I need some computer help

[beau5278]

I have an older IBM laptop,it's an A31,I don't remember all the details at the moment but the screen went bad on it,just quit working,it was that it would come on sometimes and would work for most of a day and then just go off.When it quit,I went and bought an Acer 5570z that is faster with a lot more storage capacity.I was thinking about getting a flat screen monitor to use with the IBM,then I got thinking that,maybe I could hook the Acer and the IBM together,so that I can see what I've got on the hard drive in the IBM and possibly use the IBM as a backup hard drive.Will that work?and what do I need to accomplish it.I do have a USB jumper cable that I used between the IBM and an older Emachines desktop that I don't use much anymore and there is software already on the IBM to use that.

 

[jawilder]

You can connect the two computers through an ethernet cable but you have to be able to be able to network them together, which means being able to view your IBM. Other than that I'm not sure. I'm sure there are others here who would know more than me about this. Good luck!

 

[Bob W]

Sounds like a PITA, connecting the two computers via some sort of network cables. The difficulty will be getting the network settings configured on the IBM since you can't see anything.

Doesn't the IBM have a plug on the back for connecting a real monitor? I can check the specs online to confirm, but I bet it does. No reason to buy a monitor just for that task, borrow a friend's. You only need it long enough to copy your files onto a CD/USB drive/floppy/whatever.

so that I can see what I've got on the hard drive in the IBM and possibly use the IBM as a backup hard drive.

In order to use the old IBM hard drive on your Acer computer, you'll have to reformat the drive, reinstall the operating system, install and configure your drivers, etc., etc.

If it was a desktop computer, you can use multiple hard drives at the same time, but that's not possible with laptops (that I know of) due to limited space and available cable plugs.

 

[Bob W]

Good news, I just looked at Wife's laptop. It's an A31p, and it definitely has a plug for an external monitor. It's an Old-School jack, so any older monitor should work.

Too bad you don't live closer; you could certainly borrow one of my extra monitors for a few days...

 

[truthseeker]

You might be able to just pull the drive from the IBM and install it in an external enclosure. I recently did that for a buddy of mine with a drive from an old desktop.

 

[beau5278]

I do have the Emachines desktop yet that has a good monitor,I could use that monitor to see what I have on the IBM hard drive,or would I,could I hook the IBM and the Emachines desktop together and use one or the other without hooking and unhooking cables.I'm not really wanting to take the hard drive out of the IBM and use it,I was just thinking that maybe I could just use it for backup storage space,like the external hard drives that you can get.

 

[beau5278]

If it was a desktop computer, you can use multiple hard drives at the same time, but that's not possible with laptops (that I know of) due to limited space and available cable plugs.

This Acer has a 1.73G CPU with,what looks like 2 50g hard drives,it's a dual core processor and the only cable that I have hooked to it is the power cord,I either use the internal wireless or a wireless aircard through the PCI.... ,whatever it is,for internet,so I have an empty ethernet slot and usually at least one of the USB slots is open,so I don't think that I would have a shortage of slots if I only need to hook one up between the computers and it's a lot easier hooking 2 laptops together rather than trying to find the right cables to hook and unhook behind the tower on the desktop.

 

[Bob W]

I do have the Emachines desktop yet that has a good monitor,I could use that monitor to see what I have on the IBM hard drive

That's what I would do first. That way you can get your files from the IBM before attempting anything else with the hard drive.

or would I,could I hook the IBM and the Emachines desktop together and use one or the other without hooking and unhooking cables.

Some monitors, like my Trinitron, have two plugs allowing two computers to use a single monitor. Only one computer at a time will be viewed though.

I'm not really wanting to take the hard drive out of the IBM and use it,I was just thinking that maybe I could just use it for backup storage space,like the external hard drives that you can get.

It won't be easy to use the hard drive for anything else as long as it's still in the IBM laptop; the laptop must be booted and running for the hard drive to function.

If you remove it from the IBM though, you have some options. You may be able to use it as an external drive, like Truthseeker mentioned, if you can find an enclosure made for laptop hard drives (laptop and desktop drives use different plugs and different sized cables). Or, if you can find adapters, you can use it as a second drive in your desktop computer. Or you can keep it as a spare in case your Acer drive goes bad.

 

[Bob W]

This Acer has a 1.73G CPU with,what looks like 2 50g hard drives

Probably two partitions that show up as two drive letters, not two physical hard drives...

so I have an empty ethernet slot and usually at least one of the USB slots is open,so I don't think that I would have a shortage of slots if I only need to hook one up between the computers and it's a lot easier hooking 2 laptops together rather than trying to find the right cables to hook and unhook behind the tower on the desktop.

Again, to network the two laptops together you will have to have both laptops up and running so you can configure the network connections.

rather than trying to find the right cables to hook and unhook behind the tower on the desktop.

Still sounds like the easiest thing to do, and a necessary first step. Follow the cable from the back of the monitor to the back of the computer, unplug it, plug it into the laptop. That's much simpler than trying to install special software, connect with special-purpose cables, and getting the two laptops to 'talk' to each other.

Good Luck!

 

[Bob W]

you will have to have both laptops up and running so you can configure the network connections.

Security settings too, allowing the Acer computer access through the IBM's firewall.

 

[mikeal]

If you just want to get the data off the hard drive and use it as an external/backup drive then an external enclosure is the way to go (as truthseeker said). You will not have to reformat it or worry about drivers. It is usually pretty easy to remove the hard drive from a laptop and it is very easy to install it in the external enclosure. Then you just plug the enclosure into your laptop (via USB). There will be a bunch of extraneous crap on the hard drive you won't need if you are not going to use the thinkpad again, but hidden in there are your documents, favorites and possibly emails.


Enclosure
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817145137


How to remove the harddrive from a Thinkpad A31
http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site.wss/MIGR-39674.html

 

[zenheretic]

Sometimes with technology it pays to think how much your time is worth vs. keeping an aging dinosaur alive.

Consider how much you make per hour and guestimate how many hours you will spend keeping your old laptop alive/configured to your new laptop. Since you opened this thread you are like most of us and not a computer expert. One hour minimum, two hours likely and certainly more if unexpected Microsoft issues crop up. Then consider if you have to go to a tech store for parts, cables, monitors etc. Gas, travel time, and equipment expense should be considered. Add all that up and you probably have $100 in time and materials, easily.

You might be better off getting 100g external self powered drive. Save any files off the old beast, and use the drive as a backup. Drives run from $50 to $100 for quite a bit of memory.

Then zap your old laptop with a stungun, burn it, blast it with a shotgun (to remove any personal data you don't want extracted) and go on with life.

 

[beau5278]

That's why,when the thing started acting up,I just went and bought the new one and it has plenty of storage for what I need at present.I'm just looking at having 2 older computers around that aren't worth much and doing even less and wondering if I can get anything else out of them.I've been using the IBM some the past few days and it still works ok,I may just keep it around for days when I don't want to risk catching anything contagious while surfing the internet.

 

[Bob W]

I'm just looking at having 2 older computers around that aren't worth much and doing even less and wondering if I can get anything else out of them.

The old desktop would be a good 'toy.' Play with alternative operating systems. Connect it to the t.v. / stereo as a music server. Use it for testing hardware parts from other computers.

Plus, it sometimes pays to have a ready-to-use backup computer. Never know when someone will need to borrow one, your other laptop kicks the bucket, or someone else in the family wants to use a computer at the same time.

I like having a machine or two in different areas of the house. Wife doesn't want me playing computer games in the middle of the night on the third floor I'm sure, right over the bedrooms. And I don't want to climb two flights of stairs every time The Boy wants to looks at dogs or Godzilla photos on the internet.

 

[bladefixation2]

Sometimes with technology it pays to think how much your time is worth vs. keeping an aging dinosaur alive.

...

You might be better off getting 100g external self powered drive. Save any files off the old beast, and use the drive as a backup. Drives run from $50 to $100 for quite a bit of memory.

Then zap your old laptop with a stungun, burn it, blast it with a shotgun (to remove any personal data you don't want extracted) and go on with life.

Totally agree

Get a 3.5 in external USB hard drive. The 3.5 inch drives are more reliable than the smaller 2.5 inch models and therefore better for backing up data

If you can get onto your old laptop to copy stuff off then great, if not just destroy it and dump it