A small computer disaster (or two)

Had a couple minor mishaps with the old workplace (aka the IBM laptop).

First disaster: I ordered a new battery on ebay, since the standard battery is getting tired. The one that finally came was for a different computer. (It also took almost a month; the seller claimed 10-12 days world-wide. Guess he didn't mean Ireland.) Anyway, so he shipped another one to Ireland, after I told him I wouldn't be there and to ship it to Denmark. It arrived after I left. I'm not going to bother Tom with figuring out if it's the right kind or not. So the seller shipped a third(!) battery to Denmark. It was here when we arrived. It's the right shape anyway.

Second disaster: I seem to have left the big battery somewhere. Or it got lifted by the airline, like Hawaiin Air lifted my GPS. The only other place it could be is at The Old House, but Tom looked for it to no avail. Rats. Down to one very tired standard size battery, good for an hour at best.

Third disaster: I accidentally left our european plug converter in the bathroom light at Tom's house in Ireland. So we had a shortage of plugins when we arrived in Odense. There was a little race car set power supply sitting there with the right voltage, DC, and the right plug. So I plugged it into the computer. I mean, just because it had 13 amps instead of the measly 4.5 amps the computer charger had shouldn't make any difference, right? Well, a little while later I noticed the battery isn't charging anymore. Oh oh. Better plug in the real charger and see. Nope - no charge to the battery. Try the old battery. No, that isn't charging either. The computer runs on the charger, but the battery isn't getting any juice. Probably there's some circuitry that controls power to the battery that the 13A charger fried. Probably a mother board change. Shit.

Checking the IBM website, I find Monk IT A/S in Odense is listed as the IBM repair station authorized to handle warranty service on their laptops. And the computer is still under warranty. Oh goody. I call them and they say they won't work on it, Monk gives me some other IBM number (which I'd already got off ibm.com) That number has a phone tree that ends in a dial tone no matter which button you push, but another number I got off IBM's site gets a real person. After some push and shove they confirm that Monk can't/won't work on it (so why are they listed?), I have to send the computer to a place outside Copenhagen. There's a 5 day turn around (Yeah right!). I could take it there, but there's a bridge between here and Copenhagen that costs $35 each way. Just not worth it.

Back to disaster 1. The new battery shows an error in the battery monitor. It won't indicate voltage, current or any of the other parameters the real IBM battery does. What with frying the power supply and all (see disaster 3), I can't tell if it doesn't have the voltage/current sensors the real IBM batteries have or it's the problem with the power supply. I wrote the supplier complaining about the lack of feedback from the battery. He said ship it back, he'll send me a new one. But I'm not sure at this point. Maybe it just needs a good charge.

So I guess I'll live with the old workplace tied to a line plug for the remainder of the trip. And I'll have to buy another big battery, and get the laptop fixed when I get back to the states. And we had to buy another line converter here. Of course they only had a gigantic universal unit that cost $10 (for a plug!), but hey, that's life on the continent.