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shmokes:
Thanks. It turned out very nice. I couldn't be happier (except if I could find a wireless keyboard mouse with a very small usb receiver to put in there :) )
quarterback:
--- Quote from: shmokes on November 18, 2006, 01:32:43 pm ---I performed open-heart surgery on a laptop to get at all the guts and completely de-cased the LCD screen.
--- End quote ---
That's sweet. Like shardian said, I too have seen a lot of these DIY LCD Frames, but yours is particularly nice.
How deep of a frame did you get to hold all that stuff?
Also, did you have a tough time removing the monitor? At some point in the past I looked at one of the old laptops I have lying around because I thought about doing something like this. Unfortunately, I couldn't figure out how to get the screen more than 1/2" away from the mobo. I didn't get to the point of gaking the whole thing apart, but this seemed like a potential stumbling block.
--- Quote ---I put PC Anywhere on it so that I can control it without a keyboard and mouse, but I'm really thinking I'd probably better open it back up and put a wireless keyboard/mouse receiver in there.
once this frame is closed up it's A LOT of work to open up and then get closed again.
--- End quote ---
How about just putting a usb port hidden at the bottom of the frame. You wouldn't be able to control it wirelessly, but it would let you attach a keyboard & mouse (and other things as well) to the hidden PC without having to open it.
shmokes:
I think the frame is 1.5" deep, IIRC. The monitor wasn't too bad. The laptop was REALLY REALLY difficult to open up. After removing every screw I could get to I could still only pry the upper and lower portions of the case apart about a quarter inch. Finally after working at it for at least half an hour I finally realized that the panel just above the keyboard, where the power button and such sit, could be popped off, which gave me access to the hinges attaching the monitor, as well as the cables that run from the monitor to the motherboard.
At this point the laptop was still incredibly difficult to take apart. There were hidden tabs and screws EVERYWHERE. I often had to break things before I could learn the secret of how it was supposed to be taken apart. I REALLY manhandled a lot of stuff and was a little bit amazed that it still worked when I was done with it.
The LCD, on the other hand, was pretty easy. I just removed a few little screws and then pried the casing apart with a tiny flathead screwdriver. One by one, little tabs holding the casing together popped out and in a few minutes I had the LCD out of there. It would have been difficult or impossible to remove without first unscrewing the hinges and unplugging it from the motherboard so it was entirely separated from the laptop.
Hiding a USB port on the bottom of the frame would be ideal -- preferable even to a wireless setup. Wireless units often have little buttons on the receivers that must be pressed to connect the device to the receiver, which is no good in my case. I would much rather the port because it is only there for support, such as if the WiFi isn't attaching to an access point, or if the PCAnywhere client stops working or something. The only problem is, I don't have the skills or equipment to mount a USB port in the frame. At the very least, If I did it, it would look terrible.
shardian:
Ahhh. there is a thread hidden somewhere on here that had a link to a "bolt on" usb port. You could just cut a hole, insert the usb port, and then screw it down. I am not sure of the proper search terms to find it though. Maybe someone else who remembers the thread ( aguy wanted to put usb plugs on the sides of his cp for gamepads) can help you out.
shmokes:
That would be handy for so many different projects. I hope the thread turns up.
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