Topic: What are you doing right now?

[8ullfrog]

Fine detail work is a hell of a skill. I wonder if that would translate over. You'd probably be better at cracking cases on laptops than I am.

The trick is not to physically crack the case. lot of stupid plastic folds when there should have just been case mating points, like god intended.

poo, the older iPod's were pressure mated. Thick ass fold sprongs. Spellcheck says that isn't a word, I disagree. It's PERFECT.

[8ullfrog]

Would you agree that the older ipod's were sprongy?

[8ullfrog]

I popped my HP iPod (Wow did Fiorina mess that one up) with no training. Yeah, I ruined it, but I learned a lot.

Specifically, it's all metal sprongy things keeping it shut. you just pull the two apart extremely carefully.

Plus, it was already dead, had the frowny face, triangle exclamation point "YOU'RE bent" icon.

Specifically the hard drive was dead. It's in a box somewhere. Maybe someone else could do something with it, but I've got trust issues.

Certainly not worth the $90 people were charging for battery replacements back then.

Still my favorite ipod model, that headphone placement was PERFECT.

I used to read books on that screen, which seems nuts to me now.

[6pairsofshoes]

I have a 2008 vintage iPod that has a dead battery.  It would cost more to replace the battery than to buy a replacement iPod.  Jonny Ives likes to pride himself on his emulation of Dieter Rams in the design ethos that Apple adopted with the product lines that he oversaw.  But one of the tenets of Rams' 10 Principles of Good Design is that it should be "Umweltfreundlich" or ecologically sensitive.  Creating devices with batteries that cannot be easily changed hardly falls under that category, nor does designing machines that are no longer supported after 8 years.  I guess they use the fact that they'll recycle your old devices for free to assuage their collective consciences.  But the rampant consumerism underpinning Apple's relentless promotion of new product lines and its link to planned obsolescence is enough to give Rams as well as Victor Papanek (author of the 1971 recycling friendly Design for the Real World) brain tumors.

[8ullfrog]

Yup, that certainly isn't a free service, it's just frontloaded in the price at purchase. California already does that. You get a $25 "fee" tacked on whenever you buy electronics.

Most of my CD players could be taken apart with a jewelers screwdriver, I fixed stuck lasers that way all the time. Not so in the brave new world.

That was before I knew anything about electronics, I'd just gut the thing, poke at loose wires, then reassemble the thing. Unless something was physically cracked or torn, I got at least another six months out of the devices.

Today I went to goodwill late, around 6 PM, and watched a lady wheel out the exact size file cabinet I need. That wasn't fun.

Of course they didn't have two. They tend to ship those things out to other stores. They do have as many iHome stereos and alarm clocks as future landfills may require!

I know people got those as Christmas gifts from well meaning relatives, but has anyone ever used one? In "the wild" Aux cord is king.

[smokester]

A week and a half into my electrical course and I already have 2 days of exams to look forward to this week.

So, guess what? Yep, I'm cramming!

My head hurts ... a lot!

[goldshirt*9]

I have a 2008 vintage iPod that has a dead battery. 

plenty of vids showing how to change and change the memory to cards. A serious upgrade  then install rockbox on it.
Pure fun

[6pairsofshoes]

I have watched the videos.  Not quite sure I'm up for it, but I do like to tinker with things and I hate the ooga booga mystery surrounding electronics.  Other than making sure I don't electrocute myself, I'd like to be able to replace the battery.  I rewire lamps from time to time and that's pretty satisfying, although I don't have the same challenges with miniature parts and making sure everything goes back together again.

Right now, it's a paperweight, so I won't be losing anything by attempting the battery replacement.

[8ullfrog]

Peeling open an ipod requires a lot of patience. I did it once, and I wrecked the poo out of the thing.

I did a bit better with the PSP, but I had a phone call when I was trying to install the 6th screen replacement I had ordered, and wrecked a bracket with the tool set that I had.

It's some serious fuckery, and not for the feint of heart.

Specifically, it was the HP iPod.

I really love the second gen nano, with the metal shell. Mine had a screen bleed that REPAIRED ITSELF. I've never seen anything like it, but am thankful. I now store it screen down to avoid future fippery.

I still have my MBP, but the battery is deader than a doornail, and the display was a victim of what is now called "3rd hand smoke". You can't refurb that.

I doubt I'll ever be in the apple market again, but it was fun while it lasted.

Please Mr. Lottery, just one Six million dollar win, I promise I'll be responsible and not a hooting yahoo with it!

[6pairsofshoes]

Yeah.  I can see a trail of tears with that iPod, so I have been hesitant to crack it open.  As for old tech.  I have two iPods, a first generation iPad, a 1st gen. watch, an old MBP (pre unibody) and the jewel in my collection, a Powerbook 92 that still runs.  I keep it so I can boot up floppy discs and because it has a really good Water Balloons game.  It has a 256 Mb HD.  My iPhone 6 is my first smartphone and it's still fine.  Apple will stop supporting it so I'll use it until I can't any longer.  After that, who knows.  $1k for a phone is a bit steep, so hopefully they'll produce something cheaper by the time it's no longer useful.

[goldshirt*9]

I have no real idea what old tech I have, but I (almost) never throw anything away. I have (at least) a second-gen iPod, a U2 iPod, a couple of iPod minis, an iPod nano or three, and whatever that stick of gum iPod was I have one of them too. I have cables for most of these things too! That's when the iPhone arrived, and somewhere we have a 3G, 3GS, 4, 4S, 5S, and a 6. I still use the X, the wife is still using the 6S. We have two (or maybe three?) iMacs on the go, and in the loft there are many and various others going back to the LCII that was the first computer I bought new (battery is dead in that, too). Laptops? I've had a few, but I think these are the things that mostly get thrown away (to remove the temptation of spending £100+ on a new battery for a machine worth maybe £20): I have kept the 17" Powerbook as a slice of vintage computing, and there is doubtless an iBook and at least a couple of other Powerbooks/ MacBook Pros lying around somewhere to go with the one I use day to day.

... and then there are iPads, and apple watches - boy it sure starts to add up after a while, doesn't it!

A museum will be asking to borrow these

[8ullfrog]

That's generally how museums work

[6pairsofshoes]

I have an Apple TV 1st gen and have never been able to get it to sync with my Samsung smart tv and my computer.  I expect it's hopeless now.  Is there any reason to keep it?

[8ullfrog]

You might be able to hook it up dumb style, I'm guessing the "smart" was what got depreciated and locked out.

Hell, the Samsung TV I have rejects anything but a $120 wifi adapter that is now fully obsolete.

I'm still learning stuff about my TCL TV. "forgetting" the wireless network isn't under the wireless settings, but the "Advanced configuration" settings.

I had to use a stupid tile interface instead of directly going to my PC, but that was under the "Power" settings. Specifically "Power on to HDMI 1".

It's like these things are designed to be difficult.

[6pairsofshoes]

If you don't, then you won't have it.

"Throw it away and hell you'll pay."  -- Marvin Marvinview, Collector's Corner.

Wow.  Photobucket really does suck.  And now I've forgotten how I have to doctor the link via dropbox.  I have a brain like a sieve sometimes.  So I go establish an account with imgur and still, no success.  Maybe I should go have a lie down and see if I wake up smarter.