Laptop Eval

Total Absolute Fantasy

• Train people to be hackers and be happy to dig around command line and forums for solutions and ideas.

Basic Flow and Goals:

• Hardware ID -> Laptop Eval -> Command Line Intro -> Laptop Build
• How to filter out builders who are not necessarily ready.

Meeting Notes

10/29/11 :

• Look for documentation on how to find a hard drive. Big goal is to remove the HD and scrub the data.
• Locate archetypes of Laptops, and determine kinds of disassembly that each one requires (HD, screen, RAM, keyboard etc.)
• HD Complexity (higher=harder). Need to find a way to bring that across to the builders (have them pre-sort). Diagrams could also work.

1. Screw covers on bottom
2. Side loaded HD's
3. Under keyboard
4. Chasis split.

• Use MacLands labeling for tools. (toolkits, etc).
• Locate different websites for disassembly for laptops. Provide examples and links to begin our resource list. Please list them Existing Laptop Documentation.
• Develop curriculum for Laptop Hardware ID.
• Determine transition from Laptop Eval to Laptop Build (i.e. finding drivers, troubleshooting, etc).

1. Require a Command line Class?
2. Require some other kind of class.
3. Require students to do QA.
   1. Provides a higher level overview and basic understanding.
4. Throw them example boxes, i.e. unplug something, or break a driver.
   1. Make it an intro to the troubleshooting.

• Determine a Triage process to sort machines.

1. Determine Laptop Ratings for Red, Yellow, Green etc.
   1. Store Boxes
      1. Low - P4's, Athelon 64, Celeron M, Celeron, Sempron. 512MB RAM. 30-80gb HDD.
      2. Mid - Turion 64, Pentium M, Core Solo. 1GB RAM. 60-80gb HDD
      3. High - Dual Core or better. 2+GB RAM. 80+gb HDD.
      4. As-Is - Pentium 3, or Crappy. <512GB RAM. No HDD.

• How to find specs?

1. Find specs using MemTest.

• How do we recruit people into this new program?

1. Schedule them into specific Saturday slots.
2. Use fliers and emails.
3. Reach out to tech colleges (use existing networks and contacts).

• Begin the program using the large supple of Vesta HP laptops (6200, 6000, 4200, 4400 etc).

Solutions :

• Take step by step photos of each laptop disassembly and keep them on file. As a new laptop comes in compare to database of steps, if it's not in there a builder has to make one. We could sort them by the above archetypes.

1. Need time to get it done.
2. Spend time and we all take a different model and disassemble them step by step. begin with the "easiest" kind.
3. Use egg cartons that hold the screws from step 1, 2, 3 etc to held with re-assembly.

• Generalized ideas of what to look for (i.e. the archetypes above), instead of using specific models.

Training :

• Similar to pre-build, documentation is provided.

Documentation

• Provide flow charts on how to find methods to disassemble laptops. i.e. Is it in our LAN? If not,go to XYZ.com.
• Prebuilds documentation is very easy to find.
• Need to find a balance between easily followable documentation, but easily referenced as well (i.e. on the wall in front of them).

1. Binders are possible, but are bulky due to large number of models.
2. Wiki is good, but requires another computer to run on it.
3. Use a printout hung under the lights in laptops to make a "wall".

• Use pre-existing documentation and link from our LAN and ask volunteers to search it for info. If they cannot find it, ask them to search for it via Google and then add the link to our database.

Challenges :

Hardest part for beginners is how to disassemble old laptops with breaking them.

Hardware ID

• Basic form and function, basic examples. Photos of powersupply ratings. Where RAM goes, etc.
• Wifi, optical drives, HD's, etc.
• ZIF and LIF adapters and differences.