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You are here: MacNN Forums > Hardware - Troubleshooting and Discussion > Mac Notebooks > Just got a new 867Ti

Just got a new 867Ti
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cgu
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Jul 30, 2003, 09:21 PM
 
Well I finally made it back to the mac world after 15 years on a PC. I just picked up the computer yesterday and have been immediately impressed with the ease at which I set it up.
I have a few questions that I hope you can answer.
Yesterday I let the battery drain. When it was at about 6% charge left the computer went into sleep mode and would not let me turn it off. So I charged up the computer while it was in sleep mode. Is this o.k.

Also, I am using the canadian keyboard and each time I try to press the question mark or the apostrohe I get french symbols. I think I am using the english keyboard but why does this occur (cant seem to get a question mark going here).

This morning my battery was reading at 98% charged. While running on battery I left the computer in sleep mode for approx 6 hours. When I went to use the computer the battery was totally drained. I thought in sleep mode that very little charge is being used. Did i do something wrong.

Finally, I notice that if the computer screen sits idle for approx 1 minute it begins to darken. Is this due to some sort of setting and how would I change this.

Thanks for all your help. As I already mentioned I have not worked on a mac for many years and things have certainly changed since my Apple SE.

     
AssassyN
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Jul 30, 2003, 09:49 PM
 
Hi! First and foremost, WELCOME to the MacNN boards & CONGRATS on your new Mac!

Now, what you did by charging the battery after it auto-went into Sleep Mode was perfectly correct; that action actually "calibrated" your battery for optimum performance.

I'm not so sure on the Keyboard Q, however, open your "System Preferences" (already an icon in the Dock for it) and click "Keyboard" and see if you can't select your desired keyboard config.

Next, are you SURE it was in sleep mode and that just the screen wasn't set to turn off or the hard drives set to stop spinning? If it was in fact in sleep mode, it should last WAYYY longer than that. I've left mine on sleep for over 24 hours & still had battery life left.

That auto-darkening is a preference that can be changed by visiting your "System Preferences" icon and then clicking on the "Energy Saver" icon from within there. You can select when the screen darkens and such.

Hope this helps, and feel free to ask any other Q's!
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cgu  (op)
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Jul 30, 2003, 09:57 PM
 
Thanks Assassyn for your quick reply and your welcome wishes.

As far as the battery drain goes, I do think that the computer was in sleep mode and the battery just drained. When I tried to turn the computer on, a message came up saying there was only a few percent battery charge left. Perhaps Ill leave it in sleep mode again tomorrow and see how long it lasts. That brings up a couple of other questions, If the battery does completely drain does it effect any settings I have put in place. Also, my battery currently shows 93% but I have also plugged in the computer. Is it ok to have the computer plugged in while there is a charged battery or does this harm the battery life in any way.

Thanks again for your help.
     
AssassyN
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Jul 30, 2003, 10:05 PM
 
No problem!

If your computer gets to a point in which the battery is almost dead, it'll alert you that if you do not either Shut Down or find a power source immediaitely, your computer will die and all unsaved settings will be lost. At that point, you'd better Shut Down or plug it in for safety.

There's no harm done whatsoever to have your computer plugged in while the battery's charging, nor does it harm it to have it plugged in when it's fully charged, even for days & weeks at the time.
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Eug Wanker
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Jul 30, 2003, 10:18 PM
 
The "Canadian" keyboard is to make it French-friendly. If you're an anglo, stick with the US keyboard.
     
cgu  (op)
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Jul 30, 2003, 11:32 PM
 
Since Im already set up for the Canadian Keyboard I wonder if someone can tell me how to change the setting for the US keyboard.

Thanks
     
Eug Wanker
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Jul 31, 2003, 12:07 AM
 
System Preferences --> International --> Input Menu --> English

(Kinda strange that it's NOT in the Keyboard menu. )

If you check more than one you'll get a little flag in the menu which will let you pick which keyboard to use.
     
ae86_16v
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Jul 31, 2003, 04:11 AM
 
I thought you weren't suppose to charge the battery while it is in sleep mode the first time?

I thought that after you get the warning you were suppose to shut down and charge the battery with the machine off?
     
AssassyN
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Jul 31, 2003, 09:15 AM
 
You can charge it while off or in sleep; it matters not.
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aktive
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Aug 1, 2003, 09:06 AM
 
Here's an Apple Knowledge Base article on how to correctly calibrate your battery the first time you use it (or any time after that) so that you get the most out of the battery and they battery monitor in osx shows the correct time left:

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=86284


Hope this helps
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