Quote: Originally Posted by PapaSmurf
I have a few questions about using an extra laptop I have lying around...
1 - If you use an inverter for power, does this constantly drain from the battery? I know if I plug my cell in my car lighter in the morning and come back later it is fully charged, won't this routine keep the laptop fully charged?
Some vehicles power the lighter outlet all the time, and some only when the car is on (or in accessory mode). Yours seems to keep the power on all the time, so yes... it will keep your laptop fully charged. (It will also drain your car battery sooner or later!) You would need to rewire the outlet to use the switched power feed to your radio or some other device.
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2 - Wake on ring... how do you give the laptop a RING without having to do anything other than tun the car on?
If I remember correct on my old Dell laptop all i had to do was provide +5v to pin 5 (or 6?) of the com port to activate WOR. Google for WOR or 'wake on ring' and see what you can find for your laptop.
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3 - Does anyone know if it is possible (specifically on DELL 500 Latitude) to either remove the screen or keep the computer on while the screen is shut? Mine seems to hibernate everytime I close the cover no matter what XP settings I use.
some older Dells have a sleep switch around the hinge that has to be disconnected to keep that from happening. Try setting the sleep button press action to nothing in XP and see if that helps - if not, look for a little pin activated switch around the hinges.
- Z