Paul M wrote:
On Sun, 08 Jan 2006 18:23:49 GMT, Barry Watzman
wrote:


From your questions, I'd say that YOUR chances of fixing it are near
zero. Don't take that personally, but this is a task that requires
skills that take years to learn, and about which you have no knowledge
(when you ask "how do I use a multimeter", it's clear that you have no
skills in this area).


Hi Barry,

Thanks a lot for your confidence in my abilities. Just so you
know, I have an M.S. in physics. I used multimeters many years
ago while an undergrad, so I do have some cursory experience with
them. Perhaps my question ("how do I use a multimeter") was not
the best one to ask. A more appropriate question would be: "what
measurements should I make with the multimeter to locate any
defective parts in the laptop?"


Before you do anything to the laptop itself, however, verify that the
external power supply (AC adapter) is working. That would be the place
to start, it's either working or it's not, and if it's not, you replace
it and that might fix the problem.


I used the AC adapter of a friend's Dell Inspiron i5100 laptop to
test the dead one, and it was still dead. (The AC adapter had the
same output voltage of 20 V. The output current was 3.5 A or 4.5 A,
I don't remember exactly.) I guess that narrows the problem to the
laptop itself.

Thanks for the help.

- Paul

You seriously think that having an M.S. in Physics is going to help you
to service a dead laptop?

Thanks for giving em a good laugh this evening!