[madra]

ok. my pismo battery has been on it's way out for a while now... drains to about 60-70% over about 30-45mins and then dies rapidly. however suddenly, a couple of days ago it seemed to die completely overnight, just showing a continual 0% charge.

it seemed like an open and shut case of 'dead battey - get a new one' but i've left the comp plugged in and now a mere two days later the charge has gone up to a mighty 5%. at this rate it should be fully charged by mid july!

i installed 'xcharge' a couple of days ago as it allows you to view a log of battery activity, and here's a sample of its output...

Code:
2003-05-28 22:39:09: Battery started charging (current charge = 2%)
2003-05-28 22:39:34: Battery stopped charging (current charge = 2%)
2003-05-28 22:45:04: Battery started charging (current charge = 2%)
2003-05-28 22:45:14: Battery stopped charging (current charge = 2%)

.....


2003-05-29 07:49:19: Battery stopped charging (current charge = 3%)
2003-05-29 07:55:44: Battery started charging (current charge = 3%)
2003-05-29 07:56:04: Battery stopped charging (current charge = 3%)
2003-05-29 08:01:04: Battery started charging (current charge = 3%)
2003-05-29 08:01:24: Battery stopped charging (current charge = 3%)

....

2003-05-29 11:16:19: Battery started charging (current charge = 4%)
2003-05-29 11:16:44: Battery stopped charging (current charge = 4%)
2003-05-29 11:22:44: Battery started charging (current charge = 4%)
2003-05-29 11:23:09: Battery stopped 

.....

2003-05-29 17:47:54: Battery started charging (current charge = 5%)
2003-05-29 17:48:04: Battery stopped charging (current charge = 5%)
2003-05-29 17:50:14: Battery started charging (current charge = 5%)
2003-05-29 17:50:24: Battery stopped charging (current charge = 5%)

...as you can see, every few minutes the battery starts to charge and then stops charging again after a few seconds. now that may be the definition of a 'dead battery' but it seems to me that the battery's software is to blame. it seems to think the battery is full and so is stopping the charging process after a few seconds.

is this battery beyond redemption, or is there some way of over-riding the built-in software and forcing it to fully charge up? in fact, is communication with the battery a 2-way thing at all, or is it [as all the battery monitoring apps out there seem to suggest] strictly a 'read only' relationship?

[only asking, because if at all possible i'd like to salvage at least some semblance of usability from this battery, before i have to fork out �70 odd for a new one].

[ibook_steve]

There is no "software" in the battery, only electronics that the system talks to to calculate the appropriate current needed to charge and when to stop and start. The problem could be the circuit or it could simply be that the battery cells are toast. In either case, there's really no way to resurrect this. Just get a new one. Last ditch: try resetting the power manager (many threads here about it). That might help, but I doubt it. New battery. It'll be worth it.

Steve

[madra]

i know i'm clutchin at straws here, and will have to buy a new battery eventually, but i've nursed that baby back up to 11% charge in a mere three days - woo! hoo!

i'm getting nearly three seconds unplugged before the comp nosedives now, as opposed to it dying instantly as soon as i disconnected the power lead, like it was doing before.