Hi,
From: Nomad the Wanderer [SMTP:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]
Sent: Friday, August 20, 1999 2:05 PM
I have a Toshiba Tecra 750CDT. At some point after I got it up on the
2.2 kernels I noticed that apm claims my battery isn't charged. If I
unplug the power, it goes down hard.
Is it possible that the battery is actually good and it's just not being
charged? I don't have $70 for a new battery and don't have any way to
test, i.e. another laptop...
AFAIK the charging circuit is all done in hardware, so the problem is most
likely in the battery. An easy way to check is use a multimeter to check the
voltage and resistance of the battery. If you don't have access to one you
can pick up a cheap unit (5-7 bucks) at a Radio Shack or the like, they are
not very accurate but good enough.
You didn't mention what type of battery you have so I can only speculate
that it might be the memory effect if it is NiCad, other types such as NiMH
and lithium ion are not susceptable. I have heard of several remedies to
solve the memory problem from placing a resistive load across the pos. and
neg. terminals (like a small light bulb) to completely drain it and then
recharge, to dropping it flat from a couple of feet to break the cadimium
crystals formed at the negative electrode. (No, I have never done this nor
am I really recommending it since the battery could come apart and cadmium
is not a very plesant substance to organic lifeforms)
Good luck,
Tim
