11 Jul
1998
11 Jul
'98
4:58 p.m.
OK, hardware gurus, how about some remote diagnostic
help: PowerBook 160
(my first and only Mac), a bunch of black vertical lines of varying width
on the LCD (different patterns on the two panels that make up the
display), but otherwise the display looks good (all the bits in the right
place).
Video RAM? LCD controller? Cable problem on the laptop side? Cable
problem on the LCD side? Bad LCD? Repair FAQ?
I think since LCD's have conductive traces on the glass, that to drive
a column of pixels with the AC voltage necessary would involve bonding
a flexible-circuit ribbon to the conductive traces along the edges.
I would think that is the most likely culprit (maybe it got un-bonded),
and probably next to impossible to repair (due to being microscopic traces,
and lack of the right conductive adhesives, and general messiness).
Then again, I have seen small LCD's that used a rubber sandwich (alternating
thin layers of conductive rubber and non-conductive, stacked up to make
a strip as wide as the LCD) to connect PC board traces with the transparent
conductive stuff on the glass, so in that case maybe it'd just be a matter
of cleaning and tightening.... If you try to fix it, you should probably
be prepared to buy a new LCD JIC that becomes necessary. (Disclaimer:
seldom have I ever tried to repair a LCD, never a laptop LCD, and never
have I succeeded... I'm just guessing...)
--
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