Hello!
This is my first post! I have a PB 5300cs that I purchased on eBay (for 18 bucks!) and I am looking for something fun to do to it. I am looking for case mods or full hardware hacks.
If anyone has anything interesting please post. I am pretty new to hacking, but fairly capable too, so don't hold back!
Thanks!
paint it? ... add some LEDs? ... how about a digital picture frame mod?
have alook in the laptops section of this site for some ideas ... but as someone (i forget who) said ... the best hack is one that noone has done before
TOM
I have thought about painting it. I have also considered the picture frame idea, a la the 3400 posted recently. I also thought about "binding" it in a book cover and making a discreet wireless internet surfer for the living room. Still undecided...
Someone was planning a PB in a hollowed out hardback mod a while back, but I don't think anything came of it. Still its a neat idea you could explore. If you're looking for some inspiration some of the best PB mods are at Liethen.com.
Taking a cue from some of the clear mods out of Japan, a window mod might be an interesting sight on a laptop.
Hmmm...the window mod is a cool idea. Also, I was looking on the site you recommended--thanks for that btw--as well as deep in this site, and I found a mod using an old RCA tabletop radio--that is something I have thought about. Get the thing to run 9.2 and give it a bigger HD, so I can get itunes on it, and it could become a jukebox!
Please don't do the picture frame modification. What a waste of a very useful computer! When I see those, I always think "DAMN I could of used that laptop!!" So what I would reccomend, and I am saying this with hardly any experience, you should give it some nice red stripes that are going diagonal. I put some vertical ones on my black TI-83 and it looks quite tubular. I got the idea from looking at some WWI or WWII fighter planes. I think that would be quite shnazzy
I've been thinking about modding the 5300 too, since I've got an extra one coming to me for next to nothing as we speak. What I'm thinking about is sanding it smooth and painting it light blue (thus making it the "skyBook") with white accents on all the buttons and whatnot, finding someway to hack a wireless card inside it (since it wouldn't stick out and get caught on everything), or (and this is exciting to me) turn it into a tablet. I know the Assitive Tech Freestyle was basically a rebadged 5300 with no keyboard/track pad, so I know it can't be too hard. digitalww.com sells touch screen overlays for the 10.4" screen too, so that's available. OS 8 handwriting recognition? Anyone know? Do you all think that touch screen could be hacked in? I seem to remember someone doing this with a 2400, but I can't seem to find the site again. In all events, those are my ideas.
I dont see very many uses with an old powerbook/laptop, after all what can you do with a book that is over 5 years old. Not much at all. There just to slow, and there batteries are in poor condition. To me a digital picture frame is an awesome idea, and im going to do it with an old Powerbook 1400c.