JG\        I will be buying a new notebook computer soon.  Most of
JG\the time I have my laptop plugged into an AC outlet.  Sometimes I
JG\need to use the batteries.  The model that I will be getting uses
JG\an internal NiMH battery and the charger is built-in to the
JG\computer.

  NiMH batteries are very similar in behavior to NiCd's aside from
three points:  The have a larger storage capacity, and they will be
ruined irreversibly the first time you overcharge them.  However,
NiMH don't exhibit the flakey behavior that NiCds do when they are
cycled partially.  They don't really care whether you run them down
all the way or not.  (Nor will you hurt them if you do.)

JG\        Are you saying that I should keep my NiMH battery
JG\connected to the laptop all of the time and then run them down
JG\once or twice a week?

  Not needed.  It's needed with NiCds, but NiMH are indifferent.
  Then again, it depends on what you mean by "I sometimes need the
batteries".  Leaving them plugged in for three weeks isn't that great
either...
  Rechargeable batteries are MEANT to be used and recharged.  They
like it.  :)  You can't hurt them if you do it properly, and
batteries *are* good for over a thousand charge cycles--think about
it.  That's several years.  There's really no reason to worry about
wearing them out.
  And there is no big deal to setting aside one day every week or
even every two weeks to using your batteries.  It's not that hard to
pull the plug out.

 At night when I turn off my laptop, should I
JG\keep the AC cord plugged in so the charger stays in 'trickle' mode
JG\and does not revert back to 'full' mode in the morning when I want
JG\to use the computer again?

  Yes, if you're going to leave it plugged in... leave it plugged
into a live socket, period.  The second you pull the plug out of the
computer and plug it back in, or if you unplug or disconnect the
charger from the AC for any length of time, the charger resets and
goes back into a full charge mode.
  Some chargers are more sensitive than others.  Mine happens to
detect that the battery is fully charged within five minutes--but
then again, this IS five minutes at full charge on a full battery and
it will eventually take it's toll.  So I just don't push it.

JG\        Do NiMH always have to be fully drained before
JG\re-charging?  I thought this type of battery was designed so that
JG\you could re-charge it if it was half-full and it would not suffer
JG\the same effects as a NiCAD.

  That's right...  :)
  But remember that something like fifteen minutes or a half hour
would *not* place any substantial drain on the battery.  If you went
and recharged it after such a short discharge, you're heading for a
problem with overcharging them.
---
  QNet3  ILink: MicroSellar BBS    Verona    NJ    (201)239-0001
