External power switch

[LeedsFan]

I've placed an IBM Thinkpad inside my CP. It's an "arcade in a box" kind of thing. It's 99% complete except I haven't worked out how to hook up an external power switch. I've got round the problem of the computer going into sleep mode when the lid is closed. But right now I have to physically open up the CP then open the laptop lid to get to the power switch. I want to extend that switch if possible and place a recessed button somewhere on the CP. (round the back or at the side).

I've had the keyboard out and the power button is part of that. But it's all one membrane unit. There are no conventional "switches". In theory I could extend the ribbon that links the keyboard to the motherboard. Then use the laptop keyboard on a pull out sliding base to easily access the power button. But I dunno if you can buy such extension ribbons.

Any ideas guys? 

EDIT: Or could I remove the top half of the laptop (as I'm using an external monitor) and completely do away with it? At least then I just have to lift the CP lid once and press the power switch.

[SavannahLion]

The only decent thing I can think of if the power switch is part of a membrane is to shift your attention to the lid button. On every one of mine, there's a hidden magnet that triggers a small switch. You can easily solder to this switch and extend the switch wherever you want.

Controlling shutdown with this switch is another matter. On my XP installs, the only options are "Do Nothing", "Standby", "Hibernate." Without hacking the registry (or whatever else may be necessary) that leaves you the Hibernate option. I don't like hibernating with Windows since any garbage that crops up becomes cumulative. Microsoft can't get their garbage management and ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- resistance straight.

Another less elegant option is to trace the power switch leads back through the membrane connections and tap into some trace points beyond that. That might take some careful soldering though.

Alternatively, you can play fast and loose with the power supply itself. Tap into the battery leads or cord leads and cut power right at the source. That has the potential for some pretty nasty problems though.

[SavannahLion]

EDIT: Or could I remove the top half of the laptop (as I'm using an external monitor) and completely do away with it? At least then I just have to lift the CP lid once and press the power switch.

Tried that once with my Dell. Doesn't work... well not the way I expected it to.

The laptop monitor is set in Windows to always be #1. It is neither swappable nor can it be disabled (even if it's not there). An annoying feature since some video playback software versions (VLC!!!!!) will be stunningly stupid and refuse to play full screen on monitor #2.

You can certainly try it, Dell's standards are pretty retarded anyways and I wouldn't expect other manufacturers to follow suit. I'd be curious as to the outcome of such an experiment on a different laptop.

[LeedsFan]

You can certainly try it, Dell's standards are pretty retarded anyways and I wouldn't expect other manufacturers to follow suit. I'd be curious as to the outcome of such an experiment on a different laptop.

Well it worked! Took me about an hour to do the job following the very detailed and clear instructions on the Lenovo website. I was surprised how easy the Thinkpad is to work with. 

I even managed to retrieve the wireless antenna from the removed lid so I still get wireless access when the pc is in Windows mode.