[GRLUG] So I have this laptop...

[Michael Mol]

On Thu, May 5, 2011 at 10:32 AM, Mike Williams <knightperson at zuzax.com> wrote:
> On 05/05/2011 10:15 AM, Michael Mol wrote:
>>
>> On Thu, May 5, 2011 at 10:12 AM, Mike Williams<knightperson at zuzax.com>
>>  wrote:
>>>
>>> On 05/05/2011 10:04 AM, Mike Williams wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Hmmm. Well, I do have a full complement of host0 through host5 entries,
>>>> but only the host0 has a target0:0:0 directory under it. Which makes
>>>> sense
>>>> since that's the only one that actually has anything attached to it.
>>>> That's
>>>> fairly encouraging, combined with my theory that this laptop's chassis
>>>> and
>>>> motherboard are used for quite a few different models, some of which are
>>>> intended to actually use that second bay.
>>>>
>>>> The other worry is the BIOS, since it only has entries for one hard
>>>> drive
>>>> and once CD. But at worst that would only mean that I couldn't boot from
>>>> the
>>>> second drive, right? If I boot from the existing one, Linux would be
>>>> able to
>>>> find a drive in the second one by querying the controller, wouldn't it?
>>>>
>>> Minor correction. When I put something in the optical bay, it shows up
>>> under
>>> host5. I still think it is possible if (and this is the big if) I can
>>> find
>>> somebody competent and willing enough to solder on the connector. I know
>>> I
>>> don't have anywhere near the necessary skill myself.
>>
>> If that works, I can foresee a sweet aftermarket in motherboard upgrades.
>>
> I would like to see that as well, but I think the amount of labor involved
> is going to be prohibitive. Most places want  close to $100 to replace the
> power jack, and that's a relatively small job. Getting the port to add is
> relatively cheap and easy, but it's 15 or so connections, and they're
> old-style rather than surface-mount. You would have to take the laptop apart
> to come at it from the other side, making the labor comparable to a full
> motherboard swap. When I only paid $600 for the machine in the first place,
> it's probably not cost-effective.
>
> Admittedly, cost efficiency not the point. It's the principle of the thing
> that there is an open drive bay and traces for a drive in it, so why can't I
> have an SSD for the operating system and the big, slow hard drive for data
> storage? And the hard drive is spacious, but it is really slow. It takes at
> least twice as long to restore from hibernation as it does to boot cold!

They're not surface mount? That's potentially helpful.

Remember SIPP-module ram? Think 30-pin SIMM modules with pins instead
of an edgeboard connector.

Now, when I was a kid, I recall seeing SIPP module sockets in the
Digi-Key catalog, and I also recall seeing individual pin sockets.
Those pin sockets would penetrate through the board, and then you
could plug some other pinned device into those pin sockets.

Here's the thing; if you could heat up those per-pin sockets (they're
metal, no plastic parts) enough that they would melt solder, then you
could conceivably stick them straight into the solder fill already
sitting on the motherboard pin pads. With only one side of the board
visible. Do that for each of the pads, and you've got something you
could simply drop your header on to.

The caveat is that this would be slightly raised from the original
height, so whether everything would fit inside the laptop afterward is
a question for which I don't have an answer. (Though I'd wager it'd
still work on desktop motherboards)

-- 
:wq

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