<b>Yet more on the PowerBook 3400 problems

a. Shawn Farley (manager of the Boston service department for Computer Town Inc.) worries that the work-around for the PowerBook 3400 RAM problem (mentioned last time) could wind up damaging your keyboard (though this seems unlikely to me). His department is currently doing another work-around (which is also not authorized by Apple). If you can't bring your 3400 in for service, he suggests: Use a 1/16" one sided stick tape at least two inches long. Stick it on the bottom left side of your keyboard. This is were the socket of your RAM rides. This should do the job. In rare cases, you may need to tape the edge of your RAM as well. You would place the second piece of tape about 2 1/2 inches or so above the first tape. It's very important the tape is thin and static safe."

Another reader claims that he was told by Apple that this problem is more with the keyboard than the RAM seating and that Apple is working on a fix that goes beyond using a foam pad.

b. A recent posting on MacInTouch describes another hardware glitch, this time with battery-placement. The report from a reader states: "The battery can cause a short in the system, freezing the machine. At times, when running without AC, the battery shorts the system when touched on the side or jiggled. Apple sales reps have told me this is a known problem, but there is no current workaround."