[GerallK]

Just wanted to thank everyone here at mydellmini for breaking trail into the innards of this little monster!

I just got finished with my first mod (adding an internal USB hub and a 16gb thumbdrive). W00-hOOO!!

That drive will become a media storage place. My next mod is definitely going to be a keyboard remapping. I just need to figure out where I want what...

Thanks again for all the posts and clear explanations of how things went for your projects! This forum is a great resource, and I hope to contribute back. Best regards, all!

[strider_mt2k]

Hey Congrats!
I just plugged a 16GB flash drive into my internal USB connector the other day myself!

Glad your mods went well!

EDIT

Does your flash drive still have it's LED and can you see it through the vents?
I shelled a Sandisk Cruzer Micro for mine, and it appears that the newer ones pulse the LED when idle.
It's a neat effect otherwise and I'm sure it saves a little power, but I have to admit I think it looks kinda cool pulsing from within! :geek:
If it becomes annoying I'll probably put a diffuser of some kind on it to tone down the glow a bit. (maybe a piece cut from the original drive shell's slider)

[GerallK]

Originally Posted by strider_mt2k

Does your flash drive still have it's LED and can you see it through the vents?

Short answer: no.

Long answer: My drive is mummified in electrical tape, and I removed the LED from it before installing to save the micro-watts...

Being that smug about an LED's wasted power, I have to admit to a potential problem. I have a solder smudge that's giving me grief on the track-pad connector. ops: It's the one that supplying 5 volts DC for the hub (and peripherals). I'm going to have to go back in and wick away the smudge / re-attach the line. Machine works alright, except for the track-pad. (And all those wasted micro-watts!)

Now that I think about it, there might be an alternate +5v DC source on the motherboard we can get at (besides the track-pad). According to the VGA spec, pin 9 is supposed to provide +5v DC...

By far the hardest solder join was on that trackpad connector! Need to attach a test lead to my VGA output and see if this pin is hot. If it is, I'll clean up the joins on the pointer device and try using the VGA out for +5v. I'll post my findings here when I get it working again (one way or the other).

Try and keep the bail low, eh?

[yorgle]

Search the forums here... there's no need to go to the touchpad connector to get +5v. The trace that supplies power to the connector runs underneath the WLAN card.

[strider_mt2k]

Originally Posted by yorgle

Search the forums here... there's no need to go to the touchpad connector to get +5v. The trace that supplies power to the connector runs underneath the WLAN card.

I moved my power tap to that location also. It's far easier.

As far as cleaning up the bridged solder connections, I've drawn it away with a clean soldering iron tip in the past.
I also have used a razor blade to sever small bridges between connections as well.
(That same razor blade can be used to scrape away the coating on that trace we're using for an alternate source of power too!)

You could also try a little de-soldering wick.

[GerallK]

Just found the post and trace - I'm at work (posting over lunch), and now I'm impatient to get back to my workbench!! I've got a de-soldering braid, and that's what I was planning to use to clean up my bridge. We shall see what works best...

That's a far easier position to snark power from! Much easier than the pin 9/ pin 10 combo for the VGA port.

Impatiently, I wait for 5pm CDT...

[strider_mt2k]

LOL been there. (I work until 8 myself, and come up with many project ideas at work.)

I disabled the LED on my internal drive. It did get annoying.

[GerallK]

Had to work on the heater instead of my mini last night...

Plus, I've ordered a pile of parts. (New keyboard layout, bezel for webcam, webcam.) Very fun getting under the hood of this little monster!

Hoping to get the smudge cleared up tonight, then re-place that 5v line...

More as it happens!