Using Laptop in Your Vehicle

[ronbo613]

Since I will be spending a little time on the road, I wanted to use my Thinkpad T30 in my truck. It's simple and cheap.
First, make sure your vehicle's electrical system is in good shape. My truck is a 1990 Toyota with the original alternator and a nine year old battery, so I replaced the alternator and battery. Most people won't have to do this, but check out your charging system and battery anyway. If you have a multimeter, hook up the voltage meter to the two battery terminals with the engine running, if it reads about 14 volts, you're OK.
Instead of an auto/air power system, I went with a voltage inverter. The one I got is a TrippLite PV 150, that plugs into a cigarette lighter and puts out 150w of regulated 120VAC. This inverter is more than enough to charge the battery and run the T30. You'll probably want to use it with the engine running so you don't run down the battery, but just in case, the inverter has a low voltage alarm and automatic shutdown if the battery gets too low. This inverter was a really good deal at newegg.com.
TrippLite makes a 375w model, but with my four cylinder engine and 70 amp alternator, I didn't want to go overboard.
So the main plan is to charge the Thinkpad batteries when I'm driving, maybe use it a little with the engine running when I need to, and also use the inverter for my "cordless" electric shaver that works much better when it's plugged in. With gas here now at $3.30/gal, I'll want to keep the excess engine running to a minimum.

[jdhurst]

I do what you do, but charge my phone instead of a shaver (as well as my Laptop). I add (at some expense to my business) a Sony Ericcson Air Card and have Internet and email in my car (never, of course, whilst driving). ... JDH

[no_man]

I am doing the same with a 300w model, run my HP Deskjet 3940 printer, and other stuff, including IBM T43P.

[ronbo613]

Sounds like you've got a complete mobile office.
How are things in Cleveburg? I grew up in Euclid, my folks still live there.

So far the mobile office has the T30 connected to the inverter, I'll charge the battery for my digital SLR and probably run an external hard drive off it as well. My cell phone has it's own charger that plugs into the lighter, same with the MP3 player that plugs into the truck's stereo.
Looks like the most reliable spot for free WiFi are public libraries. To tell you the truth, I haven't been in a library since my college days(I think Hoover was president then), it was kind of cool to be back in one. I always enjoyed the academic atmosphere.

[no_man]

Cleveland is on top, #1 poverty city, and the Cleveland Food Bank has expanded facilities. Having lived in San Jose, the $500K starter home costs $30K here.

Your parents are getting maximum bang for the buck, hope they are doing well.

A power strip allows expanded usage of my 300w model (shaver, phone, printer, laptop, and unknown devices my GF plugs).

[ronbo613]

Yep, NE Ohio had it's glory days, but it's kind of a dying area now. The neighborhood I grew up in has really changed. They do have pretty good programs for seniors, but there a lot of people on welfare and I saw a news story about all the foreclosures. That's sad, when I was a kid it was a great place to live.
The reason I'm getting my show ready to go on the road is that the area I'm in now, North San Diego County, is out of control. It is so expensive to live here, I can't survive any more. $40K a year to just scrape by is ridiculous. Lots of people are leaving. The weather is great, but everything else sucks. I've got to relocate my business to a more affordable place with less crime, not sure where that will be.
Having a cell phone and laptop with me will make this job much easier, it's pretty much everything I need to get the job done. I'll take a power strip and extension cord with me.

[Techgurl]

Nine years on an auto battery has to be some kind of record?

What brand of battery is that in your truck?

[ronbo613]

If you take care of your vehicle, it will last much longer than you would think.
Pretty sure most vehicle batteries are made by a couple companies, Exide probably making most of them, so the particular brand name does not matter that much. I get most of my parts at the local Kragen
Auto Parts store.
Living in SoCal is not that hard on car batteries, it would be a different story if you had the summer-winter cycle that most people have, but if you keep water in your battery, don't keep running it down until it's almost dead, then charging it back up, most batteries should last at least five years.
Change the oil in your vehicle every 3K miles, get 30-60-90K service where valves are adjusted, transmission/differential fluid is changed,etc., your vehicle will last a lot longer, especially with today's high tech, four cylinder cars.

[Techgurl]

I buy the best battery I can get a top of the line Sears Die Hard.

There is no way to add water to them anymore.

Most I have ever got was 5/6 years.

9 years is amazing.

[ronbo613]

I recall the "maintenance-free" batteries(where you don't add water) were popular for a while, but the last few batteries I've bought have been the regular old kind.
Living in the desert may be a little harder than normal on a battery, getting five years out of one is not that bad. I might get a lot of life out of my truck battery, but the ones we had on our boat had a shockingly short lifespan. These expensive, "deep cycle" batteries usually only lasted a couple years, probably because they would sit for a few months, then get used hard for a few months. The discharge/charge cycle is what kills them. If you could keep your battery charged using what is known as a "trickle" charger to keep your battery near 100% charge all the time, it would last longer, but not many people are going to hassle that.
It is battery technology that is pretty much holding up the development of electric vehicles, there have not been many breakthrough discoveries as far as storing electricity goes.