is a laptop whose display is working no more still of any use ?

3 months ago by Codewizard to c/asklemmy

@asklemmy is a laptop whose display is working no more still of any use ?

SkaveRat 61 points 3 months ago

sure.

You can attach an external display. Or turn it into a small home server

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unexposedhazard 11 points 3 months ago

Or as an always online syncthing node, but that basically makes it a homeserver.

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Xaphanos 8 points 3 months ago

With a built-in ups.

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unexposedhazard 5 points 3 months ago

Yup, many laptops even have a sim card slot so with that you could even configure it to fall back to mobile data in case of a power outage that also takes out your homes wired internet.

I have a thinkpad at work that has been in that role for years. Its the central syncthing node for like 10 other laptops and computers. It then also does regular automated backups to off site storage in case anything bad happens with the syncthing setup.

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h54 16 points 3 months ago

If you have an external monitor, turn it into a halftop.

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sexy_peach 16 points 3 months ago

Could also maybe be repaired

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codewizard 1 point 3 months ago

@sexy_peach that costs an awful lot of money, and the investment is really not worth it considering the age of the machine.

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sexy_peach 2 points 3 months ago

Then ignore this idea

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luthis 0 points 3 months ago

It costs like $100 to order a replacement screen, depending on the model.

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Agent641 16 points 3 months ago

ultra low profile headless server with built in UPS? Heck yeah!

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dessalines 12 points 3 months ago

If you run any services (jellyfin / a media server, torrents, document storage, etc), have them run on it.

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codewizard 2 points 3 months ago

@dessalines sounds interesting, but how does something like jellyfin work on a laptop without any display ?

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tophneal 8 points 3 months ago

You use the laptop to run the server that dishes up the content for the client devices that have working displays to watch on

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codewizard -5 points 3 months ago

@tophneal too nerdy stuff for me.

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shrek_is_love 14 points 3 months ago

Now I'm curious why you chose that particular username 🤔

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dessalines 3 points 3 months ago

You won't be able to do this then. You'd need to learn your way around linux, servers, ssh, etc to be able to run these services.

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tophneal 3 points 3 months ago

I’m afraid if the display is actually dead then most of the options to keep the laptop computing will likely be “too nerdy” for you. Pretty much all of them will involve using it as a headless server.

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coolfission 3 points 3 months ago

To make it easy, start off with plugging your old laptop into external monitor. Install RDP, VNC, ssh, ftp depending on your OS. Install tailscale and join the network. Now with another computer, connect to that same network with tailscale and then you can connect and see your laptop screen with RDP. Or if you want VNC you can get a “dummy” hdmi adapter or try installing software for dummy monitor output. After that, use wired ethernet to plug old laptop in router, set to never turn off (recommend removing laptop battery beforehand) and there you go, you have your own personal server you can access anywhere including your phone! From there, look into self-hosting with apps like jellyfin, immich, etc. tons of great resources online.

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Soulphite 12 points 3 months ago

Yes, you and a group of your closest friends could have a grand ole time at the local park playing Frisbee with it.

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SkaveRat 3 points 3 months ago

I'm using an old broken netbook to prop open my living room window

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shrek_is_love 2 points 3 months ago

Or baseball!

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HiddenLayer555 9 points 3 months ago

The way I see it, it's basically downgraded to a desktop (assuming it has a separate display output). People use laptops like that as desktops and even home servers all the time.

The two major things to look out for is you probably want to configure it so that closing the lid doesn't put it to sleep, and if possible, detach the battery and just run it off the charger to prevent the battery from puffing up from being constantly charged.

Hell, detach the screen entirely and you basically have a DIY modern Commodore 64.

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prime_number_314159 2 points 3 months ago

Some laptops let you set a maximum charge for the battery at 70 or 80%, which is better for long term storage, and still offers the backup power supply if needed.

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GiorgioPerlasca 5 points 3 months ago

Replacing a display in a laptop is a routine operation for IT companies hardware teams. So it should be easy to find a shop that replaces the display.

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MalReynolds 5 points 3 months ago

Totally, assuming of course it's a business class laptop (indeed if it's a thinkpad or similar most anyone can grab a $50 screen from China, find a yt tutorial and have a go themselves with a fair chance of success). On the other hand if it's a glued together ultra thin consumer POS, it's likely more than it's worth to get it fixed.

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IWW4 4 points 3 months ago

It depends on why it stopped working. If the display doesnt work because it got dropped chances are other parts of it are broken as well.

Assuming everything else is functioning properly and it has an HDMI/VGA/DVI etc, than it can be connected to an external display.

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lemonhead2 3 points 3 months ago

u might be able to buy the display cheap and fix it. I've previously bought the same model on ebay

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monovergent 1 point 3 months ago

As useful as any mini PC. Unless it's one that refuses to boot without a working battery or requires you to jump through hoops to get display out blindly.

Self-hosting aside, I had one during the work-from-home times. I wanted to easily move my setup from room-to-room, but not worry about the built-in screen being in the way of my nice monitors/CRT/TV or ruining the battery by leaving it plugged in all day.

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codewizard 1 point 3 months ago

@monovergent how do you boot a PC without looking into the monitor ?

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monovergent 1 point 3 months ago

The halftop I used was a Thinkpad and Lenovo has an online BIOS simulator. I followed it to the display output settings and set it to default to HDMI out instead of the internal LCD. Which then let me do everything including BIOS configuration on an external monitor.

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codewizard 1 point 3 months ago

@monovergent you did it by tinkering with the hardware ?

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monovergent 1 point 3 months ago

Not strictly, that was just a BIOS option. Can't guarantee every laptop comes with it. The power button was situated on the lid though, so I had to bodge it into the lower chassis.

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AgentRocket 1 point 3 months ago

You could hook it up to a tv and use it as HTPC (home theater pc), i.e. streaming movies or music from the web or an hard drive or even gaming. Depending on the hardware either natively on the machine or streaming using steamlink or geforce now.

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mumblerfish 1 point 3 months ago

I used a laptop with no screen and no harddrive for a while, mainly for presentations during teaching. The laptop plus a usb with linux and the pdf on it, hook it up to the projector. Worked fine. I think I also stripped if from most of the ram.

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codewizard 1 point 3 months ago

@mumblerfish the projector acted as the display ?

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mumblerfish 1 point 3 months ago

Exactly. Showed presentations for my students on it.

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codewizard 1 point 3 months ago

@mumblerfish I can't imagine a projector.

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