[sf-lug] Advice on running a laptop on AC only, without a battery (dead)

[Rick Moen]

Quoting Owen Pietrokowsky (opietro at yahoo.com):

> I received an older laptop, a Compaq Evo N600c, yesterday. 

Not bad for a 2003 laptop:  1.2 GHz Pentium III, 256 MB RAM standard,
expandable up to 576 MB (by putting a 512 MB 133 MHz SO-DIMM in slot 2)
 or even 1 GB (by removing the existing 256 MB stick from slot 1, and
putting 512 MB sticks in both slots).  Internal modem might be a
winmodem, but at least is on a minPCI socket, so you can replace it if
you wish.  Hard drive is somewhere from 20-40 GB.  Video chipset is ATI
Mobility Radeon.

> It worked fine today, then it suddenly wouldn't boot. Previous owners
> have had trouble with a loose power cord, and the battery (I'm told)
> is dead. When I take the battery out it works fine on AC only. Is it
> safe to use the laptop without a battery at home and outside? 

I think so.

> (I can't afford a new battery and it's easier to carry around a laptop
> sans a heavy battery....)

Really?  They're only around $60, if you shop around.  Worth it, I
think.