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G3 PB FireWire - Running with the display removed.

post #1 of 2
5/6/03 at 5:02am
Thread Starter 
Hi,
I have what might be a numbskull question...

I recently received a G3 PowerBook 500mhz, Firewire model.
The screen has a whoppping great crack and black mess from the ruined LCD.
I want to remove the screen, CD and battery and put it inside a old sony amplimifer case I have ready and use it in my stack system as a server to hold mp3's, run my mailserver etc...
I'll drop an airport card in it.
I've got diagrams of the board etc and beleive it's feasible

Before I go ahead I wan to see if anyone knows how the machine will react if it finds no internal screen attached and either an external monitor or no screen at all.

My thoughts are that it will either send the boot screen signal to the internal regardless and mirror by default to the external or if it sees nothing on the external port just try for the internal.

I am hoping there is something in Open Firmware to force it to use the external only maybe but some advice would be appreciated before i get into building it.....
na-na na-na na-na na-na
na-na na-na na-na na-na
na-na na-na na-na na-na
Batman!
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na-na na-na na-na na-na
na-na na-na na-na na-na
na-na na-na na-na na-na
Batman!
Reply
post #2 of 2
5/6/03 at 7:31am
All you need to do to make it ignore the internal screen is to keep the sleep sensor tripped.

The sleep sensor detects when the display is closed, and, normally puts the machine into sleep mode. However, if you start the machine with the lid closed, and a usb mouse and/or keyboard connected, then the machine will boot into "clamshell mode," and send the video signal to the external port only.

Now, I don't know if it will default into this mode if it sees no internal display connected. But if it doesn't then you can always just keep the sleep sensor tripped.

How do you do that? Well, with the wallstreet series, it used to be that a strategically placed magnet would trip the sensor and keep the machine in sleep mode. But this changed with the lombard models, and I actually can't seem to find where the sensor is now, but I do notice that there are two spots on each side of the display bezel that appear to be magnetic, however, I can't find the corresponding sensor. I'd recommend a google search on the subject for further illumination, and I"ll let you know if I turn anything up.

ciao,
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