[lau_lau_lau]

Uh oh....

I was playing around in logic last night, very tired, and accidentally knocked my glass of water over onto my beloved TiBook. I saw it fall over as if in slow motion, i saw the water rush out onto the surface and disappear int the keyboard as if it was going down a drain.... i had no idea what to do, i jumped up kind of looked at my computer from all angles trying to figure out what to do! after about 5 secs, the computer made a sort of 'hisssssss' sound and everything died...

I left it upside down overnight, hoping it would drain out, and this morning i used a hairdryer on it to try and get rid of any remaining water... but it won't work anymore. If i press the power button, I know something happens as there is a tiny sound and I can get the Caps Lock and Num Lock lights to come on... but nothing else happens, it just sits there mocking me.

Anyone have any advice what to do? I have Applecare, but I doubt it covers spilling a drink on the computer yourself (or does it? I could be wrong). I'm desperate!

[irus]

Based on your description, most likely the logic board is fried, among with a few other things. I would recommend parting out good components - casing, LCD, battery, power supply, hard drive, etc. so you can purchase a new machine.

Also, you can pick up an external USB/firewire enclosure to put the old hard drive in, so you can transfer your files.

[betasp]

Your slow reaction time may have doomed the machine. You should have powered it down ASAP by yanking the battery. You might have had a chance then. Irus is correct, part it out and be ready to buy a new machine.

[macintologist]

Another good quick reaction is to hold down the power key for 3 seconds and it turns off immediately.

[bovie]

Give the system a day or two then try it again.

[romeosc]

Originally Posted by betasp

Your slow reaction time may have doomed the machine. You should have powered it down ASAP by yanking the battery. You might have had a chance then. Irus is correct, part it out and be ready to buy a new machine.

Don't worry, Call Safeware.com.

Your insurance will replace it free of charge..... NO Deductable!

YOU DID HAVE SAFEWARE INSURANCE DIDN'T YOU!

[shabbasuraj]

Originally Posted by lau_lau_lau

Uh oh....

but it won't work anymore. !

Dead.

[Dinan]

Originally Posted by romeosc

Don't worry, Call Safeware.com.

Your insurance will replace it free of charge..... NO Deductable!

YOU DID HAVE SAFEWARE INSURANCE DIDN'T YOU!

thanks for the infomercial

[lau_lau_lau]

Thanks for the replies guys. Irus and betasp, what do you mean by 'part it out'? Also, if it is fried for ever is there any way to recover the stuff on my hard disk? This really, really sucks.

I don't have that insurance you mentioned, romeosc, I don't even know if it's available in the UK. I had applecare, and in addition to that, I have it insured individually on my parents' house insurance (I'm a student.) It's a long shot but I could see if that covers accidental damage... but I seriously doubt it. *sigh*

[irus]

Lau,

By parting out I meant you (or perhaps someone who is more technically inclined) can disassemble the computer into individual components and sell them separately (good ones anyway). As PB parts are expensive, there's a market for used parts.

Of course, check if your insurance would simply pay for repair/replacement first. As far as data goes, as I mentioned, you can get an external USB drive enclosure and have the hard drive placed there. However, this will require taking the PB apart to get the drive out.

[hakstooy]

By "part it out" they mean disassemble it and sell the LCD as a unit (if its DVI it should pull around $300 on eBay), the keyboard, memory, optical drive, case, etc. as individual items on eBay. All in all you should be able to pull a good amount of money to put towards a new one.

There are articles on how to disassemble them at macfixit.com.

It really sucks man, I'm sorry.

[lau_lau_lau]

Thanks irus and haktooy. It looks like thats what I'll do then. Annoyingly, the LCD screen is one of the ones that had white spot problems, and I was going to wait until University was finished in June before getting it replaced through Applecare, and so no one's going to want to buy that...

Actually, would it be prohibitably expensive to get the parts that are ruined (irus, you suggested it might be the logic board and a few other things) replaced? I just ask as i far prefer the look and feel of my TiBook to the new Albooks.

[hakstooy]

Well, a "new" replacement logic board is $600 from a reseller (1GHz) and I'd be very reluctant to buy one from eBay. I'd bet that many people parting out their TiBooks have ones that don't work properly and are selling the parts without disclosing that, so you never know what might be wrong with your part. Plus, from reports I've been hearing there has been a rash of TiBook logic boards failing, so their lifespan might be about up anyway.

Also, think about whether this is something you think you can do yourself, it isn't impossible, but it isn't nothing either. If you have to pay someone, it will probably be another $100-$200.

I just sold my 867 TiBook because while it works great, these kinds of reports made me wonder how much life it still had in it, and as long as the PowerBook G5 is still a mythical beast, it still had great resale value.

So, if the cost is worth it to you, you could try a new logic board. Before you do that though I'd really recommend taking it to a tech so he can verify that that is the problem. It would really suck to go buy a new logic board and find out that wouldn't fix it.

[lau_lau_lau]

Hehe, yeah. I live in Nottingham, and there's a very friendly Apple centre in the centre of town (quite unusual to have such a nice one in the UK) so I'll probably take it down on the weekend. Ah well. Such is life. It's such a nice day today that I can't even feel annoyed at myself anymore!

[hakstooy]

Well, at least you're keeping upbeat about it.

Good luck!

[Spliff]

Do you have home insurance? If so, your policy may cover the laptop damage.

[shabbasuraj]

I say look into your parents homeowners insurance.

Buddy of mine, spilled beer all over his while at home and the insurance replaced it.

Also your credit card company may offer some form of insurance. I know my VISA credit card offers this plan, and others on this board have successfully used there credit card insurance to cover accidents done to their PBs....

Good luck brother...Sorry to hear about your loss...

PS: This is why I personally have a NO DRINK (i.e. liquid in the same room) IN THE VICINTY OF MY POWERBOOK POLICY at my home. LOL...

[romeosc]

Originally Posted by Dinan

thanks for the infomercial

Not an infomercial, but I wishn they would give me akickback for each new customer, I sent them. I have all my PBs insured by them, They provide a great service!


I dropped a PB500 and broke one hinge. sent it in they replaced screen as well and called me to tell me that my battery was only hoding a 2 hour charge, so they sent me a NEW Apple battery and power brick!

Nowthat's service worth crowing about!

[Dinan]

Originally Posted by romeosc

Not an infomercial, but I wishn they would give me akickback for each new customer, I sent them. I have all my PBs insured by them, They provide a great service!


I dropped a PB500 and broke one hinge. sent it in they replaced screen as well and called me to tell me that my battery was only hoding a 2 hour charge, so they sent me a NEW Apple battery and power brick!

Nowthat's service worth crowing about!

on their website it says that:

"Coverage at home, in the office or in transit"

does this mean they dont cover it if you're at school, etc?

[romeosc]

Originally Posted by Dinan

on their website it says that:

"Coverage at home, in the office or in transit"

does this mean they dont cover it if you're at school, etc?

They cover it for almost any problems anywhere except natural disaster and war. Students are covered!


EVEN ACCIDENTAL BEER SPILLS!

[mrmister]

many, many people have spoken glowingly of safeware on this forum--it seems to be a great option for many, and it seems to cover just about everything AppleCare does not.

[Dinan]

definitely going to check out safeware once i buy a PB.

[tobyg]

I don't know about that site...

I went to it, and said I had a notebook, personal use, $1200. It told me the premium was $72. What the site doesn't tell me is this PER MONTH?! That's insane. I can pocket $72 a month for 16 months and still have $1200. And if I break notebooks accidentally more often than once every 16 months, I probably shouldn't own any notebooks.

Why not just make sure your home owners insurance will cover it and call it a day?

[mrmister]

it's annual, like almost every other insurance in the world.

[tobyg]

Originally Posted by mrmister

it's annual, like almost every other insurance in the world.

Ok that wouldn't be so bad... might want to try it. And as a side note, I pay my health insurance and auto insurance monthly, so I was thinking along those lines.

[vinster]

Originally Posted by lau_lau_lau

Thanks for the replies guys. Irus and betasp, what do you mean by 'part it out'? Also, if it is fried for ever is there any way to recover the stuff on my hard disk? This really, really sucks.

I don't have that insurance you mentioned, romeosc, I don't even know if it's available in the UK. I had applecare, and in addition to that, I have it insured individually on my parents' house insurance (I'm a student.) It's a long shot but I could see if that covers accidental damage... but I seriously doubt it. *sigh*

House insurance just might cover it. I know DirecLine's contents insurance covered me for accidental damages for my computers when I was renting in London.

BTW: Thanks for posting your experience. I think for every accident that happens to a PowerBook the victim should visit a Mac forum and post their experience, kind of like filling out an accident report.

[lau_lau_lau]

A happy post script to this incident: I checkd the house insurance, and it turns out that accidental damage cover was taken out for my powerbook. I was over the moon! Their computer company who deals with this typeof thing is coming to pick it up on Monday. Hooray!

[Spliff]

Originally Posted by lau_lau_lau

A happy post script to this incident: I checkd the house insurance, and it turns out that accidental damage cover was taken out for my powerbook. I was over the moon! Their computer company who deals with this typeof thing is coming to pick it up on Monday. Hooray!

Congrats! You certainly dodged a bullet there.

[Ornery]

Congrats! You certainly dodged a bullet there.

Hah! His parent's foresight saved his butt, NOT him. I bought the wondrous "Apple Care" in addition to adding my son's new PB to our homeowner's policy. That was only a $40.00 annual premium to cover anything the manufacturer's warranty doesn't.

[romeosc]

But Homeowners insurance normally has a large deductable and goes up if you have a claim.... Not Safeware or other Computer insurance companies! I swear by it. They even replaced battery and charger because they felt the bettery wasn't holding a "proper charge" All for free when they replaced broken TiPB hinges!

[molala]

my contents insurance also covers my PB for accidental damage, even out of the house. didn't have to get separate cover for it as it is under £1500 in value. just wish applecare weren't so expensive in this part of the world.

[Ornery]

Originally Posted by romeosc

But Homeowners insurance normally has a large deductable and goes up if you have a claim...

Nope, no deductable at all. I have no idea what the premium will do if a claim is filed, and I hope not to find out. I bought it as insurance against catostrophic accidents or theft. I certainly don't intend to excercise that coverage very often, but they'd have to double the premium to match the cost of this special laptop insurance. Hell, if they do that, I can drop it, collect my prorated rebate, and THEN buy the special insurance instead. Win/win for me!