beachycove
Well-known member
My Wallstreet has been getting a little long in the tooth, and becoming a bit unreliable after six years of constant, heavy, and faithful service. For instance, the battery no longer seats properly, as the case appears to be "stretched" at the battery bays (I kid you not). So, I decided a couple of weeks ago to look for a Pismo 500, and found one reasonably close by on lemswap for a small sum. I am told that the Pismo stalls on booting into OSX, but that it gets as far as posting the Apple symbol. This is, I am guessing/ hoping, owing to a software fault. Anyway, I will try re-installing a system (namely, OS9 - which will be much pleasanter than X for the uses for which the machine is intended) as a first strategy, and see if that cures the problem.
There is, however, "one more thing" included in the deal: a PowerBook 2400c/180, in excellent physical condition: the holy grail. Unfortunately, it does not boot, though the seller tells me that it did indeed boot before the battery was left to go flat.
And now for some questions:
1. What advice do those who have worked on the 2400c and/or are steeped in the deep Apple lore have to offer to get it running? I will obviously attempt a simple power manager reset first of all, but what would be the next steps? Is there, for instance, any point in leaving the machine plugged in for a few days before taking any next steps, or is simple disassembly and disconnection of the backup battery step #2? I have some experience of backup battery failure/ GLOD on a Duo, and know that it can result in very, VERY odd behaviours, so getting juice into the cells somehow or other seems to me to be a priority....
2. Yes, I know, the backup battery will not charge unless and until the main battery has charged to terminal voltage, and if the 2400c's main battery will not accept a charge because the machine is dead ... Catch 22. So, if all else fails, would 2400c backup cells charge at all in something like a Duo (there being two coin cells in a Duo and three, I am told, in a 2400c)? I have two working Duos that have good main batteries, and ergo, good backup batteries (which make a massive difference), so presumably one of the Duos, lightly disassembled (keyboard off) could feed some juice into the 2400c coin cells, even if at the wrong voltage. Any thoughts or is this nuts?
I should have it in the post in a couple of days, so by the weekend, I'll hopefully be able to give it a whirl. In keeping with the holy grail thought, maybe I'd best start with fasting, prayer and the laying on of hands....
There is, however, "one more thing" included in the deal: a PowerBook 2400c/180, in excellent physical condition: the holy grail. Unfortunately, it does not boot, though the seller tells me that it did indeed boot before the battery was left to go flat.
And now for some questions:
1. What advice do those who have worked on the 2400c and/or are steeped in the deep Apple lore have to offer to get it running? I will obviously attempt a simple power manager reset first of all, but what would be the next steps? Is there, for instance, any point in leaving the machine plugged in for a few days before taking any next steps, or is simple disassembly and disconnection of the backup battery step #2? I have some experience of backup battery failure/ GLOD on a Duo, and know that it can result in very, VERY odd behaviours, so getting juice into the cells somehow or other seems to me to be a priority....
2. Yes, I know, the backup battery will not charge unless and until the main battery has charged to terminal voltage, and if the 2400c's main battery will not accept a charge because the machine is dead ... Catch 22. So, if all else fails, would 2400c backup cells charge at all in something like a Duo (there being two coin cells in a Duo and three, I am told, in a 2400c)? I have two working Duos that have good main batteries, and ergo, good backup batteries (which make a massive difference), so presumably one of the Duos, lightly disassembled (keyboard off) could feed some juice into the 2400c coin cells, even if at the wrong voltage. Any thoughts or is this nuts?
I should have it in the post in a couple of days, so by the weekend, I'll hopefully be able to give it a whirl. In keeping with the holy grail thought, maybe I'd best start with fasting, prayer and the laying on of hands....
