difinity

A bit more colourful than I used to play on my BBC. There was a key press combo to intentionally drop out of of hyperspace to enable attacking the Thargoids and they would drop IIRC "Tharglets" which you could collect up and then sell.

You can always verify if it is the screen. Remove the battery first and swap a bright screen from a known working laptop to one with a dim screen and see if the fault moves.

Is it not Fn+F6 to dim and Fn+F7 to brighten ? maybe the kids are messing with settings if they are dim then working again a while later. No settings in power management ?

Sounds like the backlight is not working. I think it's an LED screen so it's not inverter. It could be the cable has come slightly loose, the fuse has blown if it uses one(if the screen was replaced without removing the battery first) or part of the circuitry on the back of the screen has failed. It could finally be LED failure but that is rare.

Getting one of those black boxes fitted should help reduce the price a little. My 18yr old daughter should be passing her test soon. Some of the quotes she has been looking at are eye watering. She wants her mum's Fiesta (1.4L) but it's not a car in the lowest insurance group. It's been suggested doing an advanced driving course like PassPlus will reduce the price as well as taking a limited mileage policy.

He sadly passed away in the middle of this year. Lester Haines: RIP ? The Register

Any identifying numbers are usually under the battery. I've fixed a similar message after a motherboard change. There is a utility called DMIFIT that enables the details to be re-entered. It doesn't need sending to HP. I can't remember the website I used but this one has similar looking instructions. Technically me.....: Fix Missing Serial/Product Numbers for HP Laptops

BIOS chips should last for about 50,000 cycles but corruption and failure is quite common. I wouldn't be thinking about replacing your motherboard just yet until you've tried a replacement/reprogrammed chip. I guess it depends on how much of a rush you are to get up and running. What's the markings on the BIOS chip ? It's very possible this programmer will support it. 24 25 series EEPROM Flash BIOS USB Programmer CH341A | eBay If the rest of your hardware is good BIOS is always the first thing to try with your symptoms.

If it's anything like their laptops there's a high probability is nothing more than a BIOS/UEFI failure. Your PC is far from dead

Here you go Dave.

Congratulations, I know the frustration when job hunting. I know since you appeared on Edugeek it's not been the same, there's been plenty more memes and colour

I have done.

You're welcome Dave. Yes, I'd say it's durable, far more than glossy paper, it's quality canvas with Epson UltraChrome ink. Granted I usually stretch the prints over a box frame but the samples I printed off months ago are still kicking about and not worn. I have satin and gloss spray varnish to give it a bit of extra protection too if required.

I haven't got any glossy paper but I could print it onto canvas for you if it's any help ? It has a bit of a feel to it rather than glossy paper. Just a thought.

Yeah, that's a failing DMD chip. They fit in sockets like a CPU and they have a heatsink. I imagine the power supply and main boards will be behind it and will need removing before you can gain access. The price of a new chip is about £130ish depending on the model.

The serial cable will have stranded wire which might be an issue to punch down. I'm all for making cables with different adapter but i'd solder them and use heatshrink rather than use a bulky patch panel.

Is the aluminium deformed around the jack and it's stopping the headphone connector inserting fully ? The jack will need removing and the metal worked back into shape. I think this is your jack Replacement Headphone Socket Jack Flex Cable Ribbon for iPad Air 2 (iPad 6)BLACK | eBay

The headphone jack comes on a ribbon cable and is about £4. I use either hot air or my hotplate to warm the digitizer prior to removal. Depending where the dent is, it can usually be slowly worked back into shape. How bad is it ?

Has your motherboard got two or four memory slots ? If it has four, why not just buy another pair of what you have already ?

Most of the time its isopropanol alcohol applied with a cotton bud, I have recently bought some clean room wipes which are totally lint free. Brake cleaner or MEK if the old paste is really dried on.

I wouldn't use that. It's got isopropanol in which will damage the plastic coating of the screens over time, unless they are glass fronted. Use something like this. https://www.amazon.co.uk/AF-Screen-Clene-Anti-static-Non-smearing-Computiss/dp/B000MPNINE?tag=hohtel0c-21

Get some decent mircofibre cloths and a bottle of screen clean. I bought a pair from Wilkinson for about £3. A purple soft one for the cleaning, and a smoother blue one for buffing. Spray on to the cloth never the screen to avoid damage. The liquid runs down the bottom behind the plastic trim and can permanently damage the screen depending on the design.

I just remove the PCB, flip it over and clean the oxidisation off the copper contacts. I Have a look at my photos in this thread. http://www.edugeek.net/forums/hardware/176960-does-leaving-hardware-all-time-make-slower-2.html#post1516699

If you're really stuck bossman those failed supplies you have could always be repaired.

e1231 and e1232 both refer to voltage regulator failures. For two to fail is highly unusual and would suggest to me a its either a dirty power supply or capacitors are failing on the motherboard.