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dropped my MacBook Pro

K

KathrynCecelia

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jan 11, 2011
3
0
This is the second time to write this. First time said I wasn't logged in. (But I was)<sigh> Now... I don't usually drive my husbands car. It has a sloping hood and I set all the items I had carried out after a meeting on the hood while I fumbled with the keys and lock. My phone, purse and Mac all feel. I was (am) upset, but before I loose my cool I thought I'd ask for help here.

I did do "due diligence", searching for how to check my MacBook Pro if it isn't booting, but didn't find anything particularly on task. I got 32 pages of info, but nothing I could find with a protocol for testing my Mac after a fall.

I thought I'd try using the firewire hook up and booting holding the T key down. If I can see the hard drive I could at least recover the data. If not, I'm not sure of the next step.

I am not afraid to crack the case, having just upgraded the hd and RAM to much larger sizes. If I did that I'd be looking for loose wires, boards, etc. and seeing IF anything looked wrong. Any ideas on what could be wrong?

Symptoms: with cord or battery: will turn on and light up light on front of machine. Keyboard remains dark as does screen. There is no chime, so I don't think it's booting, but it is getting power.
I do have a nice dent on the case by the dvd slot. It also sprung the lid, but it does still catch. I use this machine about 10 hours a day. I have sooo much info on it! I really need it. Any suggestions gratefully accepted.
KaCe

PS
I am going to make a slip resistant handle for this. With my arthritic hands I can't hold the case well. There is NOTHING to grip. The lines may be clean, but this sleek look makes for a slippery computer that's difficult to pick up and that slides easily. I've done leather working in the past and have some leather, so I'm going to create a "steam punk-ish" strap/handle that I can grasp, but that adds little weight and no barriers for heat to escape. I'll enjoy the look too.
 
Its hard to say, but its possible you just hurt the hard drive. I suppose you will have to take the hard drive out and put it in an external case to test if its working. That would be the first thing I would do. If it doesn't work in an external usb case then you will probably have lost all your information, but the Mac may work with a new hard drive.
 
This is why you need to ALWAYS backup, not for the things you expect, but for that time you randomly put your laptop on a car hood and watch it fall.

Hopefully you backed up your info.

I would throw the HDD into an external like the above poster said, go from there.... can you boot from the CD? Can you even get it into the machine?
 
I agree with the above posts. Pull the HD out and see if it can be read externally on another Mac. Windows cannot read Mac HDs without extra software so you will have to plug it into another Mac.

If you live near an Apple Store they would probably help you see if your drive is still good.

If you have a local Mac dealer they would probably do the same for you.

If you post where you are at many people here would volunteer to help you diagnose your problem.

I'm in Indiana and would be happy to help you.

Lastly, if you are going to pull the HD out yourself, Best Buy sells external enclosures and just plain cables that will allow you to plug your HD into any USB port on a Mac.

Keep us updated!
-P
 
Hard drives are generally the first computer part to break in laptops (unless its a crappy PC laptop made of cheap plastic and then it just all breaks). If you can't get the data off yourself, there are companies that salvage data, but it can get very expensive and success is not guaranteed (most don't charge if they can't salvage though). Overall, the MBP/MBA survives impact really well. I saw a MBA go tumbling down a flight of concrete stairs, fall of a ledge of 5+ feet, smash on the concrete bottom, and other than cosmetic damage it worked fine. Rest assured that if there ever was a consumer laptop computer made to survive impact it is the MacBook line. You can get new hard drives for pretty cheap ($30) and high speed ones for $70-150+/-.

I have multiple sclerosis and I sometimes have issues with my wrists. I use the material used under carpets to prevent it from sliding on hardwood floor which gives the computer far better traction on both cloth and smooth surfaces. I have used Velco to allow it to be removable. Some people have also expressed satisfaction with using a (mild) grip-tape or adhesive. The aluminum case is an amazing advancement and while it is worth its weight in gold, it can get very cold which can trigger some pain for people with muscular skeletal issues.
 
thank you, Everyone

I wish to thank each of you for the time it took to reply. I have most of the info backed up. There is nothing that I can't recreate easily, but it is the inconvenience of having my reliable machine out of commission. And if it did die I don't have the money for another machine.... <sigh> I have several external cases, so I'll pull what's in one and put this hd in. I've got my fingers crossed and my eyes too.... oh, wait that won't work when dealing with the tiny screws on this thing!

I'll let you know if it died, or can be resurrected. A close Mac friend said because it landed near my dvd slot perhaps that isn't working right. He said the dvd is one of the first things the mac initiates when booting and if it can't mount the dvd it might hang up, so I'm also going to check that. First, I'm off the the Apple store to see if they'll help; then I move on to the above plan.

Wish me luck. Thanks, again. :)
 
dropped my MBP

Well, I went to the 'Genius Bar' at the Tacoma Mall. The fellow helping me said he thought it would be an exercise in futility...but I held out hope. It just didn't seem 'dead', to me. He took the machine in the back room and reseated the memory cards that were loose and she booted right up. I was very pleased with the ole girl. She's got what it takes. So I didn't need to follow through on the other suggestions. Thank you all. The Tinker Bell dust can help us all from time to time: "I believe."

Peace.
 
They are tough little suckers. They look fragile to a lot of people but in the real world, when subjected to 'the elements', you learn where you money went, and usually wind up purchasing another. Good stuff and glad to hear! :D
 
Great story, those ram sticks can pop out quite easily, If I had got here before you took it in I would have said to check the HDD and ram for connection and all the cables :D
 
KathrynCecelia said:
Well, I went to the 'Genius Bar' at the Tacoma Mall. The fellow helping me said he thought it would be an exercise in futility...but I held out hope. It just didn't seem 'dead', to me. He took the machine in the back room and reseated the memory cards that were loose and she booted right up. I was very pleased with the ole girl. She's got what it takes. So I didn't need to follow through on the other suggestions. Thank you all. The Tinker Bell dust can help us all from time to time: "I believe."

Peace.
Click to expand...

Glad it worked out. :)
 
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