I think every 5300 was a problem child.... that's why Apple offered to take every stinkin' one of 'em in as trade towards a G3 Powerbook. In fact, I think they just reinstated the offer....you get around $500 credit towards a new Powerbook. Every one I've had come across my bench (I do pc repair in my "spare time" at a friend's surplus shop...this is after I play network admin during the day and before I play network admin/sound designer at home....I may need to get more of a life....) has had a problem or two. Most are completely dead, or the lid hinges are split, or both. Most common problem is a design flaw on the motherboard where the power connector is soldered on. Usually breaks loose from the system board, or actually breaks the corner off the system board. Apple got tired of wasting money on service techs to fix recurring broken machines, so they made the offer to get them in from the field. Didn't matter if it worked or not. They just wanted to make them go away. Made the same offer on PB190's.... Paul Paul Braun WD9GCO Cygnus Productions nerdware_nospam(a)laidbak.com "A computer without a Microsoft operating system is like a dog without a bunch of bricks tied to its head."