My 'new' $70 used X60s is terrific!

[John H]

About 5 years ago I bought a used X60s on eBay for about $400 intending just to use it on trips to the coffee shop, but with time I found I was using it much more than my T60 or T520, so when the T60 crapped out with a disk MBR problem, and the T520 got rained on, I found I was using it all the time. So I thought "I better get a backup X60s, just in case", while I delayed fixing the Big Guys.

Thanks to eBay seller ' electronicscafe ' I got a gem of a used X60s for about $80, complete with a x6 dock. And it works great! Of course I had to add an HDD (of which I have several spares).

Of course I'm biased to Thinkpads because the keyboard (even on this small compact instrument) feels good and I know I can get parts and service everywhere. Thus, I snubbed my nose at Chromebooks and Apple Macbooks, which I'd been considering.

It works great. I'm using it right now.

All I have to do is get my 'boot' stuff straightened out! Usually I boot to Ubuntu(linux) with an ancient WinXP as an option. So I examined the partitions I'd built a couple years ago when I upsized the X60s HDD, and I was totally confused! I remember I had some grand plan for putting all data, like movies and youtube videos and audio CDs into a special partition so I could migrate that independently next time. But even my notes from that migration are hopelessly confused.

So all I did is use 'parted' to allocate a linux and a WinXP partition, then copied the two partitions on the old X60s HDD to the new HDD (in a USB box attached to the old X60s). Bingo! About 4 hours later the new HDD has copies of the two partitions! Except that the new HDD doesn't boot up in the 'new' X60s. But if I put the USB stick I have that contains Ubuntu 14.04 into a USB slot in the 'new' X60s and select it in startup with the blue 'Thinkvantage' button the Ubu 14.04 works fine. That's where I am now. So I'm trying to get my boot working from the HDD instead of the USB.

Any ideas?

Anyway, the X60s is working so good that I got an underneath cooling pad from a friend so that I don't burn my thighs or set off a thermal sensor, since now it is so apparent to me that this little 3 lb. computer is a real workhorse!

[axur-delmeria]

I think yYou need to install or reconfigure the bootloader.
On many linux distributions it's GRUB.

[John H]

I've got both GRUB and superGrub here on CDs. I tried superGrub but it's so confusing that I pulled back to spend a little time learning it (again).

[axur-delmeria]

The issue is that you created the partitions and copied the files, but did not install GRUB on the new hard drive's MBR. That's why the hard drive doesn't boot.

I've encountered a similar problem before, but I can't remember the things I did to fix it since it was more that a year ago.

Maybe this would work? http://www.howtogeek.com/114884/how-to- ... wont-boot/

[SmokeStacks]

The X60s is amazing.

You mentioned an ancient Windows XP install alongside Ubuntu, but the X60s can run Windows 7 just fine if you install it instead. It'll eat more of your hard drive space compared to XP, but on the upside it will still be getting Windows updates. Just make sure to disable Aero if you plan on multitasking because the paltry GMA 950 can barely keep up, even when increasing the VRAM to 128MB.

You also mentioned high temperatures, I'd definitely recommend both flashing the X60s' BIOS to remove the hardware whitelist and installing a different wifi card, the stock ones run very hot (you'll feel it in the right side of the palmrest). Also, due to the dense internals on the X series dust buildup in your fans can cause issues with heat, since it's a used model I'd definitely recommend opening it up and both cleaning out the fans and possibly reapplying the thermal paste.

The X60s is a very solid machine, and is the best portable computer I have ever owned.

[Atreides]

The X60s really is a stellar machine, as my first entry into the ThinkPad world it blew me away.

I just wanted to second that it really does do a great job running 7, I used to run it on my little 60GB with aero enabled and it was smooth as could be.

[RealBlackStuff]

You can improve it even more by replacing the motherboard with one from an X61s.
All of a sudden you can then use up to 8GB RAM, and with Middleton's BIOS you can run HD or SSD at SATA II speed.

[Edward Mendelson]

Just make sure to disable Aero if you plan on multitasking because the paltry GMA 950 can barely keep up, even when increasing the VRAM to 128MB.

Interesting - exactly how do you increase the VRAM in a Windows 7 setup like this?