Advise: Get some sleep

[houltmac]

This week has been a very long week. A family member died, I have barely had an hours sleep a night and everyone is taking the last of their vacation before the end of the month and the new vacation year. I am tired; that's why I haven't been online.

I was so tired the other night that I fell asleep with my brand new MacBook Air on my lap while trying to watch a film and take my mind off the happenings (it didn't work). Instead of things feeling better my MBA slipped off my lap and landed corner first on the tile floor. It was a loud bang and it woke me up. Ouch.

Well, I have to say that thing is pretty resilient. The tiny hard drive seems fine and while it skipped a second or two, the video continued to play. The front right corner took the impace and has flatteded a little. the bottom case is slightly (and I do mean slightly) bent near that corner as it was obviously pushed in for a second and the right side seems to just rub the top case and the rear housing by the hinge when the lid is very nearly closed. It's seriously minor, but it does feel kinda ruined.

I can get the whole thing fixed at work for a couple of hours labour (I haven't had to take one apart as yet so it's partly a learning thing) and very little money, but I won't be able to for another week as I am on "vacation" (which means no going near the office, more errands than normal and yet still work). Still, it's a &@#%&@#%&@#%&@#%&@#% and doesn't feel so good. All this and I am now considering yet another Mac purchase; a MacBook Pro. Another lifestyle change has lead to this, but I don't know if it will be necessary yet. Perhaps the end of the month, perhaps a couple of months, perhaps things will change again before it's truly necessary. Who knows.

Anyway, the point of the story is this: don't fall asleep with your notebook on your lap - you can do real damage. Get some sleep for real and then you won't fall asleep anyway. Oh, and don't watch movies on your MacBook Air (or video of any kind) anyway; it's the only thing that makes the fan come on and it's either silent or a jet engine - totally ruins the whole experience.

[lucamacis]

I'm very sorry about your loss.

And im glad to see your spanking new MBA isn't ruined even after impact damage. Thank god they're robust little things :-D

Another Macbook? How often do you upgrade your Macs?! How many have you got at the moment? Yes, I know curiosity killed the cat. lol

[philbowell]

Sorry to hear that Matt. I hope you and the rest of the family are ok.

[baseballboy828]

Sorry about the loss. Let us know how taking apart the MacBook Air goes when you get to it.

[houltmac]

Thanks guys, it's appreciated.

I repaired the damage to the bottom case as best I could, while it was asleep on my bed today. Not the best idea but it went well. I'll let you know how the rest of the repair goes when I get back to work.

In terms of Macs, I currently have the old MacBook (C2D 1.83GHz) which I think I will sell but I may keep as a family spare (the whole family is on MacBooks now, though they aren't all 802.11n sadly). I also have the Air of course but I am seriously considering swapping it out for a MacBook Pro. I usually upgrade every 12-18 months, maybe a little longer. I love the Air and most of the time it's perfect, but I am looking at a change at work which requires a more powerful, more wired notebook. I have a MacBook Pro from work here at the moment, running as a server and I have to say it's a relief to watch video on it without it nearly floating on the fan pressure. The MBA is awesome, but doesn't do well with any kind of video and frankly it's starting to get a little annoying.

[Yuiichi]

Sorry to hear about your loss Matt.

And wow, you've had some real adventures with choosing the right Mac for you, too. I hope that, if you do get a MBP, that it'll be the absolutely perfect machine for your needs I'm also relieved that you're an AASP - I think a normal dude like me would be even more devastated, since there's no way I could fix it myself and I wouldn't want to have to pay if it's mainly cosmetic!

Here's wishing you all the best man!

[Raven]

@houltmac - Sorry to hear of your loss; here's hoping things will pick up for you soon.

As a side question, what did you do to repair the damage to the bottom case? I dropped my MBP about a year ago now and have what sounds like similar dents, so I'd be curious what worked for you.

[houltmac]

@Raven: My damage would be much more simple to resolve than yours for a couple of reasons. My bottom case for example is the first stage of the take apart, so ten screws and it just lifts off, where yours is the "first thing in, last thing out". Taking out a MacBook Pro bottom case for a good technician is about 25 minutes labour (most will charge at least 2 hours to get it out and put a new one in though; I'm quick ).

Secondly, the MacBook Air bottom case is flat (it's curved, like all the Air's surfaces, but not like the MBP). The bottom case here is just a flat surface and doesn't make up the sides, front or back of the machine like the MBP bottom case. As such I could just push out the small bend (not dent) with my fingers. On a MacBook Pro a dent to the corner usually means the Aluminum has been stretched - you can bend it back to a degree, but you are really just adjusting the stretch and never really getting rid of it. I've posted 4 Flickr images here so try and show you what I mean. They are only iPhone images so the quality isn't great but I think it makes the point.

[notabadname]

Also very sorry to hear about your loss and sincerely hope things are going better for you.

Very interesting comments on the MBA, and video. I have to say you made me laugh out loud briefly with the; "it's a relief to watch video on it (the MBP) without it nearly floating on the fan pressure".

I also have to say 2 things after visiting your Flickr site: 1. that your desk will still look pretty sharp even if you don't remove all evidence of your napping mishap. - such a pretty machine - I want one; and 2. Were can I get that wall paper in "desktop 20060510" in 1680 x 1050. That is so excellent, with the lava light-like red on white. (There's some illiteration for you, say that fast three times; lava light - like)

[houltmac]

@notabadname: Yes, this is really my only complaint. As I said, I am working a lot more with video, finding myself watching more video at night (be it flash, h.264 or DVD), and working a lot with cat6 networks an the like which would much better suit a MacBook Pro. I am also expecting my extensive walking to calm to only a couple of 20 minute trips a day. As such a MacBook Pro would also help me enjoy video without straining to hear the sound over the fan noise. As I say, my only real complaint.

1. I like my desk.
2. Honestly, I don't remember. I believe it was from InterfaceLIFT, but I have no idea what it was called or who made it. I don't seem to have a copy which is odd because I usually keep them. Sorry.