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1. Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 07:21:35 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

   HOT TAKE: if you design a laptop with a power supply that looks like this, you should go to jail.

   Laptops should be powered by TWO WIRES and the voltage, amperage, and polarity should be WRITTEN ON THE BOTTOM, UNDER PENALTY OF LAW

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 07:27:19 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     my fundamental problem is that I'm passionate about changing a lot of things about the computer industry but all of them are things that would need to be changed back in 1989.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 07:31:32 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • FantasmitaAsex :heart_ace:

     @FantasmitaAsex I've got like a dozen Toshiba laptops. Which one do you mean?

   • FantasmitaAsex :heart_ace: (fantasmitaasex@todon.eu)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 07:31:33 JST FantasmitaAsex :heart_ace:

     in reply to

     @foone oh wait to see the Toshiba power connector. It's worse!

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 07:37:48 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     EPSON WHY DID YOU NEED FOUR CONNECTORS FOR A TWO CONNECTOR POWER SUPPLY?

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 07:50:22 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • David P

     @linuxlizard Monarch or Queen, please!

   • David P (linuxlizard@twit.social)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 07:50:23 JST David P

     in reply to

     @foone You've got my vote for king!

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 07:54:54 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     well I beeped it out and either this is a different connector, or they lied and pin 1 isn't ground, only pin 3 is.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 08:01:39 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     it has been ZERO DAYS since I have had to open up a laptop just to figure out where to shove volts in

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 08:04:16 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     I'm not an expert but I don't think the RAM is supposed to do that.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 08:07:58 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     yeah I've not seen this kind of RAM module before. some kind of Epsom custom thing, maybe?

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 08:11:24 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     AH-HA! that was the wrong manual. They DID change the pinout!

     Thankfully, it's compatible.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 08:26:34 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     how long has it been since you've had to straighten the pins on your RAM chips?

     Because for me it's "today", but I imagine for everyone else it's either "never" or "when I tried to upgrade my IBM 5150 PC" or "I had one of those computers with ZIP RAM"

   • philpem (philpem@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 08:28:31 JST philpem

     in reply to

     @foone That wasn't uncommon on early laptops, everyone had their own form factor. Toshiba had a different module for every blasted laptop model. Infuriating when you want to upgrade your Satellite or Libretto, even when they were new.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 08:29:24 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     yeah this RAM module uses a 44-pin (2mm pitch?) connector.

     That's great if you want it to be possible to accidentally plug your hard drive into your RAM slot or vice versa! Normally that's not remotely possible for so many reasons.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 08:36:23 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     I seriously can't think of any era of PC hardware where that was even remotely possible, for physical connector reasons.

     You could use the same connector for both RAM and hard drives back in the early PC era with HardCards and RAM upgrade ISA cards, but that wasn't really a case of mixing up the connectors: they just both plugged in the same generic place.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 08:42:02 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     THE PINOUT IS FOR THE POWER CABLE

     NOT THE POWER CONNECTOR ON THE LAPTOP

     meaning:
     1. it's mirrored
     2. I may have just reverse-volted it and let the magic smoke out

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 08:47:43 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     yeah, I borrowed someone who has... nosmia? Whatever the term for "has a sense of smell" is. It's got Magic Smoke Stank now.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 08:57:22 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     Pulled everything out. It's a small computer! This is everything but the keyboard, hard drive, floppy drive, and screen.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 09:01:37 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     apparently instead of having a "POWER GOOD" pin like ATX PSUs do, they went for the opposite, where they have a pin that tells you if the power is sus *amongus noise*

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 09:08:23 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • vga256

     @vga256 IT WAS

   • vga256 (vga256@dialup.cafe)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 09:08:24 JST vga256

     in reply to

     @foone it's going to be a deep, neurotic joy when you find out only 2 of those pins are actually being used

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 09:12:31 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     someday when I have money again I'm getting me an inspection microscope with HDMI out so I can do better close-up pictures of these things.
     But here's the power supply board. Something on here smells (supposedly) like Magic Smoke.

     Do they make smelloscopes?

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 09:14:31 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     wait

     ZOOM, ENHANCE!

     I don't think it's supposed to look like that (Amusingly, I'm listening to Well There's Your Problem in another tab)

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 09:25:01 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     the question is: what the fuck is this thing?

     the label has been sadly... exploded.

     I think it's either a MOSFET or a very small voltage regulator?

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 09:32:23 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • djinn & juice

     @ieure awesome. we can be "not remotely like the mainstream" buddies!

   • djinn & juice (ieure@retro.social)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 09:32:24 JST djinn & juice

     in reply to

     @foone Often! I repair old arcade game PCBs and the 2114 RAMs are a common failure point. The hoard of new old stock ones I've got needs to have their leads formed to fit in the board.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 09:38:20 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • Rue Mohr

     @RueNahcMohr god if I had a 486 Laptop that was powered by USB-C, I'd be the coolest kid in school

   • Rue Mohr (ruenahcmohr@infosec.exchange)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 09:38:21 JST Rue Mohr

     in reply to

     @foone unless its usbC

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 09:41:26 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     Here's the CPU.
     Cx486SLC2.
     This is a 50mhz (25mhz bus) "486" (it's a 386 design: 16bit bus, despite being a 32bit chip), with one entire kilobyte of L1 cache. No FPU, but it can use an external FPU. Performance is reportedly shit, but it's low-power so perfect for a laptop.

     Intel sued Cyrix over this thing. They lost.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 09:59:07 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • ftg

     @ftg sadly not, I checked. I guess I could look at the other boards?

   • ftg (ftg@mastodon.radio)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 09:59:08 JST ftg

     in reply to

     @foone
     Are there any other SOT-89 chips with "J8" as datecode or something? Those would have intact markings.

     Annoyingly Richtek has used "J8" for SOT-89 3.3V LDO regulators, but Richtek was likely not around when that laptop was made.
     As Richtek was founded in 1998.
     Seeing

     It does look very regulator like, but if the 886-23255862 chip is a DC-DC controller in addition to the TL494C PWM controller already on the board.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 10:04:17 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     I just followed somebody who has one of these. if I can ever remember who that was, I maybe can ask them to tell me what that component is

   • philpem (philpem@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 10:04:53 JST philpem

     in reply to

     @foone Looks like the label is "8C" and that looks like a SOT89 package. Going by Marsport it's probably a 78L05:
     8C NJM78L05A NJR KQ SOT89 78L 5.0V 0.1A regulator

     e: From left to right, the three pins on the bottom are Out, Gnd, In. The tab connects to the middle pin, which is GND.

     Marsport: http://www.marsport.org.uk/smd/mainframe.htm

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 13:57:05 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     So @Zagrophyte figured out what it is: it's a 5v 100ma voltage regulator.
     https://octodon.social/@Zagrophyte/113049120572694329

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 14:02:11 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     @Zagrophyte I'll have to order one and see if it fixes this laptop psu

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 18:08:27 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • Lunar 🛸 ♾

     @lunarloony I thought the same when I first yanked the heatsink off

   • Lunar 🛸 ♾ (lunarloony@dosgame.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 18:08:28 JST Lunar 🛸 ♾

     in reply to

     @foone I thought it said Cyrix EAT for a moment

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 19:20:07 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • FantasmitaAsex :heart_ace:

     @FantasmitaAsex oh right, that nasty thing. I've had two Toshibas with it, but never seen the matching jack. I had to use some kind of clips to connect to it and power it on

   • FantasmitaAsex :heart_ace: (fantasmitaasex@todon.eu)'s status on Friday, 30-Aug-2024 19:20:08 JST FantasmitaAsex :heart_ace:

     in reply to

     @foone a T2000SX

     PD: At least shows the voltage

   • Mew😻 (fluidescence@fwoof.space)'s status on Saturday, 31-Aug-2024 08:29:36 JST Mew😻

     in reply to

     @foone How about, we just, use USBC and forget this proprietary crap. LOL

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Saturday, 31-Aug-2024 08:29:36 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • Mew😻

     @FluidEscence I agree! Unfortunately it didn't exist back in 1993 or whenever they made this laptop

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Saturday, 31-Aug-2024 08:36:42 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • Jocelynephiliac :reclaimer:

     @twipped yep. They match the 44pin connector used by laptop IDE

   • Jocelynephiliac :reclaimer: (twipped@twipped.social)'s status on Saturday, 31-Aug-2024 08:36:43 JST Jocelynephiliac :reclaimer:

     in reply to

     @foone That looks like IDE pins 🤨

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Saturday, 31-Aug-2024 08:38:11 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • hazelnot :yell:

     @hazelnot I really don't know, and I can't get it off

   • hazelnot :yell: (hazelnot@sunbeam.city)'s status on Saturday, 31-Aug-2024 08:38:12 JST hazelnot :yell:

     in reply to

     @foone why does it have writing on it in... thermal paste? Paint? Marker? Glue?

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Sunday, 01-Sep-2024 06:41:15 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • Jonas

     @magnetic_tape that'd make sense. They already had a billion of these as spare parts in the factory, so why not stick it in the laptop too?

   • Jonas (magnetic_tape@infosec.exchange)'s status on Sunday, 01-Sep-2024 06:41:16 JST Jonas

     in reply to

     @foone
     IIRC it's the same connector as their PoS (Point of Sale) thermal printers (which Epson was a world leader and a defacto standard), which had been unchanged for lile 30+ years.

     It's a PITA tho and I agree 100% with your remarks.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Sunday, 01-Sep-2024 09:19:33 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     It'll be here around September 7th, I think.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Tuesday, 01-Oct-2024 11:21:09 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     It's an ugly mess (my inspection camera is not working) but it's soldered in.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Tuesday, 01-Oct-2024 11:31:07 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     IT LIVES!

   • Medea Vanamonde🏳️‍⚧️ ♀ (mishavanmollusq@sfba.social)'s status on Tuesday, 01-Oct-2024 11:59:36 JST Medea Vanamonde🏳️‍⚧️ ♀

     in reply to

     @foone so do we call you Madam Frankenstein now ?

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Tuesday, 01-Oct-2024 11:59:36 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • Medea Vanamonde🏳️‍⚧️ ♀

     @MishaVanMollusq you weren't already?!

   • philpem (philpem@digipres.club)'s status on Tuesday, 01-Oct-2024 16:58:50 JST philpem

     in reply to

     @foone Eh, not awful. A bit of flux would make it "perfect" but if it works and isn't shorted out, it's a fine repair.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Wednesday, 02-Oct-2024 03:03:40 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • Vojtěch Dubský

     @xdub a replacement is already on the way

   • Vojtěch Dubský (xdub@mastodonczech.cz)'s status on Wednesday, 02-Oct-2024 03:03:41 JST Vojtěch Dubský

     in reply to

     @foone Find "Replacement for Dallas DS1287 real time clock". 😉

   • Vojtěch Dubský (xdub@mastodonczech.cz)'s status on Wednesday, 02-Oct-2024 03:03:42 JST Vojtěch Dubský

     in reply to

     @foone It looks hopeful. It still wants to replace CMOS Battery. 😊

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Monday, 07-Oct-2024 07:46:58 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     This thing has a fun BIOS problem: It won't let you adjust your floppy drives. This makes sense, because it's a LAPTOP. it's not like you're gonna change those!

     except when the CMOS battery dies, it resets them to stupid and wrong defaults. Because the BIOS doesn't let you change the floppy drive, but internally will let them be set to other things. It just won't let YOU the user change them.

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Monday, 07-Oct-2024 07:47:59 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     also I read through the manual to figure out how to change the LCD vs external VGA option. The answer? run a program off a utility disk. Where is that disk now? uhh... nowhere

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Monday, 07-Oct-2024 07:49:11 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     come on guys, stick it in the firmware as a keyboard command. function-f9 or something

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Monday, 07-Oct-2024 07:50:15 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     annoyingly Epson is still hosting the manual for the VGA Utilities floppy disk. Just the manual, apparently

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Monday, 07-Oct-2024 07:51:20 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     because storing a PDF from 1993 is fine, but a floppy image? nonsense

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Monday, 07-Oct-2024 07:54:24 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • Amber

     @puppygirlhornypost2 nah I fixed it by resetting the bios again, apparently. that got it to reset to the correct values

   • Amber (puppygirlhornypost2@transfem.social)'s status on Monday, 07-Oct-2024 07:54:25 JST Amber

     in reply to

     @foone@digipres.club i mean there's a difference between "it doesn't let you" and "it doesn't let you". is the plan of action to flash the bios with the right values or

   • Foone🏳️‍⚧️ (foone@digipres.club)'s status on Monday, 07-Oct-2024 08:19:21 JST Foone🏳️‍⚧️

     in reply to

     • vga256

     @vga256 ooh, good catch

   • vga256 (vga256@dialup.cafe)'s status on Monday, 07-Oct-2024 08:19:22 JST vga256

     in reply to

     @foone may have you covered:
     https://archive.org/details/ftp.epson.com_199706

     filename is AN500C.EXE

     suspect it's the utilities disk, but unsure if the vga utility is on it