Wiped out!

I started loading the window drivers today from the MacBook disk, and it says my Win XP needs to be at SP2. I downloaded that update and proceeded to install. I have 27 GB available, and during the the update installation, that installer said, oops, I need 4MB more space to continue, and then it bailed out. I thought, what the heck, how much room does SP2 need? I deleted some stuff and made about 100 more MB available. Started the SP2 update again, and the same stupid error message showed up. I was so mad, I rebooted into Mac OS, brought up Boot Camp Assistant, and wiped out the Windows partition.

Later I googled for this SP2 (and SP3) error message, and it turned out that I had to manually perform a Windows registry edit to get pass this problem. Mind you, most article says that registry editing must be done carefully. I've done quite a few registry edits,so this not hard thing to do for me, but Microsoft Windows is so stupid. Why doesn't the updater make sure that it really need that space, especially since it went through the motion of checking available disk space for several minutes. But, I am beginning to realize that the sooner I gave up on installing Windows, the better off I am. I'll just keep my Dell 710M as backup machine in case I need to use Windows.

For those that insists to try, here's how I get Windows to install and not get that dreaded message: "Disk Error, press any key to restart." which doesn't really work anyway (Step 3 below is the secret!).

1. Partition your disk using BootCamp Assistant
2. Install Windows XP using an installer disk that gives you the option to REFORMAT that partition.
3. Select that partition, and DO REFORMAT that selected partition (the one that BOOTCAMP created). It will rename the drive "untitled". If you select FAT32, Mac OS can later read/write to it. If you select NTFS, Mac can read from it, but not write to it.
4. Proceed to install and then it will reboot by itself. Unfortunately, you're not done.
5. Turn the Mac power to off (holding the button for several seconds). Turn it back on, while pressing the OPTION key. This will give you a selection on which OS to boot from.
6. Select Windows HD icon, not the Windows CD Installer, an hit Enter.
7. The partial Windows that's already installed will then boot up and ask for the Windows CD.
8. If it is already in the drive, it will resume Windows installation for yet another 20-30 minutes or so.
9. Then it will interactively ask a lot of questions before finally give you the "Tour" menu.
10. Now you got Windows in your Mac. But believe me, it is not worth it.
11. And now you still have to install the drivers so Windows can recognize the Mac components.

Have fun!

Success - the pictures tell the story

Home Bound

We're busy packing stuff. Me, my computers, my other electronic toys, and chargers. Jan is packing snack food, clothing (like we need it back home when we already have plenty left behind initially...) , books, and a few presents.

Tomorrow we'll begin our trek, first heading south on I-25 towards Raton, NM, then veer southeasterly towards Amarillo on Highway 87, and then east on I-40, and finally south towards Dallas. We don't know yet whether we'll make it in one day or stop for one night along the way. Either way, we'll call and let you know when we know. :-)

A few more days in Denver, then HOME for the rest of the year!

This weekend Jan and I will be driving home (yes, driving) so we don't have to rent a car back in Texas. We also will be able to bring stuff home, and later, to bring a few more stuff from home such as our pressure cooker. It would be costly to pay AA baggage fees to do all that nowadays.

And to add to that joy, I also received my repaired Mac from Apple yesterday. Recall the efficient service Apple provided to me a couple of years ago, and then to Steph just last year? Well, I must say that Apple Company service is still a gold standard for any company to follow. I called about the "dead" MacBook, and the next day an empty shipping box arrived, with labels attached for shipping, and the tapes to seal it.  They even provided the FEDEX instruction for them to pick it up. Less than a week later, the computer that I am using to type this blog is that repaired MacBook.  It looked brand new.  I forgot how user friendly a Mac is after using my trusty Dell 710m for a few years. 

I tried to install Window XP with BootCamp Assistant, and before doing so the instruction said to print out the installation guide. I clicked print, and it immediately knows that my printer (networked) is the Samsung CLP300N, and without fuzz or complain, printed the BootCamp direction. No driver installation needed. Not so with Win XP or Vista.

Window install on the other hand is not yet successful, not because of the Mac but because Window install is a pain in the *#% and I plan to try it again later. My score so far is 0 for 2 on that subject. The details is for another blog topic.

Colder than Fairbanks!

Last Saturday I was still running errands in my shorts cuz it got to 55 degrees F. But then it started snowing on Sunday morning, and by early Monday morning, the recorded low at the Denver airport was -17 degree. Well, here it is Tuesday morning, and my iPhone Weatherbug (thanks Mondi) said that last night the low was -6, and currently at 0 degree. Fairbanks on the other hand had a low and current temperature of +2 degrees F.

Note: MacBook on the way home, currently at the Denver sorting facility (as of 0620 Local).

Taking it apart

Flash Update: Apple is sending a box for me to mail it back to them so they can fix it under warranty. Hooray!

Got my broken MacBook back a couple of days ago. The battery was totally discharged, so I plugged it in and let it charge until it was 100%. I then turned the power on, and the screen lit up, and I got a Flashing Folder icon with a question mark and it stayed powered on. I thought to myself, "aha!", the logic board is really not bad, since it knows that there is no hard drive (I removed it before sending it out for the failed repair). So I powered it down and installed the hard drive, but sadly, it was back to staying powered on with or without hard drive.



I then started to ponder a bit and checked Apple's website. I entered my MacBook serial, and it was still under warranty till September 2009.

I think I am going to call them when I get back to Dallas and have them fixed it soon. In the mean time, I thought I would try one more time to fix it. I check and clean every part of the main chassis and try again to see if it would fix itself. See the picture I've posted.

After I made sure everything looked ok and clean, I put everything back together, and the laptop still will not power up. I am missing something simple here, but darn it, I don't know why it booted up to the folder icon ONCE and now it won't do that anymore.

Paddy and Owen

I took a few pictures of Paddy and Owen using my new toy, a Woot impulse purchase. So here's a couple of sample pictures of Paddy and Owen.

My new toy is a Pentax Optio M50 with 5X optical zoom.

MacBook Saga continues

I got a phone call from the repairman Greg yesterday, and he said: "The logic board is burned up pretty bad, he can't fix it, but .... for a mere $450.00 he'll replace it, including labor and shipment." I asked him to ship it back to me un-repaired in the same condition as I had it shipped to him.

I didn't like the sound of his explanation, since his premise was $200 if he can fix it, or he'll return it to me (at my cost to ship it back, which I understood and expect to). I have previously taken my logic board off from my MacBook, and I did not see any visible damage. So I went back to his eBay advertisement and check out the people that gave him good ratings (the past 2 months). Via email, I wrote to about half dozen or so respondents and explained my situation and how do they got their Macs fixed up. I received responses from 5 people, and guess what, every one of them were baited and switched. They all paid him $350 - $450 to get their Macs working again. Now, on the surface I think that they got their Macs repaired for cheaper cost than Apple would have charged them, BUT, I think this fellow Greg need to be upfront in coming out and say that he'll replace the logic board for a price, instead of advertising that he can fix it for $200.00

So, I still do not have a working MacBook, yet!