[olug] Old Dell 20GB laptop HDD...

[Dan Linder]

Thanks - yeah, not much protection needed for a "dead" device. :)

Hold off, I'm checking with some co-workers that have had this same
make/vintage of laptop and have long since moved on.  From what I found via
Google, it's not even a gurantee to work if even the firmware revision of
the board is off.  Guess that kind of make sense considering that the
connecting between the HDD board and the HDD case itself are mostly for
analog signals which I could see being different even between sequential
serial numbered parts.

<off topic>
My father worked for IBM in the 60's and was part of a team putting in three
"hard drives" in the KC area (if I remember correctly).  Anyway, these
machines were the size of a washing machine and the drive platters were
interchangeable by opening the case and removing the platter stack (the
heads and everything else stayed in the chassis).  The customer had three
locations around town and wanted to be able to physically move the stacks
between locations to move data (I believe 5-10MB was the stacks total
capacity.  It was a challenge, but they finally got the three systems
identical enough so that they could share data with each other in this
manner.  It required a lot of tweaking of the software and the hardware,
specifically getting the systems perfectly level with each other so the
heads moved in the same manner.

Another customer of theirs wanted to help the platters spin-down faster so
he could change them out quicker.  His method?  After issuing the stop
command, he would open the door and push a wooden broom handle against the
edge of the platters as a brake!  Thankfully those old systems had head that
floated above the surface by a larger margin than they do today!
</off topic>

Dan

On Mon, Mar 10, 2008 at 12:46 PM, Obi-Wan <obiwan at jedi.com> wrote:

> > I don't know what shipping would cost, but it wouldn't need to be
> insured.
>
> It's only about 3/8" thick.  I might be able to throw it into a bubble
> wrap envelope & drop it in a mailbox.
>
> --
> Ben "Obi-Wan" Hollingsworth                             obiwan at jedi.com
>   The stuff of earth competes for the allegiance I owe only to the
>     Giver of all good things, so if I stand, let me stand on the
>       promise that You will pull me through.  -- Rich Mullins
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>



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