TiBook/400 Battery Burned Out :(

[Leo D. Venezuela]

Just wanted to ask the forum if anyone's experienced a burned out 
battery on a TiBook.

Last night, I had some difficulty in waking up my PB from sleep. It 
took me quite a while to finally get it up and running (by holding on 
to the power key for some time) with the AC adapter attached. It 
restarted. I thought it was just some temporary glitch. But after 
that, while working away on my TiBook, I decided to move locations, I 
pulled the AC adapter plugged and the notebook just died. Sensing 
that something was wrong with the battery, I removed it. Near the 
contacts portion of the battery, I noticed black burn marks on the 
plastic portion of the battery around the contacts. It also had a 
burned out odor. Sh#t! My battery just got deep-fried! :(

Some observations and questions:

1. I can now run the PB only when it's attached to the AC adapter. 
What could've caused the battery to burn out? Was it a short circuit? 
What could've caused it? I remember holding it exposed (not in a bag 
or case) while walking in a light drizzle for less than five minutes 
(office to parking lot) last week. Could this be the culprit? If so, 
why wasn't the effect immediate?
2. I also notice that the left front (where the AC adapter is plugged 
to the PB) and center front under sections of the notebook get 
unusually hot. Is it just me or is the extra heat a symptom of 
running the TiBook without a battery? Or does it mean that there's 
something wrong with my computer other than the battery? Other than 
the resetting date and time, I haven't found anything wrong with it 
when it's in operation (late last night and the whole day today).
2. The date and time reset to 1970 even when I properly shut down the 
machine before unplugging the AC adapter. Doesn't the TiBook have 
some internal battery that will keep the time and date settings 
current even without the battery attached?

Luckily, I have an extra battery with me that I can easily put into 
the TiBook but I'm afraid that there might be something wrong with 
the machine and installing it might again fry it.

Advice and inputs from a list member who has experienced this similar 
situation would be highly appreciated.

Thanks.

-- 


================================
L  e  o   D.   V  e  n  e  z  u  e  l  a
email: ldven at i-manila.com.ph
mobile email: levenezu at globextm.com.ph
mobile: +63 922 369 7958
fax: +1 413 826 2738
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"No experience of the failure of his policy can shake his belief in 
its essential excellence." - The Woodenheadedness of Philip II