TechTails Archives | Small Dog Electronics

Subject: Tech Tails #154: Dead Pixels, iPod Batteries, OS X Performance Tips
Date: February 17th, 2003
Hello Tech Fans

Russ White, your resident mad scientist (and I have the hairstyle to
prove it) here at Small Dog, with the other mad scientists, Troy
Kingsbury, Jon Spaulding, Justin Granger, and our newest mad scientist,
Robin Grant, present our latest edition of Tech Tails.

Learn about dead pixels and what you can (maybe) do to fix them, the
latest AirPort Extreme update, Fiber Channel (no, it's not a new
high-fiber cereal), tweaking Mac OS X for speed, and the fine points of
maximizing the battery life in your iPod.

So, without further delay, Igor, throw the switch!



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The Pixel's *Dead*, Jim!

By Russ White

Ever since Apple made LCD displays standard on most of their computer
models and displays, we have seen an increase in calls about machines
with "dead pixels" or other pixel anomalies.

Each pixel on an LCD display is made up of three sub-pixels: red,
green, and blue. A dead pixel can take multiple forms, either stuck off
(dark), stuck on (white), or any of the three sub-pixels stuck on.

What can you do if you get a machine with a dead pixel?

Unfortunately, nothing -- unless you have an excessive number of dead
pixels. Apple considers a few dead pixels within spec. Apple's official
policy on dead pixels is that you are more than welcome to send it into
their service facility for evaluation. They will test the unit and if
has an excessive number of dead pixels they'll repair it. However, if
the display is within spec they may charge you a "no trouble found"
fee.

My threshold for evaluation would be four or more dead pixels. One to
three dead pixels are probably not enough to warrant screen repair, but
your mileage may vary.

Why doesn't Apple have tighter standards for LCD displays, you ask?
Well, according to Apple's Knowledge Base Document #22194:

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=22194

"There are typically millions of subpixels on a LCD display. For
example, the LCD panel used in the Apple Cinema HD display is made up
of 2.3 million pixels and 6.9 million red, green, and blue subpixels.
Occasionally, a transistor does not work perfectly, which may result in
the affected subpixel being turned on (bright) or turned off (dark).
With the millions of subpixels on a display, it is quite possible to
have a low number of faulty transistors on an LCD. Therefore, a certain
number of subpixel anomalies is considered acceptable. Rejecting all
but perfect LCD panels would significantly increase the retail price
for products using LCD displays. These factors apply to all
manufacturers using LCD technology -- not just Apple products."

That being said, I have found that Apple LCDs tend to have far fewer
dead pixels than other LCDs. Apple does have a high standard for LCDs,
but having a "zero tolerance" policy for bad pixels would raise the
price of the computers using them dramatically.

If a dead pixel really irritates you, there is one other thing you can
try that might work, although it's risky:

To try to "massage" the dead pixel out, take a soft, lint-free cloth
(do not use a paper towel or toilet paper unless you want to scratch
the screen) and gently rub the area of the pixel in a circular motion.
Soothing music is optional. ;) It just might fix the pixel, but in all
honesty, it probably won't.

The potential problem with this method is that massaging out a dead
pixel *might* fix it, but it might also *create* another dead pixel.
It's a last resort, and really not recommended. LCD screens are rather
delicate, so if you do want to risk it, use only gentle pressure. Push
too hard and you'll crack the screen -- and screen breakage is *not*
covered under Apple's warranty.

Yes, I know that dead pixels are annoying, in fact my monitor here at
Small Dog (a Silicon Graphics 17-inch widescreen LCD) has *two* bad
pixels, a red one about 1/2 inch from the top of the screen and a green
one about 3 inches down from the top of the screen, almost dead center.
The demo 20-inch HD Cinema Display in our retail store has one dead
pixel: a green one, dead center. We tried to have the screen repaired
-- after all, this is a *demo* screen, used to show off the image
quality of the Apple displays -- but Apple said that we'd have to live
with it, since the monitor's within spec.

As you can see, it can happen to anyone.

The secret of dealing with dead pixels. I've found, is to learn to
ignore them. After a while, you'll have to strain to find them. I had
to search for those two dead pixels on my screen, because I had
forgotten where they were. It also helps that I have a picture of my
plasma globe on that screen (the magenta and blue color scheme tends to
hide the dead pixels), so finding a desktop picture that masks the dead
pixels will also help.

A dead pixel may be annoying, but it's not an indicator that the screen
is defective or going to fail. It's just a fact of life with LCD
displays.

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AirPort Extreme Update

By Allen Nogee and Troy Kingsbury

As I wrote in a Tech Tails issue a few weeks back, Apple's AirPort
Extreme is out. It has a lot of cool features, but still has some
drawbacks when it comes to complete integration with the existing
AirPort technology. As luck would have it, Allen Nogee happens to be
one of our subscribers, and can shed more light on this issue because
he works in the wireless technology field.

+--------------------+

Allen writes:

"The AirPort Extreme problem relates to the header information for
802.11g. Since 802.11b legacy devices only understand Complementary
Code Keying (CCK) modulation and not 802.11g's Orthogonal Frequency
Division Multiplexing (OFDM) modulation, 802.11g devices are forced to
speak CCK so 802.11b devices understand them. The problem is that this
exact CCK/OFDM interaction hasn't been fully spelled out in a way that
legacy 802.11b devices still work while 802.11g devices can operate at
full speed.

"In the rush to get 802.11g chipsets shipping, shortcuts were taken,
and the result is devices that, while fully meeting the draft spec.,
don't operate in the most desirable way. Instead, when the 802.11g
chipset that Apple uses detects just one 802.11b device in its network,
it resorts to the easiest 'compatibility' mode possible, it switches to
802.11b mode. When all 802.11b nodes are gone, it switches back to OFDM
(802.11g) modulation.

"Obviously this method of compatibility is not ideal, but it does work.
When the issues are eventually resolved, it is likely that a firmware
upgrade will fix the problem.

You might want to look at this:

http://www6.tomshardware.com/network/20030117/index.html

"The design of this Linksys device is similar to what Apple has used.

"As a side note, this is how Apple's AirPort Extreme works currently,
but it shouldn't be considered a characteristic of Airport Extreme or
802.11g. Rather Apple (as well as D-Link, Linksys, Buffalo, Intersil,
and Broadcom) have released devices and wireless LAN chipsets ahead of
the 802.11g standard being approved, and to be honest, some of these
pre-standard devices have problems, like the one you mention.

"The fact of the matter is that the draft standard still has some holes
in it, especially when it comes to 802.11b/802.11g interoperability.
Therefore, like Safari, or most everything that Apple is releasing
lately, AirPort Extreme should be considered a beta. When the standard
is finally approved (maybe June) and the Wi-Fi Alliance starts running
interoperability tests, this will be resolved, and Apple will update
its firmware to correct the problem. Until then, Airport Extreme is of
limited use and more marketing hype than functional upgrade. (If you do
actual testing of Airport Extreme, in full 802.11g mode, I bet you'll
find the 'g' rate less than the "b" rate in many cases.)"

+--------------------+

After thinking that Mr. Nogee had filled me in on all the details, he
found some more current info and sent an update to me to tell me the
good news:

"Sorry, I don't mean to bombard you with e-mail, but just found out
some encouraging news. Things are getting worked out, so new firmware,
available in maybe a month, should be able to help this problem. This
is firmware that conforms to draft standard 6.1 of the 802.11g spec.
Still, however, until the spec. is done, it may change, so my warnings
still apply.

"You might want to look at this:

http://www6.tomshardware.com/network/20030117/index.html

"Here is a good article that was written by Ed Sutherland. He did a
fair bit of research here, and gives an honest view of things.

http://www.internetnews.com/wireless/print.php/1577701

Allen Nogee Sr. Analyst In-Stat/MDR Wireless Component Technology
http://www.instat.com

+--------------------+

Well I certainly would like to thank Mr. Nogee for his thoughtful and
most knowledgeable input to our Tech Tails. Having a person share such
cutting-edge information is a great service in helping everyone learn
about this new technology.

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Mmm...Fiber: Fibre Channel

By Jon Spaulding

With the new Xserve and Xserve RAID units using Fibre Channel, the
question is, What is Fibre Channel?

Fibre Channel is a communication technology that can be both direct,
like USB and FireWire, or networked like a LAN (Local Area Network). As
the name implies, Fibre Channel can run through optical cable, but it
is not limited to just optical cable. The topology can also communicate
through copper wire.

The advantages that Fibre Channel offers are: a high-rate data
transfer, up to 400MBs; option not limited by physical proximity; and a
networkable topology that allows an almost unlimited number of machines
(actually 16 million+).

There are six different classes of connection in Fibre Channel. The
simplest, Class 1, is machine to machine; the most complex is Class 6,
in which a single machine broadcasts to many machines.

Here is an older but excellent resource about Fibre Channel:

http://www.iol.unh.edu/training/fc/fc_tutorial.html

+----------------------------------------------------------------------
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Mac OS X Performance Tips

By Justin Granger

OS X rules! But the latest version is starting to seem a bit sluggish
on my older G3. Here are some ways to tweak the speed of OS X and get
that Jaguar racing again.

1. Repair Permissions Every file on OS X has a set of permission
associated with it. You can see some of these by looking at the
"Ownership & Permissions" section of the get info window. If the
permissions of some key system files aren't set properly, the system
may refuse to boot. In other cases, the system may just slow down. It
shouldn't hurt to check your permissions and it just might speed up
your machine. Launch "Disk Utility," go into the "First Aid" tab,
choose your startup volume from the list, and click "Repair Disk
Permissions."

2. Rebuild Your Prebinding OS X applications can share pieces of
programs between them. For instance, there's a little piece of code
that draws buttons. Every programmer doesn't have to rewrite that code
(known as a "shared library"). If they did, not only would it take
forever to write a program but every program would have
different-looking buttons. Wouldn't that be confusing! Instead, every
application can tell the system what libraries it needs to run
properly, "binding" itself and the library.

Rebuilding your prebinding makes a chart of the libraries needed by all
the applications on your computer. This speeds up the launching of
applications, because OS X can make sure that all the appropriate
libraries are available before opening the application, instead of
requiring the application to ask for them as it loads.

To rebuild you prebinding easily, download "Pacifist" from
www.charlessoft.com as I mentioned last week.

3. Check for Driver Updates Drivers are little pieces of code that tell
your computer how to talk to a hardware device such as a printer or an
iPod. A huge number of drivers are already built into OS X, but it is
still pretty common to install a manufacturer's driver to become
compatible with the latest hardware or to access some product-specific
features.

Drivers live in the kernel. They run at a very low level and can cause
problems similar to extension conflicts in OS 9. Perhaps I'll go into
troubleshooting them next week, but for now let's stick with speed.
Buggy drivers can cause a system to slow down, as in the case of the HP
Deskjet drivers. For this reason, I recommend that you visit the
website of the manufacturer of any hardware that you own and check to
see that you have the latest drivers.  I usually check every couple of
months, or whenever I update my system software.

4. Limit Background Processes Background processes are programs that
are running but that don't display anything on the screen. Check System
Preferences. Make sure you don't have things in your Login Items that
you don't need in the "Login" preferences. Also, turn off file and web
sharing if you aren't using them in the "Network" preference.

5. Add RAM I once tried to boot Jaguar on an older G3, and it took 45
minutes to boot. What's more, very few applications would run. I was a
little confused for a couple of seconds, until I realized I had
forgotten to put additional RAM in the machine. It was running Jaguar
with only 32 Megs!

While RAM doesn't directly speed up your machine, it does increase the
number of things you can do before your machine starts to slow down.
When your computer runs out of RAM, it starts using the hard drive.
This is known as virtual memory. If you get the spinning wait cursor
often when switching applications, you could probably benefit from
having more RAM. To really find out, go into the terminal and type
"top". When you see the number of pageouts increasing, you could
benefit from additional RAM.

I hope these tips help you to squeak out a bit more performance from
Jaguar!

+----------------------------------------------------------------------
-+

iPod Battery Issue

By Robin Grant

My poor iPod! I have had an original (5GB) iPod for a year now, and it
is definitely out of warranty. It seems that all electronic equipment
breaks on the day the warranty expires. Sure enough, my iPod's battery
has been running out faster and faster. I put it on charge for a whole
day, and yet it turns off within ten minutes. What gives?

First, this is a Lithium-Ion type battery (Li-Ion). These batteries
*like* being charged often and *don't* like being deep discharged.
(This is the opposite of the Ni-Cd batteries, but that's another
issue.)

Second, we need to minimize the drain on the battery, just as a good
operating principle. Here are Apple's instructions on how to do that:

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=61434

Then there is Apple's response: If it's still in warranty, they'll
replace it, if it's not in warranty, buy a new one. No, Apple will not
sell you just the battery. No, Apple does *not* want users opening
their iPods. No, replacement batteries are not readily available on the
internet. In fact, I found this note on iPodHacks.com: "The Ipod
battery is made by Sony under a license agreement to Apple. Apple owns
the rights to the battery and Sony can not legally sell it to anyone
except Apple. I have spoken to Sony sales folks and confirmed this."

Next, it seems that there is a hardware issue with the iPod's Power
Management Unit. I haven't found confirmation of this yet, but again a
post on the iPodHacks.com site: "I had significant problems with the
battery life on an early 5GB. An ex-Apple engineer friend of mine
informed me that there was a known hardware bug with the power
management circuitry, involving a capacitor in the monitoring circuitry
that does not discharge fully if the battery is connected, and which
builds up a charge over a period of time."

But there is also an interesting note about the newer iPod gimmicks,
like the new calendar feature that necessitates the constant running of
a real-time clock: "With the 1.2 firmware Apple tried to reward its
iPod users by adding PIM (datebook, etc.) functionality that wasn't
part of the original concept for the iPod. For this they need a clock.
However the iPod does not have a low power RTC (RealTimeClock) chip
that keeps time and can wake up the iPod for alarms. So they have the
main CPU taking care of that task. And I think they underestimated the
impact on battery life this would have."

So what can we do? Now that we know that there is a confirmed hardware
issue on Rev. A 5GB iPods, that Li-Ion batteries are supposed to last
longer than a year, and that the 1.2 firmware drains the battery faster
than before, we can look for a solution. And we find this, from Apple's
website discussion area:

http://discussions.info.apple.com/WebX?128@166.WtobaS1ChbO.20@.3bbe0202

The above article describes how to reset the PMU in the iPod. ***THIS
WILL VOID ANY WARRANTY!*** Only do this as a last resort on an iPod
that is definitely OUT of warranty!

Breaking open the guts of any small consumer appliance is
nerve-wracking. To make sure that you know what this involves, see this
site:

http://home.no/deep/ipod/disassembly/

So, the good news is that you don't have to throw out your $500 iPod
just because the battery can't hold a charge anymore. The bad news is
that if it's out of warranty, it'll take a little effort to bring back
to life. See what you can find in an hour's worth of web surfing?

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Tech Tails Specials

Here are the specials for this week, valid through 2/23/03 or while
on-hand supplies last. Be sure to use the links under the specials to
place your order online or mention Tech Tails to get this special
pricing.

+--------------------+

Too much snow in Vermont, so get an iMac.

iMac G4/800 with 768mb of RAM and the AppleCare extended warranty

Demo iMac G4/800 15-inch 256/60/Superdrive/Speakers Snow with an
Additional 512mb of RAM Installed and AppleCare Protection Plan for
iMac for - $1499

To order: http://www.smalldog.com/wag12628//attechtails/

+--------------------+

Must...have...more...memory (512MB)

Small Dog Brand 512mb PC133 SO DIMM (for PowerBook 550Mhz and higher,
iBook G3/500 and higher, and iMac G4) - $115

To order: http://www.smalldog.com/wag12716/attechtails/

+--------------------+

Kids on the Road iBook Deal

We recently took Mckayla and her friend Kellie to see the Disney On Ice
show in Lake Placid, and I was able to test a theory that a customer
told me. If you have a laptop with a DVD player, you can plug it into a
power adaptor in your car, plug a Link-it adaptor in the headphone
jack, and throw a seat-belt over the computer to lock it into place.
Put in a favorite DVD and you'll never hear the age-old question "Are
we there yet?" again. =)

Factory-Refurbished iBook G3/700 14.1-inch 256/30/Combo, Link-It FM 300
W FM Transmitter for iPod, and Curtis 50 DC to AC Inverter - $1249

To order: http://www.smalldog.com/wag5551555/attechtails/

+--------------------+

Save $3 on PowerBook Notebook Kleaning Kit with Microfiber Cloth - just
$19

To order: http://www.smalldog.com/wag12738/attechtails/

+--------------------+

iMac Special for Russ's Mother

I've been trying to get my mother to upgrade from her trusty old 7500.
Hopefully, this package will have everything she needs: a 15-inch iMac
G4, an Epson Photo 825 printer, a Nikon CoolPix 3500 camera, and to
store those huge image files, a pack of DVD-R discs. Each disc holds a
whopping 4.7 Gigabytes of data, a far cry from the 700MB on a CD. Mom,
it's time to upgrade. :)

Demo iMac G4/800 15-inch 256/60/Superdrive/Speakers Snow, New Epson
Stylus Photo 825 Printer, USB Cable, New Nikon 3500 3.2 Megapixel 3x
Zoom Camera, and 5-pack Apple DVD Media - $1849

To order: http://www.smalldog.com/wag12740/attechtails

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That's it for this week. Hopefully it will warm up enough around here
that our plumbing doesn't freeze at night!

Russ White Russ@smalldog.com

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