Computer bits reqiured

[taimatsu]

My computer is now less reliable than my timekeeping, which is saying something. It's a major source of stress and awkwardness. I really really need to assemble some sort of BETTER computer, which does not BSOD every few minutes or go phut if you nudge the power cable. It does not have to be a super-duper fancy machine - it needs to browse the web, run some sort of word processing program, and be able to cope with my camera, printer and scanner. A laptop is better but a desktop would be just fine.

I am on Reading Freecycle, but the group does not accept wanted ads for large electrical items like laptops/PCs, so I cannot just go 'laptop plz kthxbai'. I have responded to an ad for the bare bones of a PC tower - it has no hard drive and minimal RAM, but other bits (eg. graphics card, case etc) are there. I may or may not get it. Anyway it's in Earley so I'll have to get a taxi or a lift from someone to pick it up.

So this is a plea: if you have any computers or bits of computer that you think I could use to Build Something Better, please consider donating them to the cause. I offer hugs, biscuits, company and potential dinner in exchange - and perhaps some money if you have something especially good that you would otherwise sell. Additionally, if you think you have the sk1llz to help me repair my existing laptop, do say.

Comments

[j4.livejournal.com]

I have a PowerMac (old G3) which you can have on long-term loan if that's any use. Should be fine for web/word-processing, not sure how it will deal with the camera/printer/scanner but I'll have a look at what connections etc it's got tonight. (I'm not confident of knowing how to set it up for net access myself, though, so if you do want it you'll probably need somebody else to help with networking.) But really, you need something you can use a.s.a.p., not a truckload of probably-broken computer parts and an excuse to avoid work! Can you use public/college/department computers in the meantime?

[taimatsu]

Yes, I can use uni computers. This one does still work, it's just unpredictable - right now it's up to about an hour without falling over, but last night it blue-screened three times in fifteen minutes while I was trying to talk to people on IM. This makes it a little tricky to reliably use for uni work. :) I did my last essay in the library.

[lanfykins.livejournal.com]

Well, my Carinae (laptop) still works (or did a year ago); it's the power supply that went phut. While you're welcome to it if you think you can use it, the reason I'm not is that getting hold of a power supply that works with it is hell.

[damianobf.livejournal.com]

how come can't you contact the manufacturer for one?

[lanfykins.livejournal.com]

I think the manufacturer has since been bought by someone else. Carinae is a small and obscure thing; I've found about three references to the laptop type on the web, and none of power supplies.

[diffrentcolours]

I can probably sort you out with a hard drive - I've been meaning to upgrade the drive in my desktop for a while, can pick up a huge one for 50 quid or so and let you have my old 40Gb drive (which is more than enough for me until I decide I want to rip my entire music collection to my HDD and use it for remote backups of my laptop and sister's server).

Hell, I can pre-install it with Debian maybe...

[taimatsu]

I really don't want to lean on people for stuff they're still using, so unless you really really want rid of the thing, don't feel obliged...

But it would be lovely if you do have it going spare :)

I'm up for Debian, too, though you may find yourself cast in the role of tech support helpline if anything goes wrong.

[diffrentcolours]

I don't object to being tech support, though hopefully you won't need me to be. I was thinking of Debian because it'll probably run better on lower-spec hardware and give you fewer random driver isses.

As for the hard drive, like I say, I've been pondering an upgrade anyway and this would just expedite that.

[taimatsu]

Ok, lovely. :) Thank you. *hug*

[imc.livejournal.com]

What's the current laptop and what OS? Blue-screen might just be an indication that Windows needs re-installing or repairing (and if it's not XP, upgrading to XP… or, of course, Linux). If the power supply has a broken wire it can probably be fixed fairly easily (one of our ThinkPads had to have that treatment a couple of weeks ago).

[taimatsu]

Acer TravelMate 220, Windows XP. It's had driver issues but I can't pin them down. I don't have the discs for it, it's ex-Robert. It's got no battery capacity, though no idea if it is the battery or the charging circuits which are broken.

[ewtikins.livejournal.com]

Have you tried sticking an Ubuntu Live CD in just to see what happens?

[imc.livejournal.com]

If it's XP Pro and has a licence key sticker on it somewhere then an OS disc could be procured. I looked at the machine specs (http://www.acersupport.com/notebook/html/tm220.html) but didn't see anything that should cause driver problems (the web page has driver downloads available but with the possible exception of the modem it all looks like it should be supported by the standard Windows XP — not that I am any kind of Windows expert).

[simont]

The idea of getting to see you for hugs, company and dinner is so tempting that I almost wish I hadn't donated my spare desktop machine to drswirly last month. Unfortunately, I did :-/

(Mind you, it seems to have been a bit flaky for him in a way that it never was for me. Perhaps it objected to moving a mile or so across Cambridge. If so, moving a hundred miles or so across the UK would probably have done for it...)

I suppose it would be cheeky at this point to ask if there's any chance of seeing you for hugs, company and dinner some time soon anyway? ;-)

[taimatsu]

Yes, hugs company and dinner all available. I am fairly busy and impoverished as usual, but if you want to suggest dates and locations (to my Gmail?) I'm up for it :)

[claire-smith.livejournal.com]

I have a 19" monitor which you can have, if that's any use.

I'll ask Paul whether we have anything else lying around, and also whether he can drive it over to you (if you need it) - I wouldn't recommend trying to lug it on the bus! ;)

[taimatsu]

ooooh, monitor :) That would be marvellous, thank you.

[ewtikins.livejournal.com]

I have many broken laptops; I could poke one again to see if it will work but they're all piteously slow even when working.

I do have one working 386 laptop but I suspect this is not really what you need! Haven't been able to get it online yet, due to lack of ethernet port and lack of CD drive for installing software drivers for PCMCIA ethernet/wifi card (which is now given to someone else anyway).

[diffrentcolours]

What are you planning on running on the 386, out of interest? Modern GNU libc no longer supports pre-486 machines, which makes using 386s as LTSP terminals tricksy.

[ewtikins.livejournal.com]

It had Windows 95 on it when it was given to me as dead by the previous owner, and I haven't managed to get around to putting anything else on there yet.

[taimatsu]

Might any of your broken laptops be cannibalisable for parts? :)

[thinkstoomuch.livejournal.com]

I can most likely fix the power connector - but I would be working under the caveat that I might terminally break it, as it may well require taking case off and some soldering (from what I remember of it). Probably have enough spare space on our network to image your drive first. But might be better to do after you get a desktop!

I've got a case, a graphics card, a processor or two, and a couple of dubious motherboards. Oh, and a fair bit of SDRAM.

[taimatsu]

At the moment... you know the cable has the little plug on the end, and that bit gets blutacked in? And then there's a short bit of cable, and then a larger cylindrical bit before the main cable? I don't know what the cylindrical bit is called, but it seems to be that that was complaining about being joggled. I have it taped to the laptop lid so it's much more static, and it's happier now.

[thinkstoomuch.livejournal.com]

I suspect the larger cylindrical bit is a ferrite filter thing. If so, joggling of it would likely only be affecting anything by causing it to yank the plug out more easily.

I thought the case was a bit cracked around the power socket? Am I remembering incorrectly? If the case is sound, then I'd guess the problem is purely the angled bit of metal that presses against the power plug when attached. Fixable with pliers and a screwdriver if so.

If you bring it round next time you visit I'll have a proper look - there might be a quick fix! (at least for the power, dunno about all the bluescreens. reinstall might help once it has stable power)

[taimatsu]

You're right, the case is broken. When would you like me to come over? :)

[thinkstoomuch.livejournal.com]

Oh, come round whenever and I can inspect and see what I'd need to try and fix it. Give a ring/text first to check if I'm in, but should be all day today.

[ms-saffie.livejournal.com]

Hi. I may have an interim solution (i.e. will lend). Alex has the details. S.
(P.S. Art has my email)

[brrm.livejournal.com]

There may also be something suitable for longer-term in the works - I'll need to check details with work first WRT writing-off. It's P3 laptop-shaped, but minus hard disk. Should be able to let you know tomorrow, hopefully.

[slappersire.livejournal.com]

Jim has an old computer he doesn't use anymore. I've no idea how we could get it to you, but I reckon he'd let you have it.

If you're interested give me an e-mail.

[taimatsu]

I'm interested! It's possible that Heather, who drives, may visit at some point in the next few months, so possibly some transfer route could be worked out. Thank you :)

Would Jim be able to tell me roughly what it's got in it? (Like, case, components, size of any memory/hard drive bits, any peripherals?)

[oneplusme.livejournal.com]

If it helps, I have a large collection of random PC parts (AMD Duron 1.2GHz, a few USB wifi dongles (and a PCMCIA one), assorted graphics cards, floppy drives, smallish (~10-20GB) hard disks, possibly some useful RAM, and a buttload of cabling) that I'd be happy to donate to a good cause.

[taimatsu]

Woohoo! Thank you. What is an AMD Duron 1.2GHz?

[diffrentcolours]

An AMD Duron 1.2GHz is a processor which is almost as powerful as my desktop, and more so than my laptop.

[taimatsu]

Gosh. Sounds good. :)

[oneplusme.livejournal.com]

A Socket A desktop CPU. Also a typo, since it's a 1.3GHz one. I'm not sure I have a heatsink for it, though, but they're not too hard to get hold of.

(I also have a collection of Socket 7 K6-2-era CPUs, but you really don't want to be using one of those...)

[baratron.livejournal.com]

I have no help on the computer front, but I wanted to say I was amused by the thought of "My computer is now less reliable than my timekeeping, which is saying something."

Good luck with the counsellor. Do your best to get to uni things. Even if you're not getting the work done on time, they're more likely to be sympathetic if they're seeing you regularly. *hugs*

[taimatsu]

I did have to sit there racking my brains for a notoriously unreliable thng to compare it to, and could only come up with myself. :)

[the-alchemist.livejournal.com]

You're welcome to verlaine's desktop, but he might want it back if and when he returns from Canada.

It's works fine as far as I know (or at least, it's problems should be easy to solve and one of us should be able to sort them out before giving it to you.)

[mirrorshard.livejournal.com]

I have a PII desktop machine to give away, that we resurrected at Ewt's geekheap challenge party and which has been looking for a good home since. It's called Aurelius, it's in London (but extremely portable), and it has Ubuntu. The fan gets terribly noisy, but other than that it seems to be in pretty good shape. There may be random accessories, but any of them I have lying around will be pretty crap and you can almost certainly find better ones donated elsewhere.

[taimatsu]

If it's really going spare, I'm definitely up for it. I am looking into attempting to come to the craftswap tomorrow - is that a good opportunity to collect it from somewhere (I could bring a suitcase to take it back on the train in) or should I arrange something else?

Thank you :)

[mirrorshard.livejournal.com]

I'm definitely going, so I can bring it to Bermondsey, if you like?

[taimatsu]

Please do! I should be turning up and will bring a suitcase. :)

[mirrorshard.livejournal.com]

PS - dimensions are 200mm x 445mm x 345mm.