making pennies with 97.5% Zinc with copper plating. Previously 1982 and earlier the pennies were made with 95% copper with the remaining 15% of Zinc and other metals.

Zinc will just not do so find an older penny and use it.

*** Yep another Warning ... Defacing US currency is indeed illegal.
According to:
United States Code
TITLE 18 - CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
PART I - CRIMES
CHAPTER 17 - COINS AND CURRENCY
333. Mutilation of national bank obligations
so don't do it******

The surfaces of a penny are pretty smooth and may make enough contact to conduct the heat desired to the heat sink or use something else similar sized that you can sand and lap to a smooth finish. And just using a penny will not deface it and after the computer has finished its usefulness you can still use the penny.

*** Rant what about those machines you find in the Museums that mash pennies with a picture or advertisement.. Is that not defacing U.S. Currency????? end of rant ****





Here is a close up of the video chip it self.. for some reason or another HP made different revisions of the same board yours may look a bit different.. The red silicone was an attempt on their part to eliminate the separation issues but this will not help if the heat sink pad is not removed and replaced with something else.

Do not try to remove the red compound that has been placed around the video chip.. it is very hard and you may end up damaging the system board in the process. This procedure has worked with the red compound intact and on boards that do not have the compound.

HP also adjusted the BIOS with a flash that will keep the fans running to wick heat away that also proved to be ineffective IMO as well.

Ok now that you have the board out and know why ... How do we fix it..

Well the most permanent way to fix your issue is to send the board out for Re-Flow... there are numerous companies out there that will do this for you usually the cost is 50$ plus shipping and handling. You can find them on Fee-Bay (E-Bay) or you may be able to find a circuit repair shop in your local area ... Google it..

or

There are 2 ways you can do it at home... ****Warning ... eh you know already ... never mind*****

This may be a temporary fix may or may not hold for long but worth a shot

If you have removed the memory ... which you really did not have to, to get the board out. Put it back in





Remove the pad that goes between the heat sink and the video chip ... now you definitely will see a gap between the chip and the heat sink when you reinstall the heat sink ... make sure you use thermal paste on the processor.. We don't want to damage that... BTW clean all the hard gooped up thermal compound they used its crap.. use Artic Silver the best stuff.. Connect the fan so you know it’s on.

Reconnect the Power Cables. Flip the board over place the LCD panel flat and close enough so you can watch it.

Find the Quick Launch Bezel and just attach the ribbon cable for the power.. it is the left ribbon cable.

Plug the computer in ... and turn it on ... you will still get either the beeping or no video ... let it sit.. ON for a bit less than 2 or 3 min.

Turn it off ... immediately turn it back on ... wait for it .... wait for it ... did it post? if not try again for 5 min.

If it did ... and you see the wonderful HP logo ... shut it off .. disconnect the power, the Quick Launch ribbon cable and the LCD panel flip it back over take the heat sink off ... put your piece of copper on top of the video chip (with thermal paste) reattach the Heat Sink flip it back over reattach everything and test it ...

is it still posting??? re-assemble and use

Now a more permanent fix or if none of that worked.... requires a Heat Gun, another bit of metal about the size of a Quarter .. (funny how useful money really is) and a bit of silver solder.

put the metal on top of the video chip directly with a bit of wound up solder on top so it won't blow away .. usually uses a glob of artic silver to conduct the heat between the chip and the metal.

*** Some Folks are confused as to what does the Quarter sized piece of metal and the silver solder do. Well this is my (back yard mechanic) attempt at gauging the heat that will be transferred to the video chip and the BGA below the chip. If the metal on top gets hot enough to melt the silver solder odds are good that the chip is getting hot enough to melt the BGA and effectively re-joining the chip to the system board. ***

Be very careful ... it will take a blink of an eye to melt plastic components surrounding the video chip.. so stay away from them with the heat gun.. this is a delicate process again DO NOT DO THIS but if you chose to it's your computer not mine.

You would be better to send it out to a certified Re-Flow company.

*** Before you start with the heat gun there is plastic (wrap for no better explination) sheilding all over the system board .. carefully remove anything that will melt and create a mess and bad smell. Just make sure you put it back where it was after you are done. ***


Start by heating the chip side about 5 inches away from the board for bout 30 seconds .. Depending on how hot the heat gun gets..

you should have it close to a ledge so you can do the same to the bottom side.. 30 seconds or so ..

Then start on the chip again. make sure the board is flat and level at this time. moving the heat gun closer ever 10 sec or so .. till the solder melts... if it melts too quickly you just got the heat gun to close to fast .. but just hold it there for another 30 sec to a min.. pull back for about another 30 seconds at 5 to 6 inches ...

Let cool.... for 30 min or more ... and test .. Just like above... if it works reassemble with your copper between the heat sink.. and your computer can be used... Waaahooo.

Donations are always accepted











Wednesday, February 10, 2010

MacBook Pro Hard Drive Crash

I know this is inevitable, but today?? in the middle of working on the TX1000 Tear-Down Disassembly guide it happened..

That Heart wrenching sound that brings fear and loathing to the heart of every person Geek or not of a head crash on the Hard Disk Drive. It is worse that going to the dentist for a root canal and hearing the drill grinding away at a tooth. The sound is worse that nails across a chalk board. The good and bad thing about today (well there really is no good about it) I do have a Time Machine Backup. But alas it is at least a month old by now :(. Here is a screen shot of Why and How I know it is toast. At least I am able to boot and recover things I was working on but it needs to be changed NOW

Well I have completed the possible Time Machine Backup of what I'm sure is some lost data.. and will now have to find another hard drive to replace it. Reinstall the OS and migrate from back up.. The problem still remains can I get my BootCamp partition??? I need to save the Windows XP information too.. Yikes... This year really has not started off very well for me ... has been one thing after another ... I would have though 2010 would be a great year. Well it's got to get better **** Right??? ****

Monday, February 1, 2010

how to fix dv2000 No Video, dv2000 Penny Fix, BGA Re-Flow

How to Fix dv2000 No Video No Wireless issues Nvidia Video Chip Separating from the system board.

Copper shim, bga re-flow, no video fix hp dv2000.

This will also give you symptoms of no wireless connectivity or loosing the wireless card.. or the system will loose the dvd/cd rom before the chip will entirely go out ... lots of different problems can be attributed to this issue .. they all have something to do with the Nvidia Chipset. Also will exhibit 3 beeps and no video, or continuous power recycle with no video, or turn on and shut down 5 or 10 seconds later.

How to Fix No Video issues with a Penny??? Spend a penny save 350$ dollars??


Did you want a video .... read through the post and check the end for how I did it ...

This issue affects HP Pavilion dv2000, dv6000, dv9000, tx1000, Compaq Presario V3000, V6000, and Compaq F700 Series notebooks.






Directly from HP's web site
HP has identified a hardware issue with certain HP Pavilion dv2000/dv6000/dv9000 and Compaq Presario V3000/V6000 series notebook PCs, and has also released a new BIOS for these notebook PCs, version F.39 for dv2000/V3000, and version F.3D for dv6000/dv9000/V6000

The first thing you should do if you are experiencing these issues is
to go directly to HP's Website and see if you fall under their extended limited warranty just click on the link I have provided for you.

Now if you are not covered under warranty any longer ... HP will help you at a cost .. it could be over 350$ dollars plus shipping and handling. With that type of cost you may as well just go out an purchase a new computer.

If you really decide to do that SEND ME YOU’RE COMPUTER I WILL TAKE IT!!!!

****Warning CYA stuff again this will 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 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)********


But you can follow the previous posts dv6000 disassembly Part 1 and Part 2.

Also there is a guide here for the DV9000 series 17" laptop tear down


DV2000 series Tear-Down guide can be found here.


After Part 3 of the DV2000 post or the last post of the other DV tear-down guides, you will have access to the system board ... you will need to take off the Heat Sink and fan assembly if you have made it this far you should be able to do that with no problem.. as well I would remove the processor from the ZIF socket.. and you will have this.


These are Actual pictures of the DV6000 system board so your will look a little different ... but rest assured this has been tested to work on several dv2000 system boards.



The chip that is causing the problem is circled.... that’s the Nvidia Video Chip. To be honest it is not Nvidia's issues don’t blame them it is actually the manufacturing process of the system board that is at fault the chip is fine and works great. During assembly the chip is attached to the system board via BGA soldering (Ball Grid Array) because of the heat generated by the video chip if heat is not wicked away properly and the proper amount of flux that was used the small solder joints under the chip will melt and eventually separate and no longer have contact with the chip and the system board.

As you were taking the Heat Sink off you may or may not have noticed the little squishy pad on the heat sink that was covering the video chip. IMO here is your first problem. As the system heats up over time this little pad expands and contracts it has some stickiness factor to it and will pull on the chip as it contracts when it cools.. this could be pulling the solder joints away under the video chip.

Regardless of if you are having the video issue or not this needs to be replaced.

*****Rant in my life time things have been fixed with bubble gum, bailing wire, and the almighty Duct Tape. Don't laugh at anything I will put in these blog postings... they work and have been tested repeatedly.... *********

With that said the best replacement for that pad I have found is a piece of copper with thermal paste applied to both sides to conduct heat away from the chip to the heat sink.. This will ensure that there is no flexing or expanding or contractions to break the solder joints.

So where can I find a piece of copper that will fit under there??? that is the right size?? Odds are pretty good you may have one in your pocket or in your change jar at home...

It's a Penny

Not just any Penny though it must be mostly cooper Penny.

Bit of History here the U.S. Mint in 1983 started making pennies with 97.5% Zinc with copper plating. Previously 1982 and earlier the pennies were made with 95% copper with the remaining 15% of Zinc and other metals.

Zinc will just not do so find an older penny and use it.

*** Yep another Warning ... Defacing US currency is indeed illegal.
According to:
United States Code
TITLE 18 - CRIMES AND CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
PART I - CRIMES
CHAPTER 17 - COINS AND CURRENCY
333. Mutilation of national bank obligations
so don't do it******

The surfaces of a penny are pretty smooth and may make enough contact to conduct the heat desired to the heat sink or use something else similar sized that you can sand and lap to a smooth finish. And just using a penny will not deface it and after the computer has finished its usefulness you can still use the penny.

*** Rant what about those machines you find in the Museums that mash pennies with a picture or advertisement.. Is that not defacing U.S. Currency????? end of rant ****




Here is a close up of the video chip it self.. for some reason or another HP made different revisions of the same board yours may look a bit different.. The red silicone was an attempt on their part to eliminate the separation issues but this will not help if the heat sink pad is not removed and replaced with something else.

Do not try to remove the red compound that has been placed around the video chip.. it is very hard and you may end up damaging the system board in the process. This procedure has worked with the red compound intact and on boards that do not have the compound.

HP also adjusted the BIOS with a flash that will keep the fans running to wick heat away that also proved to be ineffective IMO as well.

Ok now that you have the board out and know why ... How do we fix it..

Well the most permanent way to fix your issue is to send the board out for Re-Flow... there are numerous companies out there that will do this for you usually the cost is 50$ plus shipping and handling. You can find them on Fee-Bay (E-Bay) or you may be able to find a circuit repair shop in your local area ... Google it..

or

There are 2 ways you can do it at home... ****Warning ... eh you know already ... never mind*****

This may be a temporary fix may or may not hold for long but worth a shot

If you have removed the memory ... which you really did not have to, to get the board out. Put it back in



Remove the pad that goes between the heat sink and the video chip ... now you definitely will see a gap between the chip and the heat sink when you reinstall the heat sink ... make sure you use thermal paste on the processor.. We don't want to damage that... BTW clean all the hard gooped up thermal compound they used its crap.. use Artic Silver the best stuff.. Connect the fan so you know it’s on.

Reconnect the Power Cables. Flip the board over place the LCD panel flat and close enough so you can watch it.

Find the Quick Launch Bezel and just attach the ribbon cable for the power.. it is the left ribbon cable.

Plug the computer in ... and turn it on ... you will still get either the beeping or no video ... let it sit.. ON for a bit less than 2 or 3 min.

Turn it off ... immediately turn it back on ... wait for it .... wait for it ... did it post? if not try again for 5 min.

If it did ... and you see the wonderful HP logo ... shut it off .. disconnect the power, the Quick Launch ribbon cable and the LCD panel flip it back over take the heat sink off ... put your piece of copper on top of the video chip (with thermal paste) reattach the Heat Sink flip it back over reattach everything and test it ...

is it still posting??? re-assemble and use

Now a more permanent fix or if none of that worked.... requires a Heat Gun, another bit of metal about the size of a Quarter .. (funny how useful money really is) and a bit of silver solder.

put the metal on top of the video chip directly with a bit of wound up solder on top so it won't blow away .. usually uses a glob of artic silver to conduct the heat between the chip and the metal.

*** Some Folks are confused as to what does the Quarter sized piece of metal and the silver solder do. Well this is my (back yard mechanic) attempt at gauging the heat that will be transferred to the video chip and the BGA below the chip. If the metal on top gets hot enough to melt the silver solder odds are good that the chip is getting hot enough to melt the BGA and effectively re-joining the chip to the system board. ***

Be very careful ... it will take a blink of an eye to melt plastic components surrounding the video chip.. so stay away from them with the heat gun.. this is a delicate process again DO NOT DO THIS but if you chose to it's your computer not mine.

You would be better to send it out to a certified Re-Flow company.

*** Before you start with the heat gun there is plastic (wrap for no better explination) sheilding all over the system board .. carefully remove anything that will melt and create a mess and bad smell. Just make sure you put it back where it was after you are done. ***

Start by heating the chip side about 5 inches away from the board for bout 30 seconds .. Depending on how hot the heat gun gets..

you should have it close to a ledge so you can do the same to the bottom side.. 30 seconds or so ..

Then start on the chip again. make sure the board is flat and level at this time. moving the heat gun closer ever 10 sec or so .. till the solder melts... if it melts too quickly you just got the heat gun to close to fast .. but just hold it there for another 30 sec to a min.. pull back for about another 30 seconds at 5 to 6 inches ...

Let cool.... for 30 min or more ... and test .. Just like above... if it works reassemble with your copper between the heat sink.. and your computer can be used... Waaahooo.



For More Great info on Laptop Repair Tips Hit Repair4Laptop.org the author is also the same guy that started tuxmobile.org

To find that long lost friend search4me.ws

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