103b-ba PC Lab

Building a Time Machine Deconstructing The Computer with Jaymie Zapata (and Quincy Knapp)

Details of the Lab

• Performed on: February 7, 2011

• Performed at: Ford Hall Atrium

• Performed by: Jaymie Zapata and Quincy Knapp

Details of the Computer

• Model number: Dell OT570

Dissemblage of the Computer

Inside the Computer:

Processor

Behold the Processor!:

Memory-- All Alone in the Moonlight

Behold the Memory!:

Power Supply

Behold The Power Supply!:

DVD Drive

Behold the DVD Drive!:

(Well, actually we forgot to take a picture of it when we pulled it out, but you can see it there still in the computer in this picture)

Hard Disk

Behold The Hard Disk!:

Behold The Inside of the Hard Disk!:

Motherboard

Behold THE MOTHERBOARD:

Other Stuff

• 

  Part of the Fan

• 

  Video Card

• 

  Parts thrown back inside

Trials and Tribulations

Overall, we found the computer surprisingly easy to disassemble with the exception of the Hard Drive which required a special tool. Most everything else was very clearly designed to be easy to pull apart, possibly for the purpose of the purchaser being able to modify and repair it herself. The motherboard was screwed down, but it did not take more than a few minutes to have it unanchored. We believe that the video disk was a later addition to the computer to improve its performance.

I was also struck by the amount of empty space. I suppose I had thought that a computer would be filled with more wires and boards, but it does not have that many parts in total. The motherboard, however, was quite intense when we looked at it up close, especially on the back with all the little copper lines.