Should I learn to fix my laptop myself?

Wednesday, April 29th, 2009 | laptops, Maintenance

The high cost of maintenance may lead you to think about fixing your laptop yourself when something goes wrong with the hardware.  Perhaps you are a do-it-yourself (DIY) person and are itching to get under the bonnet of your machine.

Remember that laptops use complicated technology, calling for specialist knowledge to maintain.   Furthermore, very small parts are packed into tight areas – these parts are easy to break or misplace.  Expert skill is required to work on such equipment.

Only some people have the aptitude to fix technical things.  You may have this talent and could learn how to fix your own laptop in the future.  In the interim, let the experts work on it while you concentrate on getting to know how to use your laptop as a teacher’s companion.

Aesop’s fable of The Widow and the Sheep  may give you some food for thought.

A poor widow had one solitary sheep.  At shearing time, wishing to take his fleece and to avoid expense, she sheared him herself, but used the shears so unskillfully that with the fleece she sheared the flesh. 

The sheep, writhing with pain, said: “Why do you hurt me so, Mistress? What weight can my blood add to the wool? If you want my flesh, there is the butcher, who will kill me in an instant; but if you want my fleece and wool, there is the shearer, who will shear and not hurt me.” 

There are two morals to this story:

the least outlay is not always the greatest gain

it is better to stick to one’s trade.

You don’t want to kill your laptop while attempting to fix it!  Rather learn to use the laptop as a tool first; if you have the aptitude you could acquire the skills to maintain it later.

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Tags: hardware, laptops, Maintenance