At 8.30 AM -0500 4/2/02, BG wrote: >Hello... Any advice for a novice on batteries, specifically and in general, >and/or links to further info? (The Help Guide on the macs are not always so >helpful!) :-/ > >Specifically: >Recently acquired Rev. B iBook (300mhz, 128ram, 6gb, OS 9.1): Date and time >is sometimes not "holding;" the computer is slugglish starting up; sometimes >the submenus do not expand, it is freezing up, pointer gets paralyzed, etc. >Re: the date/time, Mac Help Menu says something about may need a "backup >battery replaced by authorized apple retailer." Is this "backup battery" >the same as what is referred to as PRAM? > >I "zapped" PRAM twice, and that helped the date/time... for awhile anyway... >but when I've had to "force quit/shutdown," the date/time is lost again... >(that never used to happen on my older DT mac, and I "forced/shutdown" it >many times.) ;)
If you're hitting the little reset button inside the grill, you'll lose the date/time every time you hit that button. That's the power manager reset button and shouldn't be used to shutdown/restart the computer. Instead, just hold in the power button for ~5 seconds. >Re: the lithium-ion battery and yoyo adapter: I'm trying to determine if >both of these batteries I have are "ready for the dumpster." I left the >adapter on for 24 hours. Then last night it was amber and the control strip >said "battery is being recharged." It was amber for about 20 minutes on two >occasions. Then it turns green in between, and the control strip then says, >"battery has been removed from your computer" (even though battery is still >installed). This could be a problem with the battery or the adapter. or the iBook itself. The best way to figure this out is to first reset the power manager properly (read kbase article #14449 at <http://www.info.apple.com/kbnum/n14449>) and then test with known good adapters and batteries (one at a time, if you swap both at the same time, you won't know which fixed the problem). If you swap batteries and adapters with known goods, and reset the PMU, and the issue persists.... then it's likely a problem with the Power Manager in the iBook. >General question: >For future reference, if you always use the laptop w/power adapter, and >don't really need the batteries, should you just take them out of the >computer and set them aside? No. Batteries run out of juice eventually and, typically, if they run down through not being used, that tends to ruin them. >And/or does it "hurt anything" to leave them IN and never use them? Not really. >And/or like my cell phone, should batteries be used until they drain >completely, and then recharge them over and over, even though you don't >really need to be using them (because I'm always by a power outlet)? This isn't an issue with most rechargeable batteries used in most laptops these days. The big problem was with NiCad batteries (and some others). Li-Ion batteries don't seem to have this problem. Any computer company still using NiCad batteries should be shot, dragged into the streets, hanged, beat, thrown to the wolves, and then REALLY hurt. ;D My cell phone has a LiIon battery in it, too, and I've never worried about running it down... I just charge it whenever I think about it, and the battery still lasts most of a week, if not more. Depending on how much I actually use it, of course. -- Jeremy Derr <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> \ <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> -- G-Books is sponsored by <http://lowendmac.com/> and... Small Dog Electronics http://www.smalldog.com | Refurbished Drives | -- Check our web site for refurbished PowerBooks | & CDRWs on Sale! | RoadTools $30 PodiumPad available at Apple retail stores, $20 Traveler CoolPad at Staples. Both in white for iBooks at <http://roadtools.com>. Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> G-Books list info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/g-books.html> Send list messages to: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To unsubscribe, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> For digest mode, email: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Subscription questions: <mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Archive: <http://www.mail-archive.com/g-books%40mail.maclaunch.com/> Using a Mac? Free email & more at Applelinks! http://www.applelinks.com
