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The Sleepy Keyboard

6/4/2013

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Yesterday I replaced a keyboard in a laptop computer that had a case of the Zs.  For some reason it shipped from the factory with two letter Zs.  Then to add additional confusion the second Z, which was where the S should have been, was from a different font and in a different location on the key.  A picture is below so you can see for yourself.

After receiving the replacement keyboard from the manufacturer it was simple to replace.  Just remove the battery, the main bottom cover, and then a single screw holding in the keyboard.  Install the new keyboard and then reverse the process.
Picture
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PC Power Supply

2/21/2013

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If you are ever looking for a good power source for 12 V or 5 V devices, look no further than an old PC power supply.  A few simple modifications are all it takes to get one of these to provide clean 12 V and 5 V power.  Most modern PC power supplies do not have real "on-off" switches and require the motherboard to tell the power supply to turn on.  You can simulate this by connecting the on-off wire (usually green)  to the common (usually black).  If your power supply is a standard ATX supply, refer to the pinout to verify the location of these pins.  You can then use the 5 V (usually red) and 12 V (usually yellow) power pins to your device.  These supplies can also supply -12 V & 3.3 V (usually orange).  These are also useful for some electronic devices.  If you do attempt to convert your old computer power supply be very careful as there are hazardous voltages inside.
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Failing Hard Drives

2/4/2013

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Has Windows reported that your hard drive is failing?  If you have, heed its warning and backup your files immediately.  I am currently trying to recover files from such a device.  It's difficult, to say the least.  One of the most difficult aspects of a failing hard drive is recovering the files from the user folders.  Copy these files to your backup choice as quickly as possible.  These files are password protected so moving the drive to a new machine and attempting to copy them is not as easy as copy and paste. 

If you ever find yourself trying to copy files from an old hard drive that is failing, or otherwise has files tucked away in a user account folder, here are a few tricks you can use to unlock the files for access, after all, it's your data anyway.

1] Install the "Take Ownership" Registry hack and use as described.
2] Use the security tab to give the administrator access.
3] Copy files in as small of groups as possible to reduce load on the failing HD.
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    of EPSys LLC.  

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