another slightly more serious laptop Question

[Glasgow]

I am a fuckig dumbass idiot who tripped over her laptop wire, causing it to crash to the floor and destroy half the screen display. Apart from being really fucking angry with myself for being so careless I am also distraught. Can the screen be replaced or have I fucked up my laptop for good this time? If it can be fixed where can I take it and how much is it likely to cost? I would really REALLY appreciate any help with this coz like I said, I'm a clumsy idiot.

[ARTooD2]

Quoting Glasgow from 17:51, 23rd Nov 2007
I am a fuckig dumbass idiot who tripped over her laptop wire, causing it to crash to the floor and destroy half the screen display. Apart from being really fucking angry with myself for being so careless I am also distraught. Can the screen be replaced or have I fucked up my laptop for good this time? If it can be fixed where can I take it and how much is it likely to cost? I would really REALLY appreciate any help with this coz like I said, I'm a clumsy idiot.

I got my screen fixed after someone stood on it...it cost a fortune though (Insurance paid for mine however...)

[hr]

King Sinner

[Timata]

The screen can't be fixed, but it can usually be detached from the laptop and replaced. I got mine fixed for free by Dell, because it was still in warranty - after I closed it to forcefully onto a pair of headphones. They would have charged to fit it, but that bit wasn't that difficult. Best ask the manufacturer, see how much they charge for a replacement.

[flossy]

For interim use, you could always connect the laptop to a monitor (a bit less portable but better than nowt).

[hr]

If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the substrate.

[Gubbins]

Ookay... this one's going to be expensive.

Depending on quite what the damage is, it might be repairable, but don't get your hopes up. Things like cracks and black liquid crystal goo running down the screen are generally bad signs, but if it's just that the screen isn't coming up, you might just have pulled the connection out. A fuller description of which "half" of the screen is bust might help on that account.

Laptop screens can generally be replaced, but they don't come cheap, usually because they've been custom-built for that model. Prices are usually (from memory) about £200.

Depending on how old the laptop is and how much money you want to outlay, you have three basic options as I see it:
(1) Pay the £200 or so to have the laptop screen replaced.
(2) Buy a new laptop - if you didn't buy it in the last year, you can probably a similar one at half the price you paid for it.
(2) Buy a second-hand laptop off eBay (if you're going to do this it needs to be the same make/model) and replace the hard disc (that stores all the data) from your computer into the other one (that way you also have spares in case anything else breaks, including a spare battery).

[hr]

...then again, that is only my opinion.

[Glasgow]

Thanks so much for your quick responses. Shit, cracks on the screen and black crystal goo 2 out of 2 there. The screen is basically broken on the right hand side, meaning right now when I minimise and reposition my windows I can still use the good half almost normally, its just really really annoying. Well I guess its a new laptop for me, I get the impression my laptop is quite an obscure model (Asus?, maybe I dunno, I am computer clueless and willing to admit it) so getting a replacement screen might be incredibly costly. my laptop is 3 and a half years old so is it worth getting a new one anyway? FUCK, this is just so what I didn't need.

[Freaker]

For 3 1/2 years old, it is certainly worth getting a new one, I would say. Except if you really don't mind the advances in speed and memory that have been made in the meantime, then you may as well be really, really lucky getting a replacement screen. I guess the best thing to do would be to call Asus tech support and ask them what a new screen would cost, if they at all still produce them.

Gubbins' advice about ebay is great, if you really want to stick with the same model. It may be hard to find it, but you'll probably find the same 3 1/2 year old laptop there for less than what a new screen would cost.

In case you get a new laptop, get a tech savvy friend to extract your hard disk from your old laptop and put it into an usb external disk case - that way you can copy all your old files easily once the new laptop is up and running.

Hope you'll find something, and don't worry, this isn't the first time this happens (I broke my screen once by slamming my laptop lid shut too hard, very annoying) and 3 1/2 years is generally quite a respectable age for a laptop, too.

[hr]

I try to take one day at a time, but sometimes several days attack me at once.

[Duggeh]

Quoting flossy from 18:45, 23rd Nov 2007
For interim use, you could always connect the laptop to a monitor (a bit less portable but better than nowt).

[hr]

If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the substrate.

IT services desk at the library have 17 inch and 19 inch monitors available for free.

[hr]

IMAGE:www.thismanwillkillyou.com/avatars/tb3-100.jpg
Duggeh: Master Of Ceremonies

[exnihilo]

I have killed two laptops by getting tangled in the cord, the screen was smashed in both instance - thankfully my insurance paid both times (this was some years apart), but in each case it was a better option to get a new laptop than to try repairing the screen. Sadly, for my upgrade path, the new magnetic power cords just pull free. Sigh.