All in a day's work...

You can learn how to anything online. But that doesn't necessarily mean you should.

I believe in do-it-yourself projects. Sometimes. Mostly when it saves me money. Or just when I get random urges to beat "the system." That invisible world of "they" who are out there to take my money because I know nothing about "their" line of specialty. The automotive repairs "system" for example. Whenever I have to take my car in for repairs, I have no choice but to believe what they tell me, smile prettily and hope for a nice employee and a discount. I have no power, because I know nothing about cars. Vicious system. I no longer have a car in an effort to protest against "them." (Amongst other more practical reasons, such as it dying and leaving me stranded in Wapakaneta, OH.) Anyway...

On Monday, September 22nd, my hard drive died. And no, I had NOT backed up ALL my files, but thank you for asking and reminding me of my idiocy. Thankfully, I didn't lose much, but I AM still mourning the loss of this summer's pictures. Without a functioning hard drive, I found myself facing a decision. New computer? My 12" Powerbook G4 is my child. Could I really replace her so easily? Plus a new laptop is quite an investment (I'm committed to remaining in Mac realm) and I'm not sure I can take that type of financial plunge at the moment. The only other alternative was repair. But $300+ to spend on a child who's natural lifespan would be no more than another year or so...

I chose Option C. The "I can learn how to do anything on the internet so why should I pay a professional?" route. Here's how my last Wednesday night went down.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN:



Feel free to note the amazing method in which I kept the 1,789,343 invisible screws sorted.

After a couple hours of intense concentration (I can see why 12" Powerbook repairs are more expensive--tiny parts!) I had completely taken apart my computer and resassembled it with a new hard drive. The only casualty was the F2 key. With great anticipation I pushed the power button, having renewed my child's life--bringing her back from the dead if you will. And...

It didn't work.

But I really enjoyed myself! And just for the record, I think I might have just gotten a faulty new hard drive. There's no way the error could have been in the repairs. Needless to say, my baby is now safely scheduled for a doctor's appointment to diagnose her current illness. (I will NOT tell them I tried repairing it myself.)

MORAL OF THE STORY: Do not attempt do-it-yourself projects if you see the *****VERY CAREFULLY***** in the instructions. Chances are you're not qualified to deal with directions that come in CAPS and are surrounded by foreboding stars.