01-take-out-battery

01-take-out-battery

Don't forget to unplug the laptop and remove its battery before you begin! You should let it hang...

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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02-open-(1)

02-open-(1)

Essentially following mennerTan's advice (found here-- read it before following...

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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03-open-(2)

03-open-(2)

... and keep pulling...

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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04-open-(3)

04-open-(3)

... and keep pulling. You'll feel resistance and hear a loud click. Don't worry! The plastic is strong as well as flexible-- you're not breaking it.

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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05-open-(4)

05-open-(4)

You can wrench the square key top to one side to free it.

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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06-open-(5)

06-open-(5)

And it lifts right off. Dried congealed hot cocoa: that's what was making the keys stick.

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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07-opened

07-opened

So this is what the key looks like inside. The horseshoe-shaped plastic parts have been jarred apart...

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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08-disassembling

08-disassembling

Go ahead and take the horseshoe parts out. (You can see that one is more of a box and one is more of...

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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09-isopropyl-alcohol

09-isopropyl-alcohol

I soaked the key top and the horseshoes in rubbing alcohol to soften the goo.

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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10-clean-(handkerchief)

10-clean-(handkerchief)

To clean the keyboard itself, I used a handkerchief soaked in rubbing alcohol...

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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11-clean-(bamboo-stick)

11-clean-(bamboo-stick)

... and, for something pointed but absorbent and not too sharp, some bamboo skewers that had been...

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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12-clean-(needle)

12-clean-(needle)

... and, finally, I scratched the tiniest crevices of the plastic parts clean with the point of a...

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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13-empty-tilde

13-empty-tilde

For comparison, I took the macbook's tilde off, too. (The key I had been working on was the U.) This...

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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14-disassembled-flat

14-disassembled-flat

Here are the key's plastic pieces, as clean as I could get them. The yellow arrows show you where...

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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15-reassembled-flat

15-reassembled-flat

And this is what the box and circle will look like when they're reassembled. Make sure you snap them...

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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16-reassembling-(1)

16-reassembling-(1)

The next step is to snap the box and circle into one another. You'll notice the circle has little...

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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17-reassembling-(2)

17-reassembling-(2)

Now the yellow lines point to where the pieces interlock. Good job, kid. You get a smiley face.

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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18-assembled-flat-in-key

18-assembled-flat-in-key

I think you'll have better luck if you stick the assembled plastic pieces into the keyboard and snap...

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Uploaded on Dec 26, 2007

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