Dented My Laptop today....<argh>...
 

Hi all....just wanted to vent out of frustration for my own stupidity. So I have been driving a lot lately to work because I lost my goggles thus making it just to cold bike around...Today, was a bit warmer, so I thought I could handle it...

mounted my equpiment on my bike, put on the kickstand, went to close the garage..and bam...bike leaned over because of the weight and fell, bag hitting the ground first.. I scratched my brake shifters (very minor) and no body bike frame damage.... i cycled for a bit and the bitter wind against my eyes was to much for me....went home, changed and drove in.

So sitting on my desk..and I see it. A dent on my screen. I don'tk now exactly how it was caused as it was protected by the clothing....but oh well....it happened. Im pissed off at myself for my own idiotic actions.

1. I should have known better than to bike without proper gear
2. I know better than to lean the bike on the driveway on the side with the weight on it.

im just pissed...that my MBP has a dented screen with a slightly blurred area on the screen. it is hardly noticeable...but I notice it.

Oh well....I guess this is the 'risk' factor when transporting a laptop. From now one, im going to be more careful, and im going to look into using a laptops sleeve for added protection.

In the two years of commuting, and three falls...on the side of the laptop, this is the first form of physical damage i've had.

argh...

Trade ya for a MBP with a ding in the lid. Sucks, still haven't gotten over mine.

Just think of it this way. In an alternative world, you probably would have spilled liquid on it by now. Nothing lasts forever I guess.

HAHA....That already happened. Spilled tea on my keyboard that short circuited my backlit keyboard. Apple however was kind enough to replace it, free of charge...although I think I forgot to mention that I spilled tea on it. I don't think a ding would go unnoticed though...lol.

That's exactly why I rarely take my laptop with me when I commute, and when I do, I use one of these:

http://www.tombihn.com/page/001/PROD/300/TB0390

Had not run across that case before. Interesting. I use a padded sleeve for my netbook that is mad for my Novara Pannier but it lacks the corrugated outer layer. Might cut something to put between the sleeve and the exterior. The inside should be fairly protected by the panniers backing plate.

It really sucks to wrech a nice piece of equipment. Those MBP really dent easily, i dont think it takes much at all. I have heard of dozens and dozens taking dents from very minor accidents

The work product on my laptop is worth a lot more than the machine itself, it's worth real protection. I use a Pelican case pannier, tough enough that I didn't have any laptop damage when the case was hit by a car last winter. (I wasn't as lucky, ended up with a broken hand. But hey, I can type left-handed....)

Close the lid and use external monitor w/ external keyboard/mouse. You won't see the dent. :)

You might need a better laptop case, something padded. Of course, if you fell hard, that would probably break anything, but for small dings, the padding can be quite helpful.

If you back up the laptop you don't need to worry about it to much.

Backup is automatic whenever I'm on the LAN. But it only takes two or three days out of the office to make the work worth more than the machine.

Well worth a decent carrying case for it. The case also makes a good seat when the train is full.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3290/...00caec09_m.jpg

This is why kickstands are not to be trusted.

Laptop is warm, dry, and well-padded in my backpack.

Once at work, I can then power up the hard drive before I step on the recharging cord and knock it off my desk onto the floor.

1. Are you talking about a neoprene sleeve for your MBP, or the goggles (cuz its really not THAT cold)
2. Well regardless of leaning the bike crashes do happen so I'd be thinking of how better to protect the MBP

Yea sure the case, but it won't be my first line of defense ever. I would find a way to back that data up if it is so important. I use a USB hard drive external. I use a thumbdrive when i don't want to carry a laptop.

Please make sure you've backed up. I hit a patch of ice about two years ago on the way to work and slightly damaged the case of my MacBook (in a neoprene sleeve in my messenger bag). The computer started acting weird soon after, but I didn't really think about it much -- then I lost all my data in a catastrophic hard drive failure :(