On 12/11/04 14:38, "Tom Burke" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > I don't have anything to offer on the particular question, but I'd > thought I'd just throw in an observation. In the last month or so, I > seem to have seen quite a few threads (here and on other discussion > boards/lists) about dead Lombards, dying Pismos, and totally fried > WallStreets. Could it be that these machines are reaching the end of > their working lives? The Lombards are going to be about 5 years old, > while even the youngest Pismo is approaching 4. > > Is their day finished?
In a sense, they could. It depends on a lot of factors, however. If you compare a Lombard to a Pismo, the Lombard is older, everybody knows that. Now, over the course of the 5 or 6 years that the Lombard was used, it is possible that it was opened more often than a Pismo for some upgrades, hard drive, memory, etc. As such, you increase the risk of shorting or breaking something. Another factor I think we need to consider is the Power Management Unit. This part is an essential part in all PowerBooks since it controls all aspects of power, be it powering the PowerBook, deciding when it's time to recharge the main battery or whether the PowerBook should go to sleep. This part, as I was told, contains it's own little operating system, yes. What often happens is that it gets screwed or the system freezes. Sometimes, when you specifically reset it, the tiny system restarts and start working again. Other times, it's seems that it is permanently toasted. Now, if you compare a PowerBook that is 5 or 6 years old in the case of a Lombard, a Wallstreet which is 7 or 8 years old and a Pismo that is 4 or 5 years old, it is more likely that this part will go belly up in a Wallstreet than in a Pismo. However, I've never seen any PowerBook that was really fried. Many times, by replacing the Power Management Unit (AKA PMU), the machine will startup right away. In fewer cases, sometimes the DC/Audio board gets toasted. That's the part where the power connector is. Why does it get toasted? Good question. Could be a spike in the voltage or some capacitors/transformers that fail due to constant high temperatures. Just my $0.02... -Laurent. -- ======================================================================== Laurent Daudelin Developer, Multifamily, ESO, Fannie Mae mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Washington, DC, USA ************************ Usual disclaimers apply *********************** -- 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! | Support Low End Mac <http://lowendmac.com/lists/support.html> G-Books list info: <http://lowendmac.com/lists/g-books.html> --> AOL users, remove "mailto:"; 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/> --------------------------------------------------------------- >The Think Different Store http://www.ThinkDifferentStore.com ---------------------------------------------------------------
