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Compaq Armada 700 rebuild help (simple ???'s)

Feb 7, 2005 3:11AM PST

These are probably some really simple questions and I probably should have asked before I bought a unit to canabalize.

My working M700 is barely working. Battery dead, been dropped a time or two and even with power source plugged in, it's constantly complaining that it's not getting power and the screen blinks dim... bright... dim... in between.... dim... bright (you get the picture). More than a second or two of "dim" and the cursor freezes and a hard reboot is required and it's constant and maddening.

I bought another unit with no operating system and no cd drive and I want to switch out the hard drive, memory and possibly the processor. If I do that, will the new, refurbished machine "think" it's the old machine?

Additionally, any idea what to look at to troubleshoot the old power-impaired unit? I'd like to repair it, if possible since I have all the components necessary to make another notebook if I can get the power source problem straighted out.

Last but not least.... how do I go about getting an operating system for the other machine if I want to load up the hard drive?

Many thanks in advance for any comments, advice or help.

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